In 2015, the East Bay Regional Park District published their second edition of the “Ohlone Curriculum with Bay Miwok Content and Introduction to Delta Yokuts”. This was meant to be third-grade curriculum about the indigenous people of the Bay Area, created by (then) District Cultural Services Coordinator, Beverley R. Ortiz.
This curriculum came with several resources, including: student resources on Ohlone, Bay Miwok, and Delta Yokut people; Native Peoples Map and Brochure; and the 106-page Ohlone Curriculum, itself. The curriculum is primarily directed at the Grade 3 “Core” and History-Social Science standards; as well as Grade 4 & 5 History-Social Science Content Standards.
But, the reason it’s remarkable, is because the student’s resources are made mostly of stories and history told by indigenous people, themselves. In fact, it looks like a big family photo album. Which is pretty cool, very personal. And teacher resources and supplements are super helpful.
Native Peoples of the Region Now Known as the East Bay
Ohlone Curriculum Map; East Bay Regional Park District; March 24, 2020
It feels kinda dumb to even point this out.
The map itself is an extension of all the great energy and intention and wonderful work and the personal, lived experiences of indigenous people.
Distributed to school districts where East Bay Regional Park District operates;
But it contains some really obvious catographic, and typographic errors.
These seemingly “small errors”, or “minor mistakes” have the profound effect of being repeated in classrooms, and by park interpreters, and educators for almost an entire decade.
And it’s comically contrary to one of the main intents of the curriculum: to dispel stereotypes and clarify misperceptions about the First Peoples of the East Bay.
Ohlone Curriculum Map, with Markup
So what’s wrong with this map?
Huchiun Is Listed Twice. Huchiun appears in two different areas; the northern-most is actually supposed to be Huchiun-Aguasto.
Huchiun Aguasto is Not Where Vallejo and Mare Island Are. Huchiun Aguasto is actually in the Richmond area; where the northern-most Huchiun label occupies.
Jalquin/Irgin Yrgin and Jalquin are two seperate places/areas. Yrgin is spelled incorrectly.
Inconsistent Capitalization There’s no reasoning or explanation for why any of these areas/places are spelled with upper-case or lower-case letters.
The effect is a false sense of understanding; the continuation of misconceptions and proliferation of “educational materials” which are wrong/inconsistent with the sources cited in the Ohlone Curriculum, itself. [Like Randall Milliken’s maps.]
Alameda Native History Project tried to tell ’em….
It’s been almost 3 years since we first notified the East Bay Regional Park District of problems with the map they have so widely distributed and prominently displayed, we have yet to hear from the Park District.
The East Bay Regional Park District has neither acknowledged their mistake, not made any move to correct it.
So, we fixed the Ohlone Curriculum Map for them.
East Bay Tribal Groups Map, made by Gabriel Duncan, for the Alameda Native History Project (2023). Map services and data available from U.S. Geological Survey, National Geospatial Program.
lol, the invoice is in the mail.
For information on how to get copies of this map, contact Merch.
If you are an institution which would like large-format, or data designed to meet your cartographic and display needs, contact Collab.
You told them this was Native Land, Indigenous Territory, A Sacred Site, or even the place where your great-grandparents are buried. But they laughed in your face, and hid behind a wall of lawyers. And a wall of militarized police.
And, then, they shook hands with the very politicians who promised to protect your tribal homeland, and your great-grandmother’s grave, as they broke ground right on top of her.
This is not figurative, or metaphorical, in any sense at all. You literally watched the shovel break the ground above her resting body. Desecrating forever the sanctity of this place, and guaranteeing an afterlife without rest, or peace.
It made you feel ridiculous; a welling of impotent anger, aggrieved frustration, and justified indignation at this betrayal; at the destruction of the most precious and pristine place you were proud to call your home.
Now, it’s become the site of a lithium mine; host to a four foot wide petroleum pipeline; or worse, a dumping site for nuclear waste that won’t be safe for hundreds of thousands of years (if ever.)
Meanwhile, your ancestors are pulled out of the ground like empty corn husks. The prairies and forests you used to visit, pray and play in have been flattened and become a parking lot for heavy equipment, modular offices.
The water flowing from the springs smell bad now, and none of the animals will drink it, anymore because they will get sick, and die—just like the trees and plants that used to grow around this place.
You tried to tell them they were destroying the place you held close to your heart. Tried to tell them that the well-being of this land wasn’t just important to your people, but that it was integral to the survival of all life on earth.
