In the LA basin, we’re all living on land that was once the province of Indigenous tribes who were largely squeezed out. Many of the areas have been paved over and industrialized. The LA River has been controlled and turned into a concrete channel. Still, efforts are underway to redress some of these actions.
“I saw that there was a need for an organization to work collaboratively and collectively, think and plan strategically, and provide spaces for Indigenous communities to come together and … protect our sacred lands, waters and cultures,” says Angela Mooney D’Arcy, founder of Sacred Places Institute (SPI).
Part of that healing involves seeking recognition for the state’s role in the attempted genocide of Indigenous Californians. In 2019, Governor Gavin Newsom issued a formal apology to Native Americans and established the California Truth and Healing Council. D’Arcy says the group has met regularly over the last few years and is exploring what’s necessary to move that recovery forward. She wishes for more action, and she says the California Reparations Task Force — which studied how slavery and racism impacted the state’s Black residents and explored options for recompense — and the Truth and Healing Council, should have worked together.
“I do wish that there had been a mandate for the Reparations Task Force … and the Truth and Healing Council to talk to one another. Because I think that those struggles are unique and independent. But I think that both of those task forces would have benefited from conversations with one another as they advanced that work to achieve justice for all of our communities.”
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Some groups, as D’Arcy explains, such as the Tongva Land Conservancy, the Acjachemen Tongva Land Conservancy, and the Native American Land Conservancy, are working to get their land returned.
Today, D’Arcy says California Indigenous communities include individuals from 120 federally-recognized and about 60 non-federally recognized Native nations. She adds that the state has strong laws that acknowledge and protect the rights of non-federally recognized tribes. That includes the California Native American Heritage Commission and a section of the state code that allows the attorney general to put a moratorium on new developments that may impact sacred sites or areas of significance.
Still, since SPI launched more than 10 years ago, D’Arcy says she’s seen dramatic changes.
“Even something as simple as a land acknowledgment … you didn’t see happening … in government agencies or meetings or things like that 10 years ago. So I think that is a first step. People now are far more aware of the fact that they’re on tribal lands, like the majority of Los Angeles County is on unceded Tongva lands. Within LA County, you also have Chumash and Tataviam nations.”