A snow celebration in the February 22, 1979 issue

Almost two decades of the newspaper The Carolina Indian Voice, from 1977-1996, are now up on DigitalNC. Provided by our partner, UNC at Chapel Hill, this batch joins previously digitized issues that date from 1996-2005. The Carolina Indian Voice was established in 1973 and continued through 2005, so now nearly the entire print run is digitized.

A painting of the Carolina Indian Voice building as shown in the January 10, 1980 issue

The Carolina Indian Voice  is one of North Carolina’s oldest American Indian newspapers. It served members of the Lumbee Tribe living in Robeson County including the town of Pembroke, which is the seat of the Lumbee tribe of North Carolina, as well as the home of The University of North Carolina at Pembroke, a historically American Indian University.

The Carolina Indian Voice was published weekly on Thursdays and was a source for all sorts of local news. Topics covered included local politics and civic issues, cultural events, school happenings, and more. Articles on local and national civil rights issues and efforts to end racial discrimination pertinent to Robeson County’s American Indian population were also covered alongside everyday happenings in the county.

An article on H.R. 12996 regarding federal recognition of American Indian tribes in the August 24, 1978 issue

Click here to take browse through the digitized issues. To see more materials from our partner UNC at Chapel Hill, visit their DigitalNC partner page or take a look at their website.

The fifth grade winner of the Pembroke Elementary Read-A-Thon in the December 8, 1977 issue

Youngsters at Charlotte Pride 2002 as seen in the May 25, 2002 issue of Q-notes

More issues of the newspaper Q-notes, provided by our partner the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, are now up on DigitalNC. These new issues cover the years 1997-2004 and join previously digitized issues from 1986-1996.

Q-notes is a newspaper that serves the LGBT community of Charlotte as well as the greater LGBT community in the state of North Carolina. Over the years that have been digitized, Q-notes grew as a publication from an 8 page newspaper published once a month to a 40 page paper published every two weeks. Currently Q-notes is published both online and in print form.

With the expansion of the publication, Q-notes was able to tackle more content ranging from coverage of local events, news stories, and advertisements to national and international news stories and features. The late ’90s and early ’00s was a time of many changes for the United Sates LGBT community, and Q-notes articles reported on the changing attitudes and experiences surrounding LGBT culture.

Headline from the January 20, 2001 issue of Q-notes

Q-notes was able to report many firsts. The first legal same-sex wedding in Canada was held in 2001, followed by the first legal same-sex wedding in the United states in 2004. In 2001, the first openly gay soldier completed his term of service in the United States Army Reserves despite facing potential discharge. LGBT centers opened up throughout the state of North Carolina and there were many pride festivals, marches, and demonstrations on both local and national levels.

Headline from the January 22, 2000 issue of Q-notes.

Lt. Steve May, the first openly gay soldier to complete his army term of service as seen in the April 28, 2001 issue of Q-notes

From an article on Wold AIDS Day in the November 23, 2002 Q-notes

In addition to these achievements, articles from this batch of Q-notes also reported on discrimination and violence that LGBT community members continued and still continue to face. These issues often played out in the arena of politics. Q-notes kept a close eye on the 2000 US presidential election and reported on both overtures and discouraging comments made to and about the LGBT community by candidates. Local politics were also covered, with Q-notes reporting on local elections, giving endorsements to candidates, and identifying local issues that would be of interest to Q-notes readers.

During this time Q-notes also continued to report on the AIDS crisis. Although by the end of the ’90s new AIDS diagnoses were decreasing, many LGBT individuals and the LGBT community continued to be affected. Awareness campaigns were championed by Q-notes, and articles intended to reduce stigma surrounding both the disease and ideas of safe sex were published.

Though turbulent times for the LGBT community, Q-notes continued to promote spaces where LGBT individuals could feel safe, comfortable, and have fun. Monthly event calendars and coverage of community activities remained strong throughout the years. With more pages in Q-notes, a regular culture section was established. Fun advertisements continued to permeate the pages, both from business specifically catering to the LGBT community, and increasingly from larger national companies.

An advertisement from the December 7, 2002 Q-notes

To browse all of the digitized issues of Q-notes click here. To learn more about the University of North Carolina at Charlotte visit their website, or check out their partner page to see previously digitized materials. To see more recent issues of Q-notes, visit the Q-notes website.

Headline from the September 24, 1998 issue of The Carolina Indian Voice.

Almost ten years of The Carolina Indian Voice, a newspaper out of Pembroke, North Carolina, are now up on DigitalNC thanks to our partner the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The Carolina Indian Voice was established in 1973 and was published on a weekly basis until 2005. Issues from 1996-2005 are now available digitally. The paper primarily served the interests of members of the Lumbee Tribe living in Robeson County, who make up more than a third of the population of Robeson County and almost 90% of the town of Pembroke.

The paper includes articles and editorials concerning local issues such as politics, social events, civic projects, and more. Although there is a strong focus specifically on issues relevant to members of the Lumbee Tribe, the paper also covers news and events pertaining to American Indians throughout the state of North Carolina and nationally.

Image from the 1998 First Annual Fall Pow Wow in Hoke County as seen in the November 11, 1998 issue of The North Carolina Indian Voice.

Headline from the February 25, 1999 issue of The North Carolina Indian Voice.

The paper also focuses on advocacy with many articles covering struggles against the discrimination American Indians face regarding employment, education, and housing in the United States.

To browse through issues of The North Carolina Indian Voice click here. To see more materials from our partner, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, visit their partner page.