Other people agreed. They said deforestation, not only led to loss of habitat for the animals you depend on, and who depend on you; but that the earth would never be able to recover from critical damage to its carbon reducing, oxygen producing, infrastructure.
Your new friends got lawyers, and held protests, made t-shirt slogans, eye-catching signs, and raised awareness on social media. But it didn’t mean anything to the people who only saw profit in loss and exploitation. And your new friends left as soon as their GoFundMe’s reached their goals—never giving you the help they promised, or the money they raised in your name.
Now your ancestor’s resting place has a metal fence around it with big signs saying “KEEP OUT”, “PRIVATE PROPERTY”. But you know the signs should be for them, instead of you, and your people.
Both are fronted by Corrina Gould, an Ohlone woman, who has managed to command the attention and monies from thousands of people in the San Francisco Bay Area, and beyond.
Corrina Gould has been lauded for her fundraising to establish urban gardens; create ad-hoc Ohlone language programs; and even negotiate for a cultural easement at a well-known park, in the City of Oakland, California.
But Corrina Gould’s work has been done without the inclusion, consultation, or participation of her own tribe.
And the victories that Gould has managed to score, however shallow—and in the name of “all Ohlone people”—do not actually benefit all Ohlone people. In fact, Corrina Gould is actively diverting money and support away from her own tribe.
Shuumi Land Tax, (fundraising donations) collected by the Sogorea Te Land Trust, does not go to all Ohlone People.
“Shuumi” stays within the Sogorea Te Land Trust, and is only disbursed to Corrina Gould’s personal corporation: the Confederated Villages of the Lisjan Nation, INC.–which, in turn, only benefits Gould’s immediate family.
[For reference, Corrina Gould’s immediate family are:
(1) herself, (2) Cheyenne Gould, (3) Deja Gould, and (4) Chatah Gould.
For all intents and purposes, these are the only members of what Corrina Gould alleges is a “confederation of villages”.]
And…. While Corrina Gould claims that her non-profit corporation is a Tribal Government, it is not. And, despite Corrina Gould’s claims that she is a Tribal Chairwoman, she is not.
Tribal Chairpersons are voted for by the enrolled members of a tribe, in a democratic process which all legitimate Native American tribes are required to employ, per the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Not only do enrolled tribal members vote for the Tribal Chairpersons; they vote for Tribal Council Members; and vote for or against the laws, regulations and actions taken by their Tribe.
At most, Gould was “elected” as CEO by the Board of Directors of her corporation.
But, in reality, Corrina Gould is the self-appointed Chief Executive Officer of a corporation she formed to affect the illusion of legitimacy; a shell corporation she could use not just for her own personal monetary gain, but also satisfy her narcissistic need to be the only indian in the room—the end-all, be-all expert on Ohlone “indianness”.
Gabriel Duncan
The fact that the three officers of the Confederated Villages of the Lisjan Nation, INC.are:Corrina Gould, Deja Gouldand “Chayenne Zepeda” (AKA, “Cheyenne Gould”), should be a red flag regarding the legitimacy of the corporation as a “tribal government”, and “confederation of villages”.
The name of Gould’s corporation itself; a so-called “confederation of villages” forming a “nation” would imply the Confederated Villages of the Lisjan Nation, INC. is a large group of people—presumably, Ohlone people—who represent a number of different Ohlone villages in the San Francisco Bay Area.
If this were true: one would expect to see a roll or roster of villages; articles of confederationsigned by representatives of all the villages in the confederation.
The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe is composed of all surviving lineages of Missions San Jose, Delores, and Santa Clara.
Muwekma boasts over 700 enrolled tribal members; and a proven, documentedcontiguous history of living in the San Francisco Bay Area for over 10,000 years.
Muwekma is a Chochenyo word which means la gente (“the people”.) This is a commonality, for tribes’ names to literally mean “us”, or “the people”. The reason why is mostly philosophical, and only a teensy bit linguistic; but this is true for the majority of groups of people when asked “what do you call yourselves?” [Indigenous People have the right to name themselves, and be referred to by the name they choose. UN Resolution 61/295; adopted Sept-13-2007.]
Alisal was the Land Grant Rancheria Muwekma people lived and worked on after the secularization of the missions, as vaqueros.
Much of this land was later bought by the Bernal family (which became Pleasanton), and a southern portion was purchased by Randolph Hearst.
Muwekma people have called themselves by a few names: Lisjannes, Muwekma, the Mission San Jose Band of Indians, and Ohlone.
However, Ohlone people have never called themselves “Chochenyo”, or “The Chochenyo”, because Chochenyo is an Ohlone Language, not a tribal group.
