The Gathering celebrated their 35 years as an Indigenous Peoples' social profit organization highlighting our theme "Be A Good Ancestor." During this gathering Native leaders, youth, elders and community initiatives, along with partners and allies, explored issues such as climate change, food sovereignty, building partnerships, cultural consciousness and healing, restorative justice and language revitalization, and community approach to advancing and implementing the UN Declaration of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).
Rio Grande at Santa Ana Pueblo
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Georgiana Sanchez, from the Barbareño Chumash, and I, from the Northern Chumash, were featured speakers at the gathering. Other Chumash leaders that were present with the delegation were Gino Altamirano, Deborah Sanchez, Janet Hall, Jeanette Aguilar, Marcus Lopez, and Rosie Uribe. We spoke on the work that the Chumash Community has been doing to implement UNDRIP in our respective communities. UNDRIP is the minimal standards and rights necessary for a race of Peoples to exist on the face of the earth. This document was the longest worked on document ever created by the UN. Over twenty years of work has gone into this document, which was passed in 2007 by the General Assembly and supported by the US last year. A document like this is necessary because it gives Indigenous Peoples social justice.
The story begins a long time ago with the colonization of indigenous peoples land through the creation of the "Doctrine of Discovery" by the Vatican. This doctrine was started in 1442 and completed in 1491, just in time for Chris Columbus to take it on his quest for the discovery of new trade routes and lands. The Doctrine of Discovery was created by the Pope. It stated that if emissary's of the King and Queen came upon lands and these lands had people that were not Christians, they could be captured, enslaved, and killed, and all of their lands and possessions could be confiscated. Basically this doctrine said that they could treat human beings in the worst ways imaginable.
This doctrine was also used by the colonizers, then by the US government, and was finally coupled with the Supreme Court case Johnson v. McIntosh in 1823. Supreme Court Judge John Marshall created an opinion in the case that said all Native Peoples of this land were too war-like to be assimilated into society, that the Doctrine of Discovery was still in play, and that our skulls were inferior to the European race. Because of these determinations, Native Americans could become wards of the state and our lands confiscated by the US government.
Havasupai Elder and Fred Collins. This Elder was born in the Grand Canyon and has lived his entire life in the Canyon, this was one of only a few trips in his life where he has left the Canyon.
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When the US government got to California, we, the Native Peoples, were not even considered humans. The first governor of the State of California, in1849, states in his acceptance speech that he would rid the lands of the heathens in his first term. He was talking about my great grandmother and grandfather. He placed a 25 cent scalp reward on all indigenous peoples in the State of California, which lasted for about 25 years.
Our lands were taken, our families torn apart, our culture and heritage went underground to survive, and today we are faced with the residue of this colonializing.
UNDRIP is one of our instruments to purge the dominants societies way of thinking, purge the legal system (Ruth Ginsburg quoted the Doctrine of Discover in a 2006 case involving Native Americans), take our story back from anthropologists, and bring balance, dignity, and equality back to the California Native Americans and all indigenous peoples around the world.
The Northern Chumash Tribal Council was instrumental in bringing UNDRIP to the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors, and on August 9th 2011 the board passed a Resolution Supporting the UN Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
This is the first county in the United States to pass such a resolution and the Native American communities are extremely pleased to see that society has become more open and willing to listen. Only through working together as equals can we move into the future, the pasted must be reckoned with, we must have a healing, and the UNDRIP allows us to begin healing. The Chumash Community is leading other Native American Community in their quest for equality and balance. The Local Chumash Community is engaged with local governments and agencies to offer our healing perspectives for the environment, care and wellbeing of our ancestors Sacred Sites, and letting everyone know we have always been here and we are still here.
Indigenous communities around the world are standing up and speaking out. We must work together to bring balance to our Mother Earth. She is calling out to all Peoples — "Walk softly upon the earth, make decisions for "The 7th Generation."
"Peoples of the Earth have forgotten how to treat each other, in times pasted all Peoples treated each other with respect, caring and love, for we knew that that was the way of the Earth. Somewhere along the trail we forgot the message of the old ones. Now the Eagle is telling us we must remember to listen, listen to the song of the Earth, hear the word of love and wisdom as the birds and animals welcome you in the morning, feel the life of our Brother the Sun, welcome these thing into your heart so that we can remember together that we all are one family. These things are important for we hold the future of the children in our hands."
Chumash Elder
