Distinctions between Tuscarora, Lumbee, and Coharie people.
It is no real mystery in North Carolina that the Tuscarora, and Lumbee as well as the Coharie people are closely related by blood, but what may not be widely known is the distinction between the three groups that makes them a separate people today.
To put it short, the main distinction is Traditionalist vs Pan-Indian/Pow-Wow culturalist.
The Tuscarora, preferably called Skarure people in their various communities tend to stick to the more traditional; Iroquois/Woodland culture of their ancestors where as the majority of the Lumbee and Coharie nations have adopted the Pan-Indian movement that started in the mid-early 20th century.
This cultural movement mimicked the culture of Plains Nations people, however these displays of Pan-Indian culture is oftentimes looked at as disrespectful by traditionalist here as well as traditionalist of the people it is intended to mimic. In fact the name Lumbee and Coharie as a tribal identity was only created in recent history as the Lumbee was only established in 1958 and the Coharie in 1971.
However the Tuscarora was established as a confederacy shortly after the establishment of the Haudenosaunee when split families migrated to what is now North Carolina, generations before the migration of Europeans to these lands.
"Today, much of the Coharie acknowledges their ancestral ties to the Tuscarora people via directly or by way of the Coree/Nusiock people who belonged to the Tuscarora Confederacy.
(The name Coharie iteself is a Tuscarora word, Coharie was named after the Tuscarora Chief, Coharie/Cohary who was executed alongside Chief Hancock at the end of the first Tuscarora war)
Their direct relatives, the Lumbee, seem to mostly agree that they have Tuscarora in them, but often times find confusion in this as the federal and state governments had insisted on changing their name multiples of times for the sake of their termination movement which was designed to eliminate indigenous rights and rights to lands.
Today however, a minority, much of which consist of none native ‘historians’ have convinced the tribal government to seek full recognition under the identity of Cheraw despite all evidence indicating other wise.
Although their is small traces of Cheraw ancestry via the Grooms and possibly a few other families, it is not enough to claim it as their sole or primary heritage. The Catawba of whom the Cheraw absorbed into deny the Cheraw claims of the Lumbee."
The Tuscarora of the state is currently split into various communities and currently does not operate in a centralized single council despite various attempts being made to do so.
They tend to oblige themselves by the traditional Iroquois laws and traditions of the ‘Great Law of Peace’ with a combination of values distinct among the Tuscarora.
Some of the language is still intact, and a renaissance to save it has been taking place for the last decade and a half. Traditional stories that originate with the Tuscarora, as well as the Haudenosaunee are still shared and the ceremonies are still practiced. Although some communities do host Pow-Wows, they do not tend to represent the same style of Pow-Wows hosted by the Coharie or Lumbee nations. Socials among the Tuscarora are more common than Pow-Wows, and they resemble something close to that of a close knit family reunion complete with food; song, dance, stories, and political and historical discussions, things like food stands or store fronts are none-existent among these socials, and the food is often cooked either on sight by a group of volunteers, or various individuals chip in with their own dishes for the whole community to enjoy.
The songs and styles of drums and rattles are rather different than what is used at Lumbee/Coharie Pow-Wows, and one of the most noticeable differences is that the Tuscarora dance/move around the singers/fire counter clockwise, (with their heart on the side of the singers/fire).
The Lumbee/Coharie Pow-Wows, like most Pow-Wows move clock wise and most traditionalist refuse to participate in these dances because of this. There is only one exception where Tuscarora move clock-wise which I wont speak of here publicly.
Some of the food sources are even traditional today which dates back to the Tuscaroras long established control of the salt and spice trade within the region.
Although the food and the ways we prepare them are commonly shared among all of the people, it would appear that the Tuscarora for the most part are the ones that still understand their origins.
Much of the Tuscarora crops were still grown up into the early 2000s, and a cultural movement has been started by Tuscarora and Seneca people with the help of a a few seed stewards from Monacan, Saponi, and Lumbee people in hopes to reestablish our traditional crops; save our seeds from extinction, as well as to use this as a tool to educate as agricultural played a vital role in Tuscarora heritage.
The most notable crop is the long white Tuscarora corn which has it’s historical origins in North Carolina among the Tuscarora, and was later adopted by the Haudenosaunee where it is also still grown today.
Our traditional dress is drastically different also, the Lumbee/Coharie dress is that of the style of the Pan-Indian movement, where as the Tuscarora traditional dress is that of conservative Iroquois style with a mix unique styles that originate within the south east.
In almost every manner, the distinctions is found in the physical, and psychological forms among the groups which can make it relatively easy to recognize where a person is from by simply talking to them.
This isn’t to say that the modern culture of the Lumbee/Coharie is negative, it is just distinct and different than that of their ancestors. This Pan-Indian culture is shared among many eastern nations today, even of those who still hold on to their historical tribal identity.
There are many great Lumbee/Coharie people who do great things for their people by either using their traditional knowledge, or adapting the culture of the Pan-Indian Style.
It is my personal opinion that the Coharie and Lumbee be acknowledged as a distinct, and separate nations of that with the Tuscarora that share common ancestry. I personally acknowledge the right to self identify so as long as you don’t use it to oppress any other groups.
(IE the Lumbee act where it labels all native people in Robeson and surrounding counties as Lumbee despite how distinct they may be). If a person wishes to identify with either groups, I feel their decision should be respected, and I also feel if any of one groups members wish to disenfranchise and enroll with a more traditional group, I feel their decision should also be respected.
Through Respected Separation, We Find Unity.
-Fix
https://skarorehkatenuakafix.wordpress.com/#:~:text=Today%2C%20much%20of,of%20the%20Lumbee.
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