And Muwekma people have never referred to themselves as the “Verona Band of Alameda County”; this was a name used to identify Muwekma people by the U.S. Government, used in their own internal BIA/Department of Interior documents.
Aside from the fact that:
“Lisjan” is a Chochenyo and Nisenan name for Pleasanton, California; that,
Corrina Gould’s corporation is not a confederation of Ohlone villages, or a Tribal Government; and that,
Shuumi Land Tax doesn’t actually go to the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area…
There is the very real and (largely) unreported pattern of hostility and contempt that Corrina Gould harbors for any person who tries to advocate for, or even dares to mention the name “Muwekma”.
In the four years the Alameda Native History Project has been operating, I have come into contact with countless indigenous people who have (tried to) work with Corrina Gould in various professional and academic capacities. These credible people, experts in their fields, sought me out, to tell me about their experiences with Corrina Gould, after I publicly withdrew my support, and admitted my own mistake in ever co-signing the narrative that Gould had appropriated (almost word-for-word) from the history of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area.
This project completely, and uncompromisingly protects, and will continue to protectthe anonymity of our sources; because, some of these sources are afraid of being subjected to even more harassment and possibly violence from Corrina Gould’s supporters than they have already experienced. [However, we are not afraid. And, this topic–and the subjects within this essay–need to be discussed and brought to the general public; because they are newsworthy and important.]
This public mis-understanding is especially problematic because it means that Corrina Gould is diverting money and support away from the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Franciso Bay Area; the tribe from which Corrina Gould is a recognized descendant. [Alameda City Council, “Listening Session and Partnership Opportunities with Local Indigenous People and Ohlone Tribes“, Dec-6-2022]
So, while people generously donate to a corporation, which they believe will help all Ohlone people….
While the Sogorea Te Land Trust, and Corrina Gould, continue to profit from the public’s belief their donations fund programs which benefit a much larger group of Ohlone people than they actually do….
Ohlone people will continue to suffer harms from colonization and political erasure–not just from the United States, and Spanish Governments’ policies of eradication and assimilation–but also, from misinformation and diversion by someone who would rather exploit their own indigenous identity (, and the public’s genuine good will and support for Ohlone people) for personal gain.
These are the top two priorities of the indigenous people of the San Francisco Bay Area. Once known as “Costanoans” because they, Muwekma Ohlone people, are among the First Peoples of the California Coast.
Let them know that the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area has been in the Bay Area for over 10,000 years; and they deserve a land base on their own tribal homeland.
Muwekma deserves reaffirmation of their status as a Federally Recognized Tribe. Muwekma has the right to have a land base on their ancestral homeland, in a region where they are in danger of being gentrified and priced out of.
Collage art of a shellmound with historic Alameda newspaper articles in the background, with the title words “Save Shellmounds Not Parking Lots”. Artwork by Gabriel Duncan.
While these places may be on our traditional homelands, and within our tribal territories: Brownfields properties and Supferfund sites are neither appropriate, nor respectful gifts of atonement to the Indigenous People the entire Western Hemisphere was stolen from.
It is a waste of resources for indigenous non-profiteers, like Corrina Gould, to focus primarily on post-industrial sites, like the place she alleges is the “West Berkeley Shellmound“.
It is an improper use of our allies’ time, energy–and money–to have them marching around an empty parking lot, and futilely protesting an established and thriving shopping mall (Bay Street Emeryville).
All of this takes away from the reality: Ohlone cultural resources in the San Francisco Bay Area are being destroyed by development at an alarming rate.
Without intervention, Native American cultural resources, like shellmounds, and the fragile ecosystems they inhabit and have supported for over 10,000 years, will be destroyed. Paved over, without a second thought for anything other than their “fair market value”.
Parking Lots and Abandoned Post-Industrial Spaces are not a priority; compared to Federal Recognition, Federal Land Grants, and the establishment of a Tribal Land-base and an official, recognized, Ohlone tribal reservation, and sovereign tribal territory.
Urban Gardens do not address the Land Back movement in a relevant way.
In fact, PR events like the dedication of part of Joaquin Miller Park, in Oakland, and the renaming of a park in Alameda, are completely irrelevant to the actual cause of land back, rematriating the land, and the real priorities of bona fide tribal governments, like the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area–a tribe Corrina Gould would be a member of, if she weren’t so focused on personal gain, instead of advocating for her own tribe, and all Ohlone people.
