Members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians have been looking forward to their annual Cherokee Indian Fair this year – 2024’s event would be the 112th celebration. There would be native stickball tournaments, gum-blowing contests and a longest-hair contest.
But the tribe, located in western North Carolina, was hit by Hurricane Helene less than a week before the fair, causing flooding, destruction and a death toll of more than 200 across the state. Some members thought it might be best to cancel.
But Michell Hicks, principal, said the scholarship must continue as scheduled.
For Hicks, the event was more important now than ever, as a way to raise donations for those in need and to “honor our traditions while supporting those who need it most.”
Major country music acts that played the fair, such as headliner Midland, encouraged attendees to bring non-perishable food items and bottled water for those affected by the hurricane. And after the five-day celebration that wrapped up Oct. 5, tribes from across the region continue to come together to support the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, one of the most affected by Hurricane Helene.
Funds to repair damage are often more difficult for tribes to accessso as natural disasters fueled by climate change worsen, tribal nations often rely on community support from each other. For many tribes, a natural disaster exacerbates already existing inequalities.
Despite being located in some of the most vulnerable areas, tribal communities have a history of being left behind when extreme weather strikes. One 2019 study found that tribal citizens receive, on average, only $3 per person in federal disaster aid each year, compared to $26 for non-tribal American citizens. Also, federally recognized tribes were only given the ability to apply directly to the Federal Emergency Management Agency for assistance as recently as 2013. Before then, tribes could only apply for aid through the states in which their land was located.
Kelbie Kennedy is FEMA’s first National Tribal Affairs Advocate, and a citizen of the Choctaw Nation. She said that FEMA has worked hard to address the unique barriers that tribal lands face. “Before hurricanes Helene and Milton made landfall, they worked with every tribal nation along the way to see if they had any unmet needs and needed additional support before landfall,” she said.
In 2022, the same year Kennedy was appointed, FEMA released it National Tribal Strategy Guide where the department outlined its plan to address long-standing inequities — for example, by increasing climate change education and improving coordination and delivery of federal aid. But two years later, some are still waiting to see if this guide has actually improved relief efforts. Cari Cullen is with the Center for Disaster Philanthropy and manages its Native American and Tribal Recovery Program. Working with tribes to manage grants and address funding gaps for tribal communities affected by climate-driven natural disasters, she said she sees a lot of work to be done to address natural disaster recovery because many tribes are already working with ‘ a deficit.
“There are already many existing conditions and inequities in many of our tribal communities,” Cullen said, citing long distances from medical clinics, a lack of emergency management resources and substandard housing.
She said tribes need to build a patchwork of support and rope in other organizations, as well as other tribes, to address natural disasters faster than FEMA can.
Members of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma knew there could be such gaps in support, and many traveled 13 hours to North Carolina to attend the 112th Indian Fair hosted by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Volunteers from their Cherokee Language Immersion School and their emergency management department dropped off 38,000 bottles of water and 100 pallets of clothing and bedding.
Chuck Hoskin Jr., the principal chief of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma, said as climate change worsens and natural disasters increase, the two tribes’ shared history has helped them develop an understanding that they need each other during difficult times.
“These storms are getting more intense, and hurricanes moving further inland on the continent make us all feel a degree of vulnerability,” he said.
The damage of Helene was assessed to be in the billions. When Hurricane Milton hit just weeks later, funding for FEMA was already in place danger. Hoskin said it gives him pause and makes the future more uncertain. As climate change becomes more extreme, Hoskin’s concerns are about how much worse the hurricanes could become. “We have to make efforts to combat it,” he said. “But we are a planet behind and are now suffering the consequences.”
Volunteers from the Lumbee Boys & Girls Club pack buckets for hurricane victims in western North Carolina.
Courtesy of The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina
The supplies came with a handwritten note from the young volunteers.
Courtesy of The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina
Other tribes in the state know what it’s like to be hit by natural disasters that affect a community for decades. The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, which is a state-recognized tribe, is helping to coordinate disaster relief efforts for its western neighbors, along with a religious organization called the Burnt Swamp Baptist Association. The tribe collected donation items and sent crews to assess the damage in the western part of the state. Members of the Lumbee Tribe Boys & Girls Club spent a week putting together hygiene kits, and children made coloring cards for affected families.
John L. Lowery, tribal chairman of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, said their community has gone through two natural disasters – Hurricane Mathew in 2016 and Hurricane Florence in 2018 – and they know the road to recovery is long.
“We want to do our part to support our neighbors in the mountains of North Carolina during this difficult time following the devastation of Hurricane Helene,” he said. “We know how difficult it is to live through great loss and we want to help these families.”
