The Journey Continues
During this past summer, the Winnemem Wintu, after a long and arduous trip through the halls of California government, finally saw the passage of AJR 39 (carried, thankfully, by Marin Assemblyman Jared Huffman) .
We attended numerous meetings with legislators or all parties, talked ourselves hoarse and were victorious: the state of California sent a resolution to the President of the United States, the Department of Interior and the BIA a message saying in effect,"Hey, these are real Indians, give them what you promised when you took their land!"
We visited our Congressional delegates in Washington DC and spoke only with staffers, the government was trying to get someone elected and had no time for us but that was okay, I like the staffers: they are generally concerned and literate; ready to take notes to pass on to the next person so that when we return, like the swallows to Capistrano, they can review the notes and tell us "Nothing happened on your issue - we've been busy you see."
But, you see we've been busy too: fighting for the people of California to have clean water, saving our sacred sites and maintaining our cultural lifeway in the face of government sanctioned "cultural genocide."
We need to have people look up the California AJR 39 (I will try to get it here on this blog or you can look at the tribe's web page www.winnememwintu.us, to read it and our issues and positions, and then help us convince Senators Boxer and Feinstein to act on what the State Legislature had said: Restore our status!
I will try to add to this blog more often to keep people up to date on our struggle and our tribal vision for ourselves and our prayers for all of you.
Check out http://www.moving-image.com Moving Image Production and the Sacred Lands Film Project web page for information and films on us and check back: I will write on.
Hey, if President-elect Obama can communicate this way, what says an old Indian like me can't learn how to as well.
We attended numerous meetings with legislators or all parties, talked ourselves hoarse and were victorious: the state of California sent a resolution to the President of the United States, the Department of Interior and the BIA a message saying in effect,"Hey, these are real Indians, give them what you promised when you took their land!"
We visited our Congressional delegates in Washington DC and spoke only with staffers, the government was trying to get someone elected and had no time for us but that was okay, I like the staffers: they are generally concerned and literate; ready to take notes to pass on to the next person so that when we return, like the swallows to Capistrano, they can review the notes and tell us "Nothing happened on your issue - we've been busy you see."
But, you see we've been busy too: fighting for the people of California to have clean water, saving our sacred sites and maintaining our cultural lifeway in the face of government sanctioned "cultural genocide."
We need to have people look up the California AJR 39 (I will try to get it here on this blog or you can look at the tribe's web page www.winnememwintu.us, to read it and our issues and positions, and then help us convince Senators Boxer and Feinstein to act on what the State Legislature had said: Restore our status!
I will try to add to this blog more often to keep people up to date on our struggle and our tribal vision for ourselves and our prayers for all of you.
Check out http://www.moving-image.com Moving Image Production and the Sacred Lands Film Project web page for information and films on us and check back: I will write on.
Hey, if President-elect Obama can communicate this way, what says an old Indian like me can't learn how to as well.
Labels: recognition, tribal, winnemem
posted by Winnemem Wintu | 9:05 PM
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