As long as people realize their time and energy is better spent on an achievable goal, like Federal Re-Recognition & The Establishment of a Muwekma Land-base: Land Back is something we can see happen within our lifetimes.
For more information on how you can help Ohlone people regain Federal Recognition, and get their Land Back, visit the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area’s website at: http://muwekma.org
Just to be clear: eating food grown in contaminated soil may not result in contaminated food…
Even though petrochemical aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are largely unstudied “likely” carcinogens–some of which have been found to move through the soil easily into water; and that contamination can move from soil to food to animals.
Petrochemical Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) include chemicals like Benzene, Naphthalene, Xylene, and other chemicals which are part of a complex and ever-changing family of petroleum-derived products.
While we know that lead, mercury, arsenic, and other heavy metals can concentrate in root vegetables, causing various ailments. The effects of PAH have not be sufficiently researched or linked to the varying illnesses of those living in and around former brownfields and industrial complexes, or exposed to contaminated soils.
While everyone is so excited to line up for their #landback/#rematriatetheland photo ops, ask yourselves if this is the land that you actually want back.
Proper remediation, decontamination, and detoxification of these places must be done by the city/government and/or corporations “giving” this land back.
It helps no one to turn a blind eye to the real-world challenges behind soil and water contamination.
Exposing us to contaminated soil through dust, accidental ingestion, or to the detritus which accumulates on vegetables and fruit above the ground, is not healing. It’s a slow death.
Furthermore, a substance doesn’t just have to be “carcinogenic” to cause harm. Some mutagenic substances can be carried down through generations.
Part of a proper #landacknowledgement not only mentions the @MuwekmaOhloneTribe; it admits to the harms western society committed against the environment during colonization and industrialization.
Here at the Alameda Native History Project, we value organizations and movements which focus on measurable, outcome-based strategies and planning. We value transparency, accountability, and regular reporting on the progress toward those goals.
And while organizations associated with Corrina Gould talk a good game: it would behoove you to take notice of the fact that none of the organizations associated with Gould have achieved any of the goals they purport to strive for.
Here’s a brief breakdown of some organizations Gould is associated with:
Indian People Organizing for Change: Gould claims to be a co-founder of this now defunct organization; this is where she began the Shellmound Walk. Though it’s important to note that we haven’t been able to find any newspaper articles where Corrina Gould is mentioned, or pictured, with any other founders of IPOC. In fact, it looks like Gould’s involvement has been using IPOC as a front for her own fundraising efforts. For what, though?
American Indian Child Resource Center: Corrina Gould was an employee of this organization as a Title 7 Resource Coordinator during the time she herself was convicted of defrauding Alameda County (which she confessed to); was sentenced to 2 years in jail; and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $5,275. While the AIRCRC is a legitimate organization, one can’t help but ask why the Center continues to associate itself with Gould. [Or why any of these organizations think it’s appropriate to put a fraud in charge of fundraising, or even run for “tribal office”.]
Sogorea Te Land Trust:Unaccredited land trust. Named after Glen Cove, in Vallejo, which is actually Wintu and Patwin land; the place where Corrina Gould hijacked efforts to preserve and protect sacred sites. Gould claimed that tribes were not consulted regarding the planning and development of Glen Cove Park, but she was wrong. Tribal Consultation was occurring behind the scenes the whole time Corrina Gould was publicly occupying another tribe’s land.
Gould’s actions resulted in costing the tribes tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees, and forced the tribe to pay for a cultural easement–which would have been free, if Gould hadn’t interfered. The original goal of the Land Trust was to purchase/receive native land to put back into native hands. However, their entire body of work has only focused on re-appropriating urban gardens, and landscaping, thus far. And also to serve as Corrina Gould’s personal piggy bank.
Confederated Villages of the Lisjan, INC.: Formerly created by Corrina Gould to give the appearance of the legitimacy needed for Cities and Developers to treat her as a Tribal Consultant; and to file as an intervenor in court cases to “stop desecration” in places like West Berkeley and Glen Cove. This corporation was subsequently suspended by the Franchise Tax Board; and then taken over by Gabriel Duncan, to prove a point that corporations are not tribal governments. (The exercise of sovereign powers is not a charitable purpose, how can a non-Ohlone person be a tribal chair of an Ohlone government? They can’t; the idea that a corporation can be a tribal government is ridiculous.)
Confederated Villages of the Lisjan “Nation“, INC.: Corrina Gould registered another corporation with a similar name to continue her charade as an elected tribal chairwoman. It’s not hard to say that when your board of directors are your immediate family. But Gould isn’t a Tribal Chairwoman, she’s the Chair of the Board of a corporation masquerading as a tribal government.
