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 “I Was an Indian, I Was Outstanding” H.R. 7153 and H.R. 7299 A Bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to accept voluntary conveyances of lands owned by Waccamaw Indians in North Carolina and to issue trust patents for such lands, and for other purposes. —U.S. House of Representatives 1950 For more than two decades, the ancestors of the Waccamaw Siouan hammered away at their goals, forging articulatory relationships with the nonIndian society. In the process, we glimpse the values central to their concept of Indianness. Indians de¤ne their members; distinctions are made between Indians and colored people. Indians do not align themselves publicly with colored people. Indians act nonlocally in pursuit of their aims, forging contractual relations with non-Indians based on acceptance of their Indian identity. They are persistent, stubborn, tenacious, and pragmatic in their choice of articulation strategies. So, as the 1940s came to a close, the Wide Awake Indian Council (WAIC) brought its ¤ght for recognition to the federal level as Congress considered the Waccamaw Bill of 1950. The story of the Waccamaw Bill of 1950 centers on the imagery of a “lost tribe” recently and romantically rediscovered. The imagery invokes an Indian culture untouched by civilization’s corrupting in®uences.The theme of American Indians as objects of discovery,living disconnected from modern times, is linked to the very beginnings of American anthropology (Hoxie et al. 2001:268–269). The American public generally accepted the idea that American Indian cultures “could not have a modern existence.” They were “lost” in the sense that native life and modern life were incompatible . On February 6, 1950, Norris Poulson of California, who was a member of the Subcommittee on Indian Affairs,explained to his colleagues that the Waccamaw Bill “will recognize what might be called a lost tribe of Indians in North Carolina. The story of these Indians is both interesting and tragic” (U.S. Congress 1950:A886). It was the WAIC and its newly appointed leader,Reverend R.T.Freeman, who were responsible for getting Norris Poulson to introduce the 1950 Waccamaw Bill. R. T. Freeman was the younger brother of W . J. Freeman, who recently had “retired” as “chief spokesman” for the council after serv- ing for many years.The time-tested articulatory strategies remained in place and R.T.Freeman continued to seek contractual relations with non-Indians in pursuit of Indian goals. R. T. Freeman picked up the strong leadership tradition of his elder brother. A close friend described R. T. Freeman as “a born leader” (Lerch 2002:32). Like his brother before him, he established connections to Indian and white leaders outside of his community who could offer assistance and advice. For example, there are stories telling of the friendly and supportive relationship between R. T. Freeman and Governor Kerr Scott of North Carolina. One story narrates how the governor learned of the plight of the Indians through his brother, who once employed the young R. T. Freeman. Over the years, Freeman visited the governor, bringing before him issues concerning his tribe. Governor Scott trusted Freeman’s word on the Indian membership of his community.Freeman carefully screened tribal membership by reviewing birth records and af¤davits certifying Indian heritage.His actions were similar to those of the Indians of Robeson County, who since 1921 had had screening committees guarding entrance into their Indian schools (Blu 1980:81). Freeman often faced dif¤cult choices “because he would have to tell some no, [some] that was awful good friends. I mean, you know, it caused a lot of heartaches, you know, when you had a person that worked for you for twenty-¤ve years and always got on good, but was mixed-blooded for some reason, then he had to [say] no, you’re not [an Indian ]”(Lerch 2002:33).Yet,R.T.Freeman’s actions demonstrate that Indians de¤ned their own membership. Indian leaders also acted nonlocally to accomplish their goals.R.T. Freeman remained friendly with men like Butler Prescott, the chief United States probation of¤cer in the Eastern District of North Carolina. In 1943, Prescott handled the pre-sentence investigation of six “Indian young men” charged with failing to report for military duty at the local draft board in Whiteville, North Carolina. According to one account, “Early in 1943 six Indians from the settlement were drafted. They appeared on the speci¤ed day and learned they were classi¤ed as Negroes. They advised the...

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