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Open Letter to Pechanga Tribal
Chairman Mark Macarro
From Original Pechanga
Dear Mr. Chairman,
For nearly a decade, you
have been in the lead of the tribal council. During that time you have
helmed the disenrollment of 25% of your membership.
What makes you proud to be
the chairman? That you have made the tribe weaker? You were quoted in
2004 saying, “I believe that our tribal members know the fairness and
diligence I try to bring to all of our issues." Where sir, was the
diligence in creating fairness on the Enrollment Committee? Why “sir”, did
you allow the committee to bring families up for review out of order,
instead of the order they came in?
Why “sir”, did you, during
your terms in office, not uphold the constitution and bylaws when you
allowed an illegal moratorium on membership when the Pechanga constitution
and bylaws says open enrollment is every January? How “sir”, can you say
you bring fairness and diligence when you did not follow tribal law and in
fact skirted the new law that the tribe passed to “halt all disenrollments”?
All currently enrolled members were covered in the July 2005 petition
halting disenrollments. Why “sir”, did you not follow tribal law?
Where “sir”, was the
fairness when you denied Hunters their civil rights by not allowing
members to have an attorney with them to defend their positions? Where
“sir”, was the fairness when you would not even allow writing
implements for those who came before the Enrollment Committee, and in their
appeal to the Tribal Council? Or to see the evidence against them. Was it
because there was no credible evidence.
Why “sir”, did you not
respond to the questions as to your Enrollment Committee member sleeping
through the Hunter family’s hearings? Why “sir”, did you allow hearings to
be held when one of the council was late? Couldn’t you even wait for him to
hear the appeal, or, did you KNOW, it didn’t matter, as his mind was made
up? Why “sir”, did you not respond to the obvious bias of one of your
Enrollment Committee members telling Hunter family that they were going to
be out no matter what evidence they had?
Why “sir”, did you
consolidate cases? Why was each member not allowed to present his or her
own case for appeal? Where is the fairness you said you would bring? Was a
half hour per member, to appeal their own position, too much to ask?
Why “sir”, was the
Enrollment committee allowed to use evidence biased against the Hunter
family in their decision, when it was not presented to the family so they
could address it in their appeal? Why would the word of a convicted child
molester be considered valid versus the most respected authority on
California Mission Indians, that Pechanga, not the Hunters chose to research
Paulina Hunter? Why was
"hearsay" testimony, that wasn't even notarized, turned in by the CPP given
more credibility than five other notarized depositions from other current
tribal elders not from CPP families that affirmed our membership?
Why sir, during the
shameful period that you and the tribal council were working to disenroll
two large families, did you not hold monthly meetings, as was the custom?
How sir, can you
say you bring fairness and diligence when you did not follow tribal law and
in fact skirted the new law that the tribe passed to “halt all
disenrollments”? All currently enrolled members were covered in the
November 2005 petition halting disenrollments. Why sir, did you not follow
tribal law?
Will you, Mr.
Chairman take credit for the erosion of Tribal Sovereignty in California?
There is still time to reverse this terrible injustice. Lead the tribe back
to peace. Your ancestor Martin Berdugo called mine “Aunt”. Antonio Ashman
SWORE to this. Bring the family together.
Original Pechanga
Ancestor of Paulina Hunter Eliminated from Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians Along with 300 tribal members because of
greed
http://originalpechanga.blogspot.com
reprinted with permission 11/07
A quote from a current tribally dis-enrolled
member in California.:
The only thing I want in
this life is to see my people to be united and strong, the way it should be. But
the world we live in is controlled by greed and selfishness.
This is not the world I want me and my children and their children to live in or
even see. People are afraid to stand up and talk, they are afraid that they will
not last.
I have been told all my life not to think about myself first, but to think of
the future generations first, to have a good and open mind. I am only standing
up for what I think is the right. Living under a dictatorship is not the right
way.
He thinks it is funny to play with a bunch of woman and children. He has his own
little army that is made of all non-native police to come and torment us. A man
who does this kind of thing to his own family is just pure evil. But I never
give up hope that he will change his ways.
Most people think that if you get money from him that makes you Indian. People
are forgetting their original instructions, and their songs to give thanks.
Not many people go to ceremonies these days. And if you know your way of life
that your ancestors left for you, that is what makes you Indian. We have to save
these songs of thanks for the future generatins so they know who they are.
