PEMBROKE — At the first meeting of the Lumbee Tribal Council streamed live over the Internet, members on Thursday were urged to cooperate in improving voter turnout for tribe members.
“We hope to get out the vote for tribes,” said Bret Healy, of Four Directions. “We’ve done it for tribes across the country.”
According to its website, Four Directions’ main priorities are American Indian voting rights, voter empowerment, voter protection and voter engagement.
Healy proposed a plan for future elections that includes the tribe developing a candidate questionnaire, holding a Lumbee Tribe candidate forum, and from the questionnaire and forum, developing a candidate scorecard. The plan also suggests recruiting and training Lumbee Tribe members to apply for staffing positions at the One-Stop voting centers, and training and recruiting Lumbee members as election judges on Election Day. The final proposal is to request a voter registration office at the Lumbee Tribe headquarters.
Healy said the plan will cost the tribe plan nothing, but requires the tribe’s support.
“We can help bring in those resources from the outside,” Healy said.
The board voted unanimously to send the request to the Constitution and Ordinance Committee for review.
In other business, the board heard from Brenda Jacobs, of District 8, who praised the board for being transparent in live-streaming monthly meetings.
“When it was announced that the Tribal Council meeting for tonight was going to be live-streamed, I was asked by several members who live outside the county and cannot attend the meeting to express their appreciation to the Tribal Council,” Jacobs said.
She could not understand the board’s hesitancy in approving the proposal, but later learned to respect the process, Jacobs said.
“The members of the committee should be commended on their long hours and dedication,” she said. “This issue has been ignored for several years. By approving the live-streaming of the committee meetings you are saying to the membership that you are listening and you want to fulfill your commitment that you are for transparency.”
Jacobs’ comments were met with a round of applause.
Meetings can be viewed at the tribe’s website, www.lumbeetribe.com, by clicking on Live Stream.
The council members were invited to join the tribe at its annual Lumbee Powwow Dance of the Spring Moon, which will be May 3 and May 4 at the Lumbee Tribe Cultural Center.
