Palmetto State News

U.S. Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC) took to social media to celebrate his bill called the "Catawba Indian Nation Lands Act" after it received a final sign-off from President Joe Biden.

This bill addresses the decades-long dispute between the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and the Catawba Nation. Both claim that 17 acres of land in Kings Mountain, located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, originally belonged to their tribe, according to the Independent Tribune. 

“I’m pleased that my bill, the Catawba Indian Nation Lands Act, was included in the NDAA (National Defense Authorization Act) President Biden signed into law today," Clyburn said in his Dec. 27 tweet. "This is the first step towards rectifying the wrongs perpetrated against the Catawba Indian Nation and addressing the historical inequities they face."

Congress gave the Catawba ownership of the land, according to the Independent Tribune. This decision allows the Catawbas to build a casino in Kings Mountain.

Catawba Tribal Chief Bill Harris applauded those who made this happen.

“The Catawba Indian Nation Lands Act reaffirms the U.S. Department of Interior’s action recognizing our historical and ancestral ties to North Carolina,” Harris said, according to the Independent Tribune. “Congress, Interior and the state of North Carolina and a federal court have now all confirmed what the Catawba people said from the beginning — these lands are the ancestral homelands of the Catawba people, and we intend to use them to improve life of all people in the community.”

The Catawbas anticipate that building the casino will create approximately 2,600 jobs and will help boost the local economy. 

“Make no mistake, this legislation means more people will have good-paying jobs, more kids will have a better education and more people will have better housing and health care,” Harris told the Independent Tribune. “That’s what this bill really means.”