Do we fight? Do we hope? Do we pray for justice or SEEK JUSTICE for our ancestors? Do we wait and see while our elders die without justice?
What say YOU? What have YOU done to raise awareness?
I've been writing this blog to expose the corruption of Tribal Disenrollment for Ten YEARS. As most of my regular readers know, my ancestor, Paulina Hunter was an Original Pechanga Indian, disenrolled 106 years after she walked on in death.
Do we fight?
Do we hope?
Do we wait and see while our relatives die without justice?
What say YOU?
I've been fighting for ALL who have been harmed by their own tribes, and have offered my site to increase the information flow. MY activism is DAILY, via this blog, not a once a year art project or rather visual advocacy movement to draw attention. Our attention should be regular, not drive by. Both are useful, which is more useful?
At a two day conference in March, WHO BELONGS? FROM TRIBAL KINSHIP TO NATIVE NATION CITIZENSHIP TO DISENROLLMENT Tribal leaders and those who were aggrieved gathered to discuss disenrollment, government action and inaction, and sovereignty
The link above has the transcripts (pg. 93 starting.) I received a few calls from my cousins, noting that former Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Keven Washburn made this statement:
The federal government has kind of stayed out of it mostly and people have shined the light on the bad things that tribes are doing, on those handful of tribes that are kind of not getting this right. They deserve to be accountable for what they are doing, and I applaud the people that have been holding them up to that scrutiny and making sure that they are bearing that accountability in some public fashion
One of my cousins, knowing that I've written over 3,200 blog posts, told me, "He's talking about YOU!" Well, maybe, because, I've written about Washburn many times. Some links below:
Washburn Can't be Serious Part ONE
Washburn Can't be SERIOUS Part TWO
Washburn Can't be SERIOUS Part Three
Washburn Can't be Serious Part FOUR
Imagine my chagrin to read further into the transcripts to read this from a prominent attorney, who reportedly did some work for Pechanga:
There is a blog that I won't name that is just hateful. And I know that's pain and anguish that's being projected, but when that blog gets sent out to Congress in e-mails that Professor Washburn has received or through Twitter feeds, that isn't going to persuade Professor Washburn to want to do what's right because there's so much anger and hostility and hate in those blogs that it turns people the other way. It makes people shudder, it makes people uncomfortable.
Shouldn't the STRIPPING of Citizenship of Indians, abuse of elders and children, stealing of compensation, threats of banishment MAKE PEOPLE UNCOMFORTABLE? More so than a bit of hostility?
Another attendee, noted Prof. David Wilkins had this to say about me in the acknowledgement of his book Dismembered:
RICK CUEVAS, through his website Original Pechanga , has been a stalwart defender of the rights of disenrollees for YEARS. And I extend a hearty handshake to him for his uncompromising efforts to see that justice is provided..
Three prominent voices with differing opinions.
Do we fight?
Do we hope?
Do we wait and see while our relatives die without justice?
What say YOU?
Truth is more important to share than anything at all. Actions are totally welcome as long as laws and people's rights are followed. When laws are broken and individual rights are takin away, people can either share these events with feelings or share these events with physical actions. Stripping others inherit rights is not only shameful but violent. For a band of people with a law that says the people make ALL decisions, and a group of people in the band take that right away from ALL members and strip others of thier rights is scary. For Pechanga the band spoke load and clear, then that was ignored and the council went against the will of the people and the bands custom and tradition. Face the TRUTH, no one has rights if some people can strip others rights and not follow laws or custom and tradition. Those actions are a disgrace of our Ancestors and should not be honored.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your blog, I am a 'next level disenrollee' from Graton Rancheria and there is no other place to bring these abuses of Chairman Greg Sarris to light.
ReplyDeleteRick, you provide a vital public service. People know right from wrong, but they often turn their heads from wrong-doing because it makes them feel uncomfortable. We live in an age of cognitive dissonance--if something doesn't jibe with one's world view, we either tune it out or discount it. Ineffective policy makers may see your efforts as hateful, but I see you as remarkably persistent. You've channeled your anger in productive ways. It's had a profoundly positive effect in getting the word out about injustice. People who witness disenrollment, banishment, dismemberment, etc., and turn a blind eye to it, are no better than Southerners who opposed the end of Jim Crow and the desegregation of America's apartheid system. If they don't want to be part of the solution, then they're part of the problem. There's very little middle ground when it comes to justice. The whole point of federal Indian policy is to render us all extinct--it's the politics of Empire. Since disenrollment (along with Termination and bleed out)enables this policy, why would they oppose it? Keep fighting. Put me in the same category as Dr. Wilkins.
ReplyDeleteHate is what the tribes do or the terrorist's or when D.C officials look the other way.
ReplyDeleteAs far as this sight or the others being hateful and full of anger if you were to ask victims of crime they will have anger issues to. These disenrollments are crimes because the tribes have constitutions and bylaws that they set up and follow. The disenrollment’s by these tribes throw out their laws and disenroll against their own laws and when ask all they say is we don’t have to answer because of sovereignty. Now if you had a crime committed against you and went to the police and courts and they say yes this is a crime against anybody else except for you and we can’t do anything yes there will be anger issue’s.
ReplyDeleteWashburn first priority is to protect the BIA and this Disenrollment is deep inside the BIA so he not going to want congress and the senate investigating and exposing all there corruption. He also want to protect sovereignty even though he knows of the abuse and illegal use of it so his lame of a excuse is he can’t address it because of the anger these victims of criminal action have. In his feeble attempt to address it the tribe need to as he has and the BIA has said the disenrolled need to sit down with the tribal government and work it out. First this is like going to the thief or murderer and asking for justice it isn’t going to happen.
With the issues happening right now in the BIA of course Washburn is going to say this site need to be gone and it full of hate disregarding the civil right of the disenrolled only to protect his BIA and sovereignty
Washburn is no longer in office. As far as I know he is teaching law now, and in no position to take positive action against disenrollments other than to talk about it. It would be nice to have an advocate, and I would welcome Kevin Washburn's assistance if he would take up the cause, despite his position as AS-IA that disenrollment is an internal tribal matter and that the BIA cannot interfere.
ReplyDeleteThis blog is a necessary outlet and source for news, information, and opinion. People who don't like what is being said don't have to read the comments. Congress should regard the Original Pechanga Blog as a expression of voter participation in tribal affairs. Good or bad, the state of Indian Country is part of American politics and not something to ingnore or disregard.
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