The real unfortunate part of this is that Gould continues to present herself as speaking for a larger population of Ohlone People than she has the right to, in the same way King Henry spoke for his subjects in countries across the world. (Except King Henry actually had “subjects”. And, even if you count Gould’s supporters, they’re not Ohlone People.) In fact, it looks like Corrina Gould wants to be the only person consulted, to the point of excluding bona fide tribes, as was the case in both Glen Cove, and Sequoia Point.
Furthermore, Lisjan is the place name for Pleasanton–not East Oakland. And the real “confederation” of villages is the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area.
[The present-day Muwekma Ohlone Tribe is comprised of all of the known surviving American Indian lineages aboriginal to the San Francisco Bay region who trace their ancestry through the Missions Dolores, Santa Clara, and San Jose…]
Lost in the fray is the simple fact that Corrina Gould’s corporation has only been around for about 5 years; whereas the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area has been around since time immemorial. Muwekma has over 600 enrolled tribal members. Muwekma’s lineage is extremely well-documented; and their occupation of the San Francisco Bay Area can be traced back to archeological sites representing at least 7,000 years of ancestral tribal history.
[Yes, I’m also tired of repeating myself.]
So let’s say you don’t want to give money to an organization fronted by a convicted fraud, which isn’t doing the work it claims to be dedicated to. What are some organizations where your investment in indigenous people, their rights, and their lives, would make the most difference?
Muwekma Ohlone Preservation Foundation [link] The actual Ohlone Land Trust and Preservation Foundation working to preserve the homelands of a tribe which was formerly known and recognized as the Verona Band of Indians, and is known today as the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area. By supporting this foundation, you are supporting the rematriation of the land, re-awakening of indigenous language, culture, and helping to foster the honor and respect required to make space for healing, and rejuvenation of the people who survived the Missionization of the San Francisco Bay Area, and the American policies of genocide and erasure in California.
Heal mak Muwékma (“our People”) by connecting with and caring for our ancestral lands,
Protect and hinnimpisin ’oyyo ’innu heeme (“restore culture, and natural resources”),
Gain and ’utas warep — steward the land-base where we have always been,
Awaken cultural practices on the land through tribal gatherings and creating ceremonial spaces,
Ensure the continued ’iškaanesin mak Muwékma (“resilience of our People”)
Friendship House of San Francisco [link] This organization provides the bulk of services to Native People who are either living off the reservation in urban areas, or have been sent to the friendship house to receive treatment and healing services by tribes far and wide. The Friendship House of San Francisco holds a special place in my heart, because I have seen the people who have benefited from their programs, and ongoing mercy and care for all Native People in the Urban Reservation. Investing in the Friendship House of San Francisco is probably one of the best ways to support indigenous people, not only in the Bay Area, but all over this continent.
Intertribal Friendship House of Oakland [link] From the Intertribal Friendship Oakland website: “Intertribal Friendship House (IFH), located in Oakland, CA was established in 1955 as one of the first urban American Indian community centers in the nation. It was founded by the American Friends Service Committee to serve the needs of American Indian people relocated from reservations to the San Francisco Bay Area. The Bay Area American Indian community is multi-tribal, made of Native people and their descendants—those who originate here and those who have come to the Bay region from all over the United States and from other parts of this hemisphere.
“For urban Native people IFH has served as the Urban Reservation and Homeland. In many cases it is one of the few places that keeps them connected to their culture and traditions through pow wow dance, drumming, beading classes, and the many social gatherings, cultural events, and ceremonies that are held there. Intertribal Friendship House is more than an organization. It is the heart of a vibrant tribal community.”
As a youth, I visited the Intertribal Friendship House of Oakland for a lot of events, powwows and fellowship. IFH Oakland holds a special place in my heart as being my local urban Native cultural center for so long.
Muwekma Ohlone Preservation FoundationFriendship House SFIntertribal Friendship House Oakland
If you want to invest in indigenous people, their rights, and THEIR lives; please consider investing in one, or all three, of the organizations listed above.
Muwekma Ohlone Tribal Members unveiling first Trail Marker in their language, Čočeño (Chochencyo), at Coyote Hills Regional Park (aka Máyyan Šáatošikma)
On Sunday, November 27, 2022, we gathered at Máyyan Šáatošikma (aka Coyote Hills Regional Park, in Fremont) to witness the unveiling of the first of 35 trail markers, redesigned, and translated into Čočeño (Chochenyo).
