My name is Coda. I am Indigenous Occaneechi-Saponi, and on Monday Jan. 8, I was in solidarity with hundreds of concerned Mebane locals about the gas station Buc-ee's that is now approved to be built on the edge of the freeway. I spoke on behalf of my parents at the city council meeting, but also my ancestors whose land, culture and living heritage will be damaged in the name of good business.
The townspeople and I sat for up to eight hours, the first three listening to the company developers pitch their ideas. I became increasingly upset at the ignorance and selfishness of their words and presentation.
They claimed that there was no evidence of Native Americans on the site. They also claimed to have contacted communities within Mebane. One group was left out of every conversation until that night when we pulled ourselves from work and school to stand up and unite: the Tutelo people, the Occaneechi-Saponi.
Before Mebane’s founding, we used the land for villages and the Haw River for eating, drinking and undoubtedly religious and ceremonial practices. Colonization, white empowerment and brutality drove the tribe into slavery and assimilation. We have lost much of our historical language and ways, but they still exist today. The Buc-ee's representatives presented their facts in a way that is not unfamiliar to me: a way that claims Native Americans are extinct, something of the past.
Around midnight, I delivered my speech, partly in my language, to show that not only am I Indigenous and alive, but to let everyone know that this land was originally our home too. The tribe, nor any of the other federal- and state-recognized tribes, was not given any communications about meetings or conferences. 7 Directions of Service was contacted as an advocacy organization when we heard from Orange County about their issues with Buc-ee's. We have been fighting this corporation since they tried to come through Efland, which is also historically Occaneechi land. We had to relay the news a week prior that something huge was about to change, and we needed as many people as possible to show the Mebane Council that we were united.
Significant development like this risks the environment, although you may not notice it at first. River water is poisoned with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and chemicals and streams directly into your homes daily. Businesses are granted filters to allow them clean water. One hundred gas pumps will poison the air around Mebane, and you can go nowhere to avoid it.
There is a lot to learn when it comes to the mental, physical, emotional and spiritual well-being of my people, and that includes non-Indigenous people as well. We are resilient and will never stop fighting for a healthy world that our future generations will tend to. They deserve clean water, healthy seasons and fresh food. The space that Buc-ee's will sit in could be utilized for something sustainable and economic, or to recognize the sacrifices of BIPOC people for hundreds of years.
Concrete and gas should never be components of human life. Buc-ee's was a foolish decision and a massive setback for Mebane.
— Coda Cavalier, youth organizer at 7 Directions of Service
