The First Article contributed to The Native Blog by O. Pechanga

Are California’s Tribal Disenrollments the Beginning of the End of Tribal Sovereignty?

By Original Pechanga   

"In the 21st Century, who would have thought that the Indian Wars would begin anew?  This is not the war of racist whites who wanted to move west no matter who was hurt.  This time, it’s greedy Indians who want more money, no matter which tribal members they hurt.   The 21st century Indian War is now Indian vs. Indian.  Tribes such as Pechanga of Temecula, Redding Rancheria, Jamul of San Diego, Enterprise Rancheria are violating their members civil rights, eliminating them from tribal rolls and denying them their part of the tribe.   And because of California Tribe’s use of sovereignty, it can be “we just don’t like you” or “we don’t believe the evidence” (are you going to believe me or your lying eyes?),   In California’s Indian Country, wealthy casino tribes are gorging themselves with cash, the fruits of their casino, thanks to laws passed by the citizens of California.  Prop 1A and Prop. 5 were passed overwhelmingly, thanks to ads that promised not to expand gaming and to help tribes with self reliance.   

To the California populace, this meant that tribes would be able to take care of their own membership.  Those living in poverty would be brought forth; non gaming tribes would benefit from a fund that gaming tribes would contribute to.   A ‘lifting of all boats’ if you will.   What has happened in that time has in fact helped some tribes.   San Manuel of San Bernardino has developed their reservation from dirt poor to one of the wealthiest in the state and tribal members are definitely in the top 1/10th of income earners in California.  And they are taking care of their people. Their population is limited, with fewer than 200 members.  Morongo of Cabazon is another example of good governing.   Sadly, some tribes could not stand to share their good fortune.  Visions of more money, or living at San Manuel standards blinded some with greed and envy.   The Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians is one such tribe.  Blessed with an excellent location near a freeway and with easy access and a growing population, the Pechanga Resort and Casino was successful and thriving.   With just over 1,000 adult members, the tribe was, by 2004 able to provide their members with a monthly per capita check of $15,000 and quarterly bonuses.  Additionally, the tribe provided health care via Blue Shield, Dental, Eye and extra benefits for elders.  Also included was educational assistance including college scholarships for which all was needed was a C average.  Even John Kerry and G. W. Bush could have kept a scholarship.   

But that wasn’t enough for a splinter group of band members, the Concerned Pechanga People.   This group of extremists made threatening advances on tribal enrollment committee members, storming offices demanding that people be disenrolled.   The disenrollment process was initiated in a Salem-witch-trial like atmosphere.   Letters saying, “I think that family should be investigated” and “there is a person from OHIO that had the same name, we think it was their ancestor.     Never mind that one of the ancestors under investigation had land on the reservation for well over 100 years, given to them from President McKinley.   The process has been recounted in the article from Harpers “A Paper Trail of Tears” detailing the ouster of the family of the original headman of the Pechangas, Pablo Apis.     The evidence for Paulina Hunter’s family is detailed in “Without a Tribe” an investigative report from KNBC-TV in Los Angeles.   The investigation went on for months and as recounted in the piece, Pechanga refused to speak to KNBC until the day before the airing.   Comically, Pechanga had to buy a 30 second spot during February sweeps (a bit more costly) to tell their story.  In watching the report, it was clear that Pechanga Chairman Mark Macarro was caught in a lie, and he was called on it by anchor Colleen Williams.   The report featured noted anthropologist, Dr. John Johnson, curator of the Natural History Museum in Santa Barbara, and an expert in his field, possibly without equal. What is the significance of Dr. Johnson?  Well, the Pechanga tribe hired him to research Paulina Hunter’s ancestry.   They went for the best and he found the truth about Paulina; she was indeed Pechanga, “100%” he said.  Now keep in mind that this gentlemen has worked with California Mission Indians for decades, heavily researching Las Padrones, the historical record of the priests of Mission San Luis Rey (from which Luiseno comes)   