Who are we to deprive them of knowledge and that birth right?
Our people should not be fighting like this, day in and day out.
printed with
permission, 2004
Today's genocide
Tribal dis-enrollment and the blood quantum issue are spreading throughout
Indian Country like a deadly cancer, eating away the cells of our existence.
Tribal gaming has attributed to and brought the dominant cultures disease,
greed. Before the existence of tribal gaming, tribes suffered from poverty,
unemployment, apathy and no sense of a brighter future to come. The sudden
wealth that tribal members have experienced has forced them into a new realm
they have never known. California gaming tribes pay their enrolled members
amounts up to $45,000 a month in gaming revenues. Tribal gaming has ignited old
family feuds and corrupt leadership in several cases. If tribal members do not
agree with council decisions they risk tribal dis-enrollment, in a few cases it
has been entire families. This leaves more revenues available to divide among
the remaining tribal members. This has become a lucrative benefit adding
thousands of dollars in their corrupt pockets.
Many of these reservations have non-Indians running their tribal councils. These
people are part of families that were adopted into the tribe many years ago and
have taken control, dis-enrolling families that have been on the reservation for
generations. Many of the California Tribes have been severely affected by this
epidemic, with approximately 1500 dis-enrolled tribal members and many more
currently being threatened.
Several tribes have diversified in their economy and have succeeded
in benefiting their people. Many have invested millions of dollars in
developing programs to care for elders, children, preserving their culture and
language. Unfortunately, for some the other side is greed, which has resulted in
tribes turning on each other, family feuds, hate, drugs, violence and attempted
murder in several cases.
Many of the dis-enrolled tribal members have filed lawsuits with the courts, have
requested investigations from the B.I.A. and other agencies, only to continually
be rejected or told it is a family issue not a federal issue. The dis-enrolled
tribal members are left with nowhere to turn and to defend themselves. What this
amounts to is, a modern day cultural genocide and is resulting in what we have
been fighting since 1492, only now, it is Indians ~vs.~ Indians. We are falling
into what the dominant society has been attempting to accomplish for hundreds of
years; to conquer and divide. All Native people will be affected by this in the
end. Our ancestors fought against genocide with thousands giving their
lives to protect the way of life for the people. I think they would be disgusted and appalled with this
disease that is tearing apart and dividing Indian Country. Our survival as
Native people will only be achieved though unity and living as one people
inhabiting Turtle Island. Tribal gaming should have strengthened tribal
sovereignty, brought financial freedom to the people and given hope for the
future generations. Instead in to many cases, it has brought disunity, greed and
spiritual sickness.
Some of these cases of tribal dis-enrollment have developed due to the blood
quantum issues. Tribes can change their guidelines on what percentage
constitutes being “Indian” and/or a tribal member. For generations tribes have
mixed with other tribes, whites and many other cultures. A tribal member or
entire family can possibly be dis-enrolled due to this change in policy, even if
they have resided on the reservation for generations and can attest to their
lineage.
There have been dozens of cases of tribes being denied federal recognition by
the B.I.A. because they can not prove their blood quantum. There are full blood
Indians that can not get a tribal card because they either are not from a
Federally Recognized Tribe, or they have mixed Native blood and do not have
enough “blood” from one specific tribe to enroll. In these cases the bottom line
is, you are told by the government, you are not recognized as being “Indian”.
One thought that comes to mind is; why is the B.I.A. still governing and
determining who is and who is not, Indian? The blood quantum policy is undoubtedly a self
imposed recipe for extinction. If tribes were to maintain the required blood
quantum of their members from generation to generation, they would have to
intra-marry (marry within the tribe) in an ever decreasing pool of people with
the "appropriate" blood quantum level, giving rise to genetic diseases that
would surely finish us anyway. So here is a very clever catch-22 imposed by the
federal government with the sure outcome of our extermination. To prevent this,
the only option is to change this policy and take control of how we determine
who belongs to each of our Nations.
Another variable of the blood quantum issue that currently divides Indian
Country is people that have mixed blood; Indian with white, African American,
Asian and many other ethnicities. For hundreds of years Native people have been intermixing with
many other cultures resulting in varied physical appearances. Many eastern
tribes have people who are full blood tribal members and have lighter features
than many western tribes. There are people that have been mistaken as being
“white,” by other native people, when if fact they are not. How is
telling a mixed blood or non tribally recognized person that they are not
Indian, any different than the racism that has happened to all Native people for
513 years? My response to that is simply, “I’m part white but can’t prove it.”
