On a sunny evening earlier this month, Mullin met Donald Trump Jr. and sat with former Hawaii Representative. Tulsi GabbardA former Democrat who recently announced he will join the Republican Party is on a small stage in front of a few hay bales, answering questions from an audience of several hundred people. They discussed a variety of topics, from economics to tribal self-determination.

The event took place on a small farm in Red Springs, North Carolina, which is part of the traditional homeland of Mullin’s ancestors and is now home to the Lumbee Tribe, a state-recognized tribe with about 55,000 members.

Federal recognition of the Lumbee has been opposed by many tribal nations, including the nearby Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and Mullin’s own tribe, the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma. The Lumbee push for federal recognition has become a focal point of both campaigns, a rare issue on which both parties agree. Last month, Trump said he would sign legislation granting federal recognition to the Lumbee. Harris called the Lumbee tribal chairman last week to discuss the legislation.

“This is an injustice that needs to be corrected when it comes to the Lumbees,” Mullin told the crowd. “This is absolutely ridiculous. It needs to be done. I was so proud when I heard President Trump say he would sign this.”

But Mullin soon pointed to one of the many areas where the two candidates differ: energy policy. Emphasizing his belief that Trump’s second term would mean a better economy and lower energy costs, Mullin laid out Trump’s policy in a recognizable term that viewers resonated with: “Drilling, baby, drilling.”

Both the Biden and Trump administrations have sought to produce more oil and gas than ever before, including through extractive energy projects opposed by Indigenous peoples. But Native leaders have expressed concern that Trump will further erode protections for tribal lands.

If tribal nations are truly sovereign, Mullin argued, they should be able to extract energy without the burden of federal intervention. Tribes’ rights to manage their own lands have also fallen victim to federal bureaucracy, he said, as has the Lumbee’s fight for federal recognition.

“Why are tribal lands treated as public land?” Mullin asked, questioning why the federal government should have any control over tribal nations that extract natural resources on their lands. “Natural resources are being extracted from the land just beyond protected areas. “There are extremely wealthy private landowners and people literally starving to death on reservations,” he said, comparing some to third world countries.

He promised that Trump would have a deep understanding of tribal sovereignty.

That message resonated Robert Chavis Jr.., a physical education teacher and army veteran who was at the rally and will vote for Trump. Chavis, a member of the Lumbee Tribe, said tribal nations are not just governments, they are also businesses, and the United States is no different. “I don’t think you need a politician there. “We need a businessman who will govern the country as it should be.”

But other Lumbee voters are not so convinced. At the art gallery a few miles away in Pembroke, Janice Locklear Trump said he promised to federally recognize the Lumbee when he last took office and has no reason to believe he can achieve that this time. But he described what Trump has done from a broader perspective than his community January 6, 2021poses a nationwide threat to democracy.

“He really thought he could be a dictator, get in there and take over. Even though he lost the election; He knew he lost the election. “So what do you think you will do this time?” he said.

Locklear said she is confident that, as a black woman, Harris will have a deeper understanding of the unique challenges facing Native Americans. “I’m sure he had to face the same problems we faced,” Locklear said. “I’m sure you’re facing discrimination.”

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Reprinted with permission from the Associated Press.