Some authors, who are concerned that sovereignty issues outweigh any damage to families of disenrolled, ask the question:  Are they violating tribal law or US law, because US law wouldn’t apply to a sovereign nation.   Well the answer is:  They are violating tribal law.   Pechanga’s constitution requires open enrollment every January with specific requirements for enrollment.  There is no blood quantum required; the requirement is lineal descent from an original Pechanga person.     Pechanga has a moratorium in place which has kept new members from joining the tribe.  The moratorium is not authorized in the constitution. There was a petition brought forth to the tribe, it was ruled valid and voted upon.  The moratorium, unconstitutionally, was passed.  The Tribal Council explained that “the people have spoken” and it’s now law until repealed. Later, when a petition was brought forth to end all disenrollment, it was ruled valid and voted upon, after the question of the Hunter family’s disenrollment process was brought up, Chairman Macarro said, “all means all”.   The people voted to end all disenrollments.   The will of the people was spoken.   Months later, the tribe was sent a letter saying that the Hunter family disenrollment couldn’t be stopped by a vote of the people; they had to right to vote on enrollment matters.   Okay so the people had a right to STOP new members coming in, but not to stop lifelong members from going out?  I think this answers the question of violations of law.
     This is sovereignty that is wielded like a club, not for the good of the members, but to their detriment.   These websites and blogs can help answer questions, and there will be more articles like this one."
Without a Tribe www.penchanga.info http://blog.myspace.com/paulinahunterofpechanga
www.tribalcorruption.com 
http://originalpechanga.blogspot.com

Original Pechanga is a disenrolled member of the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians.

Comments

[t'eetilawuncha!]

Excellent. Please view the Pechanga time line at Pechanga.info

Also read the entire history of the splinter group at the above emntioned web address.

AHO!

[Guero Nunez]

My family is a direct descendant of Chief Pablo Apish and we were first to be disenrolled. This type of action had never occurred at Pechanga before in fact the only disenrollment I remember is of a man who claimed to be of the Apis line. It was later proven that he was not and that the Apis line was considered as tribal members that disenrollment took place in the early 1990s.

It was not until the tribe built the hotel and casino that the disenrollments of my family took place. There are several factors that were involved in the enrollment committees decision to disenfranchise us first is our voting block was one of the largest and knowing this the then current council was afraid of losing power in the upcoming elections, and then there was the per cap disbursement, It is obvious in the timing of these occurrences. First the tribe waited until the last of our ancestors who had first hand knowledge of our rightful claim died and then we were disenrolled just before elections.

We have proof that the tribe did break tribal, state, and federal civil rights laws in the way our disenrollment occurred. We would not have been disenrolled if the tribe would have not broken their own constitution and by laws, yet because of sovereignty there is no avenue that is unbiased and fair that we were able to use in determining the fairness of our claim. I always believed that as a US citizen I had rights, yet this is not the case. The issue of sovereignty is important for all tribes, but what about the tribes like Pechanga who abuse and misuse the trust that is given to that government. All of the tribes are being hurt by just a few corrupt tribes that care not for the people or the old ways that we were once proud of. Who we were, and now none Indian whites are on the tribal council and they are the one’s who have done this to the people. The rest of the tribe is afraid to speak up for fear of the same thing happening to them. Instead of blaming us go after and investigate further what is being said. Its easy to say what you do because you have not had to live through this kind of injustice and you only see one side of the story, but CA would not have to worry about protecting sovereigntry if they the tribes had not broken the law and trust of the people.

Guero Nunez aka White Buffalo

[Luiseno]

O. Pechanga wrote:
"In the 21st Century, who would have thought that the Indian Wars would begin anew?"

Tribes are not the harmonious band of people that non indians think they are. There are always schisms and factions that do not get along with one another. What happens when one small group gains complete control of the tribe with the added incentive of millions of dollars in there pockets (people have been killed for much less). What happens when your accusers become your judge and jury (this is what happened to us).