It is bad enough that we continue to fight for our rights and what we are
entitled to with the government, why continually fight each other? Today we
continue to be suppressed, ignored and our cultures disrespected. The continual
division in Indian Country over tribal gaming, dis-enrollment issues and blood
quantum issues could ultimately destroy us. If everyone
would unite as one people, one nation, we would become stronger and more
powerful. This would be a step forward in ensuring as Indian people we don’t
loose our ways, or let them succeed in the pursuit of Native People's
extinction.
Written by:
Tamra Brennan
Director of NDN News
"helping to make a difference for our people in Indian Country,
one day at a time. What will you do today to help make a difference?
For additional information about on-going issues in Indian Country and daily
headlines please visit www.NDNnews.com
Articles regarding tribal dis-enrollment:
Pechanga tribe disowns 90 adults, 50 children
September 10, 2007 San
Diego Union Tribune - United States
The Bureau of Indian Affairs said it cannot intervene in such an issue
unless a tribe agrees to have it settle a dispute.
The United States Court of Appeals for
the District of Columbia filed an opinion on the case known as Felter v. Kempthorne yesterday...The opinion can be read at
www.undeclaredutes.net/AppealCourtsOpinion.html January 20, 2007
Pechanga Violates Civil Rights; Victims head to Sacramento December
22, 2006 Might the ACLU take another look at how Pechanga
violates the civil rights of those they disenrolled? Might you who read this
tell all you know to boycott Pechanga and patronize anot...
Utes
dispute termination
ROOSEVELT, Utah - Just try telling, even intimating, that Oranna Felter is
not an Indian. There's the living room of her home here in this northeastern
Utah town that has been turned into a shrine to the Ute culture with a
life-sized wooden carving of a chief. There's all the time she's spent in
sweat lodges and participating in Ute ceremonies. As Felter drives on the
back roads on the nearby Fort Duchesne reservation, she points out all of
her favorite hunting grounds and rapidly running creeks. At a fork in the
road is a dilapidated structure, once owned by her parents, which was the
first store of any note on the reservation. But, according to the federal
government, Felter and about 500 other mixed-blood Utes of the Uintah band
are as white as the driven snow.
Indians decry banishment by their tribes ... are using that as a weapon of
mass destruction against Indians that oppose ... blamed another woman for
starting rumors that led to the family's banishment.
Dispute clouds casino proposal A dispute between two local
Indian tribes each claiming to have historical ties ... County foothills
could jeopardize plans for a new $250 million casino and hotel
Debate heats up as tribes cut members ... point to the Santa Clara
Pueblo v. Martinez case, which upholds tribes' right to ... That's when they
decided to dig up the family matriarch for DNA testing
3 could face banishment by fledgling Viejas
court
VIEJAS INDIAN
RESERVATION – Using modern-day legal practices to apply an ancient custom,
the Viejas Indian band is setting up its own formal court in which three
members could be banished from the tribe.
Federal courts try
to decide who is legally Indian (USA) -- When the U.S. Supreme Court in 1990 ruled that
tribal governments lack the inherent authority to prosecute
members of other tribes, Congress quickly reacted by passing the
"Duro fix."
Disenrolled Pechanga tribal members thwarted by
appellate courtAn attorney representing the ousted tribal
members said Tuesday that the 4th District Court of Appeal
misinterpreted federal law in ruling that California courts do not have
the jurisdiction to consider the lawsuit. The suit, filed by 11
disenrolled tribal members on behalf of more than 130 family members,
accused members of the tribe's enrollment committee of violating the
tribe's constitution with the disenrollments.
Disenrollin' Down The River
goes up there with
land quandaries, casino problems, and ... requirements, they are
not officially Indian; they would ... myself to be Native
American (both internally ..
Disenrolled Pechanga Tribal members get $38MTEMECULA ---- Disenrolled members of the Pechanga Band of Luiseno
Indians are seeking at least $38 million in damages as a result of being
cut off from monthly payments they received from the band's gaming
profits while they were tribal members.
