The bitter battle between the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and the Lumbee as the Lumbee seek federal recognition has grown even more contentious over the last few months. And now, following the announcement from Attorney General and Governor-elect Josh Stein that EBCI Principal Chief Michell Hicks — who has long called into question the Lumbees’ identification as a tribe — will be appointed to Stein’s transition team, a state representative from Lumbee country is sounding the alarm. 

On Jan. 11, 2025 at 10 a.m., North Carolina will have a new governor for the first time in eight years — and what an eight years it’s been.

According to a press release issued Dec. 9, a merger between Pactiv Evergreen and Charlotte-based Novolex will provide better customer service, increased product innovation and additional distribution capabilities across North America, but what the merger means for Pactiv’s lawsuits, its languishing 185-acre parcel in Canton and the future of the town’s wastewater treatment, isn’t yet clear. 

According to a press release issued Dec. 9, a merger between Pactiv Evergreen and Charlotte-based Novolex will provide better customer service, increased product innovation and additional distribution capabilities across North America, but what the merger means for Pactiv’s lawsuits, its languishing 185-acre parcel in Canton and the future of the town’s wastewater treatment, isn’t yet clear.

The number is $53.6 billion. That’s the estimate from the N.C. Office of State Budget and Management for the damage Helene inflicted on Western North Carolina. Those are just dollars; in the bigger picture, lives have been lost, transformed and forever changed. 

With North Carolina’s Republican-dominated General Assembly still dead-set on refusing to provide meaningful relief for mountain communities hit hard by Hurricane Helene on Sept. 27, Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper traveled to Washington, D.C., with a delegation of western leaders, appealing to higher authority for help.

While it certainly appears that a “red wave” washed over the United States on Nov. 5, that’s not exactly the case in North Carolina, where Democrats held onto critical Council of State offices and made solid gains where it really counts — in the General Assembly. 

Where once were surging floodwaters, now elected representatives from both the federal and state level are pouring into Western North Carolina and Haywood County, touring damaged areas, talking to local officials about needs and thanking first responders for their service to their communities.  

Josh Stein, North Carolina’s attorney general, visited Canton today to survey damage, to talk with local leaders and first responders and to caution those seeking to profit off of the misery of a storm-lashed region.

The old paper mill in the heart of Canton will have a new owner by the end of the month — if everything remains on track — according to a three-page letter filed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Aug. 30.