Čočeño is the official language of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area, once recognized as the Verona Band of Indians, and comprised of all of the known surviving American Indian lineages aboriginal to the San Francisco Bay region who trace their ancestry through the Missions Dolores, Santa Clara, and San Jose.
It was through the work of J.P. Harrington, and Ohlone Ancestor Jose Guzman, that the Čočeño language was preserved, and survived centuries of attempted erasure.
The renaming of these 35 trail markers–which account for all of the trail markers in the Coyote Hills Regional Park–are the culmination of decades of (continuing) partnership with the East Bay Regional Park District.
The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area is a bonafide tribe, with more than 600 enrolled members. Muwekma holds elections for their leaders, who are now Charlene Nijmeh (Chairwoman), Monica Arellano (Vice Chairwoman). Muwekma has a strong Tribal Council, made of elders and enrolled members; without whom the re-awakening of the Čočeño language, and traditions, such as almost-forgotten dances, would not be possible.
As supporters of Tribal Sovereignty, of Ohlone People’s struggle for recognition, for Land Back, and those who wish to Decolonize, and Rematriate The Land: Remember that Muwekma is a bonafide tribe–and not a corporation, like the Confederated Villages of the Lisjan “Nation”, INC.; or the Sogorea Te Land Trust.
The important distinction between these groups is that Muwekma has been here since time immemorial. That Muwekma can trace its lineage in the San Francisco Bay Area back to at least 7,000 years ago. That Muwekma accounts for hundreds of Ohlone People. That Muwekma holds regular elections, and–most importantly–Muwekma can back all their claims with extensive documentation, including pictures going back to at least the 1930’s.
Picture of Jose Guzman in Niles, California; taken 1934. Unknown Photographer.
Resources for Supporting the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area:
Or that this is the product of Libby Schaaf’s (Mayor of Oakland) unilateral dealings with Corrina Gould (Spokesperson for Sogorea Te Land Trust, alleged Tribal Chair Person of Confederated Villages of the Lisjan Nation, INC.)
It’s the fact that other local Ohlone tribal groups weren’t consulted during the process of creating the easement we see proposed today.
Also: this still isn’t LandBack. It’s just an easement.
Land is not being conveyed from the City of Oakland, to any entity, as Sogorea Te Land Trust claims. An easement just gives them the right to use Sequoia Point as they chose, within the parameters of the Memorandum of Agreement entered into by the City of Oakland and Sogorea Te Land Trust. The City of Oakland retains ownership of the 5-acre area in Joaquin Miller Park–part of Oakland’s Recreation and Parks Department.
There are some important limitations listed in the propose ordinance you can find in the City of Oakland – Calendar. This includes a clause regarding public access, as well as permit free operations within the scope of the agreement and zoning requirements.
But this is a small part of a large document, that also excludes the Sequoia Point land grant, and (possibly) any future projects at the Point, from certain CEQA, NAGPRA, and AB52 Rules, which have requirements that projects on or near Tribal Cultural Resources must follow a consultation and scoping process with representatives of all the tribal groups of the area.
Bypassing these requirements would completely preclude any other tribe’s rightful claim to be a part of, or hold a share of interest in, this easement. Other tribes would not get a say in what happens at Sequoia Point, a place which other Ohlone groups claim as a part of their tribal homeland. Where each of the Ohlone Tribal Groups should share an equal interest, and have an equal voice.
The most curious part of the Agenda Report, regarding the “Cultural Conservation Easement to Sogorea Te’ Land Trust in Joaquin Miller Park” is the section marked “Public Outreach / Interest”. This section, in its entirety, states:
City staff and the Land Trust have conducted substantial outreach. The Land Trust, both with and without City staff, met with the Friends of Joaquin Miller Park several times to receive input and feedback about the project, and the organization enthusiastically supports the project. District 4 Councilmember Sheng Thao hosted an online Town Hall about the project on September 13, 2022. More than one hundred people registered for the meeting and participants expressed strong support for the project and no opposition. The Land Trust and City staff have also presented the project multiple times to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission. The Commission recommended formal and enthusiastic approval at its meeting on September 14. Since the project was publicly announced on September 8, 2022, there has been a broad expression of support and enthusiasm from the public at large.
City of Oakland Agenda Report for Item # 10 22-0849, on for City Council Meeting Nov-1-2022
The passage above contains no mention of City Staff attempting to contact other tribal groups in the area.
Proponents of the easement appear to have had one very popular online Town Hall, and contacted the Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission, and the Friends of Joaquin Miller Park, for their opinions.