Before the Tribe had anything they were happy to have us as members, it wasnt until it looked like they were going to get something that memberships were questioned. Our family has been recognized as members of the tribe for over 100 years according to the records on file with the BIA.

It is a fact recognized by both sides of the Tribe that Paulina Hunter was an indian that lived in the origional village. She was also recognized by members of that tribe as a member via witnessed and certified documents of that period. She was evicted along with the rest of the tribe from that village and moved to the area known as Pechanga to live with them is also undisputed. Also one of the most revered and respected members of the Tribe most recently wrote before his death in a signed and wittnessed document stating that he knew her persionally as a member of the tribe. Members who were alive at the time also said they knew her persionally as a member of the Tribe, they gave signed wittnessed documents stating that they knew her as a member.

Now more than a hundred years after her death, people (who I might add some are related to the Hunters) are trying to say that she was some other kind of indian, who just happened to live with the tribe in the origional village, and the people from that tribe mistakenly believed she was a member. They say that she just happended to be kicked out of the origional village to move to Pechanga with the rest of the Tribe to live. They say that the government mistakenly gave her a allotment on the reservation as a Pechanga indian. That she is listed on the origional Pechanga Reservation records as a Temecula Pechanga indian by mistake (that I might add happened year after year, every year until her death). That tribal members from the period were mistaken when they gave signed wittnessed depositions stating that they knew her as a member of the tribe. The disenrollment committee also hired Dr John Johnson, curator of Anthropology at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History to check on her. But much to there dismay he came back with a report saying that he was 95% sure (he now says he is 100% sure) that she was a Pechanga indian

Then they say that the small group known as the CPP (who I might add had previously tried to take over the tribe eariler, but was shot down by the BIA) tell us that THEY know who are "real" members, and that documents meen NOTHING.

You might ask "if it is a small group, why hasnt the rest of the Tribe tried to put a stop it". Well they DID try a couple years back. In the largest gathering of our Tribe in recorded history, they voted to STOP ALL dissenrollments and remove the disenrollment process from Tribal law by a HUGE margen. Well this so shocked the CPP that they stopped ALL tribal meetings for the next few months, and in secret behind closed doors, guarded by armed guards decided to overthrow the vote of the people and disenroll the Hunters anyways. With such a HUGE voting block now disenrolled they now have assured there control and take over of the tribe.

Those who are left live in fear on the Rez, and worry that if they now speak up that something will be done to them also.

[Spirit of Pechanga]

Real Native American People have always respected and taken care of the elders of their tribes. The actions of the Pechanga Tribal Council and the disenrollment committee prove that the Pechanga tribe is being run by non Indians who do not care about the true Customs and Traditions of the Pechanga tribe. The enrollment committee was taken over by this group of CPP in the 90's. One member of the committee was adopted into the tribe (they say in the Indian way because there is no proof of any adoption on record). My questions are: 1) Why are her brother and sister also members of the tribe when they were not adopted by a Pechanga Indian? 2) Where is the lineal descent to an originaL Pechanga/Temecula People there? 3)Why are her children who were not adopted at all also members of the tribe? 4) What kind of scruples does the Tribal Council have to allow people with no lineal descent to original Pechanga/Temecula people in the tribe while allowing a family like the Hunter family to be disenrolled when all of the certified documents show lineal descent to Paulina Hunter, an original Pechanga/Temecula woman. The Hunter family can trace their lineage back to the mid 1700's to Paulina Hunter's great grandparents who are recorded in the Padrones as originating from Temecula. There are very few families from the Pechanga tribe who can honestly say the same thing. Tribal Chairman Mark Macarro is not one of them. 5) When is the United States Government going to step in to help the indivdual Indians of this land? Tribes like the Pechanga tribe are abusing so called "Tribal Sovereignty". The individual Native Americans may not have alot of money, but we do still have a vote. WE NEED HELP NOW!!!!!!!!!!!