Lumbees Not Included In DOJ's Non-Prosecution Policy On Eagle Feathers

As previously reported, last October the Justice Department formalized a non-prosecution policy that allows members of federally recognized Indian tribes to possess and use eagle and other protected bird feathers for religious and cultural purposes. Earlier this week, McClatchy Newspapers reported on the problems that still remain for the Lumbee Indians of North Carolina who are not a federally recognized tribe. Their possession of eagle feathers remains illegal, as does that by other unrecognized tribes.  The Lumbees have tried unsuccessfully over the years to obtain federal recognition