But there is no mention of either City Staff, nor Sogorea Te Land Trust, reaching out to any other Ohlone Tribal Group in this area other than the Confederated Villages of the Lisjan Nation, INC.–who is conveniently fronted by the same person as the Sogorea Te Land Trust, Corrina Gould.
Most projects or proposals on this scale would require some form of Tribal Consultation, or Scoping; this proposal especially, because–for all intents and purposes–Sequoia Point is being considered, or treated, as a Tribal Cultural Resource.
When a city is creating an Environmental Impact Report or Assessment for any proposed public project (or project on public lands) they must exercise due diligence in requesting from the Native American Heritage Commission a list of tribes to consult regarding possible Tribal Cultural Resources possibly affected by the project, and develop ways to avoid or mitigate damage to those resources.
This is an example of a 2019 Tribal Consultation List for Richmond, California.
2019 Tribal Consultation List for Richmond, California – This list is public record and was included as part of an EIR filed in the City of Richmond, California.
As you can see, there is more than one Tribal Organization to consult with. There are seven organizations on this Tribal Consultation List, next to the associated tribes composing those organizations.
FYI: No, this list is not radically different in Oakland, California. I couldn’t find one quickly enough to use as an example. But please believe me, it looks the same, and still has more than one Tribal Organization. [… It’s also really difficult to track down one of these lists outside of an Environment Impact Report/Assessment.]
My point is: cities are required to send letters to every single one of these organizations requesting consultation. Those letters, and replies by tribal representatives, must be filed in the Environmental Impact Report/Assessment; along with a report regarding the request for consultation and any subsequent consultation and scoping activities.
The law requiring requests for consultations, and the consultation lists, were created and required in order to ensure that Native American land rights are respected; Native American Graves, and Cultural Resources are preserved, and protected from desecration.
This is done by codifying the Tribal Consultation process in the California Environmental Quality Act; thereby ensuring that Native American Tribes have a voice, and a say, in what happens on their traditional homelands, to their sacred places, and tribal resources.
The preamble of AB52, and the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, both specifically state this is the legislative intent of these laws.
The well-defined and accepted procedure of the Tribal Consultation Process was not followed to create the proposed Sequoya Point Cultural Easement.
To grant this land to one Ohlone group, without even talking to the others, is wrong; and in opposition to the Equity of all Ohlone People of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Choosing to award one single tribal group with land grants, while simultaneously excluding all others, sows division among indigenous people. And it interferes with tribal sovereignty in a way that disenfranchises thousands of indigenous people from having ownership of a place and project that is supposed to be for them.
The City of Oakland is meddling in tribal politics in the same way the US does in the Middle East. Or Haiti. Or any other place where people have turned around and said, “maybe that wasn’t such a good idea.” Where the actual people living in those countries have done things like burn flags, and tell us to get out. [Judgments reserved.]
The same way that some tribes were denied recognition by the US Government for petty, arbitrary reasons from the start–just as other Tribes were arbitrarily, and capriciously unrecognized [“removed from the Tribal Rolls”] during the Termination Era for the same.
This meddling is unwelcome, and sets a dangerous precedent across the rest of the San Francisco Bay Area, as well as California. The precedent that Tribal Consultation doesn’t matter.
Tribal Consultation matters.
All Ohlone Tribal Groups should be consulted, and have an equal share–and an equal voice–in the Ohlone Cultural Easement at Sequoia Point.
Excluding the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area, as well as other tribal groups, from what’s happening at Sequoia Point, is not equitable. And the easement should not go forward without proper consultation with all affected tribes of the this area. Especially since this is a land grant made in perpetuity,
Introduced by Senator Cortese (Coauthor: Senator Wieckowski) (Coauthors: Assembly Members Kalra, Lee, and Low)
March 07, 2022
Relative to the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST
SJR 13, as amended, Cortese. Muwekma Ohlone Tribe: federal recognition.
This measure would urge the United States Congress and the Department of the Interior and its Bureau of Indian Affairs to reaffirm and restore the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe as a federally recognized Indian tribe and include the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe in the Federal Register as a recognized tribe.
