We didn’t do this in retaliation for Hatcher’s decision to hold 20 employees of this newspaper hostage on Feb. 1, 1988, as a way to draw attention to what he perceived as widespread government corruption. We ignored Hatcher because we didn’t find him credible, nor did we believe he had a constituency.
But with Hatcher’s death on Friday, now is the time to examine his legacy — and there is no question that Hatcher and his partner Timmy Jacobs helped transform this county. But was it for better or worse?
Because we never want to see an act of violence rewarded, it is with reluctance that we concede that Hatcher and Jacobs’ actions brought scrutiny on this county that probably accelerated change for the better — primarily the sharing of powers among minorities. A tangible example is the Superior Court judgeship now held by an American Indian that was created for a minority by then Gov. Jim Martin as a way to pacify this county. Since that time, Indians and blacks in this county have grabbed more of a share of the steering wheel.
But that change didn’t come without a price. Hatcher and Jacobs’ actions suggested to outsiders that ours was a racist, violent and drug-infested county. For years that sullied image complicated economic development efforts — and the irony became that those who suffered the most were the most vulnerable among us, whose plight Hatcher and Jacobs said they were trying to change for the better.
This county still carries that weight.
Then there is this: Although it is generally accepted that there was widespread corruption in Robeson County during the 1980s, Hatcher and Jacobs failed to provide the proof. In taking those hostages, Hatcher and Jacobs assumed a duty to provide evidence of their claims, and their inability to do so made putting people’s lives at risk unforgivable.
And please don’t suggest that Operation Tarnished Badge, which occurred under a different sheriff a decade and a half later, vindicated Hatcher and Jacobs. Hatcher and Jacobs were not talking about Sheriff Glenn Maynor, yard work and satellite cards.
We must also look at how Hatcher lived his life after Feb. 1, 1988 — and that was recklessly. By his own admission, he contracted AIDS in prison through consensual and unprotected homosexual sex, and that eventually killed him. He died in prison not because of what happened at this newspaper, but because he murdered another man in a drive-by shooting.
Compare that with how Jacobs has lived his life since leaving prison, by staying out of trouble while trying to effect positive change for American Indians by working with — and not against — the system.
We don’t believe their numbers are strong, but those who insist that Eddie Hatcher is a hero of American Indians not only have a convenient blind spot, but do a disservice to the real champions of Robeson County’s native people.
Well, now Eddie has his brother Arron with him as they found him dead this morning in his apartment.No one knows if he killed himself on purpose or he od. But, would you PLEASE let them REST IN PEACE.
It is not up to us to judge Eddie Hatcher. It is now in between him and his Creator. Without the attention he brought there would have never been an Indian judge in this county.
I was outside the Robesonian that day. I cried for the people who were in there. I cried has I prayed that no one would die and they would not kill Eddie & Timmy.
If anyone regardless of the color of their skin wants to honor the memory of Eddie Hatcher. Bring you lawn chair and come to the memorial at the North Carolina Indian Cultural Center on May 30th at 6 p.m.
An OPINION is like a mouth...everyone has one. It is no longer in Robeson County "if you ain't white than you ain't right."
No matter how you try to slice it, corruption ran thick through Robeson County, and no matter how anyone behaved after being released from prison for the 1988 hostage-taking, corruption in law enforcement is inexcusable. The media willfully turning a blind eye to reports of such corruption is inexcusable. According to the logic of The Robesonian’s editorial, exposure and elimination of systemic corruption is only acceptable if the messenger of that corruption passes some vague credibility criteria, which, I suspect, is defined by the very purveyors of the corruption.
And the circle, it goes ’round and ’round…
He may have went about things the wrong way to get his point across, but then again, you are in ROB CO......
I do not read this and expect it to be written as a news article which should only include facts and not slants. I do not read this and form MY opinion based only on this. I look to see what other people say in these comments.
Sandy
what great insight to this complex man, without pinning roses all over him .
I knew Eddie Hatcher (and his mom, and his sister). I represented him and others confined in the old jail in Robeson County. In the lawsuit, Eddie alleged that conditions in the jail were inhumane. And they were. In fact, counsel for the defendants offered to settle all the claims if Eddie (and Timothy Jacobs) would dismiss the case. I'd never heard of such a thing and didn't think much of the idea. But I spoke with Eddie and Timothy about it. Both said that they'd be happy to dismiss the lawsuit if it meant that conditions in the jail would be brought up to decent standards. So the lawsuit was dismissed and the defendants addressed each and every concern that had been raised in the case. In fact, the County eventually built an entirely new jail. Eddie and Timothy were the first of my clients who cared nothing about money or notoriety. They cared only about "the cause of justice."
But it is also true that Eddie was a hard-headed rabble-rouser who lacked self-restraint, perspective, and good judgement. (I say this, though it strikes too close to home for my own comfort.) Yet, he was a person who cared deeply about justice and who repeatedly demonstrated the courage of his convictions against impossible odds and insurmountable obstacles. In retrospect, it seems he was right about many things, including his allegations of corruption in the Robeson County Sheriff's Office. (I disagree that he had an obligation to prove his allegations - that is and has always been the responsibility of law enforcement.)
Unfortunately, Eddie was wrong about a great many more things, including the notion that he was justified in using violence.
If Eddie had been a little better educated or a little more circumspect, he might have made an excellent lawyer, and he might have accomplished a great deal for the Lumbee Indians, as well as the people of North Carolina. As it is, I think only the people of Robeson County and those who knew him best can fully assess his accomplishments and shortcomings.
Anyhow, I've always been perplexed by Eddie and the vicissitudes of life - the fortunes and opportunities that vary so widely among people. For instance, I know that Eddie's mother and sister loved him dearly and would have done anything for him. But being an irreconcilable malcontent was somehow ingrained in him. Of course, each of us has faults, and it is difficult and rare that we are able to overcome foibles learned in our formative years. But I have been haunted by the knowledge that I might easily have been more like Eddie, and he, more like me or the rest of us, depending on little more than the way the wind blew on a particular day.
Eddie Hatcher will always hold a place in my heart and mind as an enigma, as a man of conviction and honor, and as one of my most challenging clients. I wish I could have done more to help him. But for all his mistakes, and even in light of the harm he did, I feel that we all are diminished by his passing. I will miss him. Good-bye, Eddie. - Michael S. Hamden