Fiscal Committee: NO
WHEREAS, The United States Federal District Court of the District of Columbia recognized in Muwekma Tribe v. Babbitt (2000) 133 F.Supp.2d 30 that “The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe is a tribe of Ohlone Indians indigenous to the present-day San Francisco Bay Area. In the early part of the Twentieth Century, the Department of the Interior recognized the Muwekma Tribe as an Indian tribe under the jurisdiction of the United States. In more recent times, however, and despite its steadfast efforts, the Muwekma Tribe has been unable to obtain federal recognition, a status vital for the Tribe and its members.”; and
WHEREAS, The United States Federal District Court of the District of Columbia recognized in Muwekma Ohlone Tribe v. Kempthorne (D.D.C. 2006) 452 F.Supp.2d 105 that “The following facts are not in dispute. Muwekma is a group of American Indians indigenous to the San Francisco Bay area, the members of which are direct descendants of the historical Mission San Jose Tribe, also known as the Pleasanton or Verona Band of Alameda County (the “Verona Band”). From 1914 to 1927, the Verona Band was recognized by the federal government as an Indian tribe. Neither the United States Congress nor any executive agency ever formally withdrew federal recognition of the Verona Band.”; and
WHEREAS, The Muwekma Ohlone people, who never left their aboriginal land and were once pronounced extinct by anthropologists, have retained their culture and social identity for the past 230 years; and
WHEREAS, The Muwekma Ohlone people have left a record of approximately 13,000 years of human history; and
WHEREAS, The United States government maintained a “trust” relationship with three Costanoan tribal groups, including the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe, historically identified as the Verona Band, by the Bureau of Indian Affairs from 1906 to 1927; and
WHEREAS, The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe was wrongly removed from the Federal Register in 1927 despite its “trust” relationship and its previous efforts to foster and secure federal recognition as an Indian tribe; and
WHEREAS, The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe enrolled with and was approved by the Bureau of Indian Affairs during the years between 1928 and 1933, inclusive, 1948 and 1957, inclusive, and 1968 and 1971, inclusive, under the 1928 California Jurisdictional Act, attended Indian boarding schools between 1930 and 1950, inclusive, and have since organized according to the Bureau’s directives, but still have no right to be legally considered an Indian tribe without first obtaining reaffirmation and formal acknowledgment by the Secretary of the Interior; and
WHEREAS, There are over 600 individual descendants of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe in the San Francisco Bay Area who have been identified by the Bureau of Indian Affairs; and
WHEREAS, European migration led to the near decimation of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe and the lack of formal recognition after 1927 by the Department of the Interior suggests a disregard for the cultural diversity and historical presence that the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe has offered to our state, including service in the United States Armed Services in previous wars and military conflicts spanning from World War I through the present day; and
WHEREAS, Several California counties and elected officials have officially supported the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe in its efforts for recognition through legislation commending their efforts and historical and social accomplishments, supporting requests for historical claim by the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe, and urging the federal government to reaffirm and restore the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe as a federally recognized tribe; and
WHEREAS, It is imperative that the Department of the Interior and the federal government officially recognize the historical and social history of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe through its efforts to attain federal recognition; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of the State of California, jointly, That the Legislature does hereby urge the United States Congress and the Department of the Interior and its Bureau of Indian Affairs to reaffirm and restore the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe as a federally recognized tribe and include the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe in the Federal Register as a recognized tribe; and be it further
Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States, to the Secretary of the Interior, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the Majority Leader of the Senate, and to each Senator and Representative from California in the United States Congress.
This text of the Senate Joint Resolution Number 13 was taken directly from the California Legislative Information website. You can find more information about the Senate Joint Resolution for Federal Recognition of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe–as well as read the current text of the resolution–on the official CA Legislative Information website, at:
This might seem like a repeat of the circumstances which led to the hostile take-over of the Confederated Villages of the Lisjan, INC.: A well-known non-profit organization with dubious claims of tribal sovereignty, and a lack of transparency which was suspended as a corporation by the California Franchise Tax Board for failure to pay taxes and/or file required financial documents.
The fact that Sogorea Te Land Trust is subject to a California Franchise Tax Board Tax Lien was discovered by a Lien Notice filed in Alameda County, on 8/23/2022, as Instrument #2022146941.
It’s unclear if Sogorea Te Land Trust’s Tax Exempt Status will be Revoked, or if the corporation itself will be Suspended by the California Secretary of State (like the Confederated Villages of the Lisjan, INC. was;) but we will continue to provide you with updates as this situation evolves.
In the meantime–if you actually care about whether or not the Land Trust you support (like Sogorea Te Land Trust) adhere to ethical standards, and sound fiduciary conduct, we recommend checking the Land Trust Accreditation Commission’s Website, and searching for the land trust you support.
[Spoiler alert: Sogorea Te Land Trust is not an accredited land trust.]
