Tuesday, August 5, 2014

DISENROLLING THE DEAD is NOT the Indian Way; At Pechanga NOTHING is SACRED, Especially Ancestors

Attorney Gabe Galonda has a nice piece on what disenrollments are doing.  They did so in our family's case at Pechanga, disenrolling our ancestor Paulina Hunter and to the first family disenrolled at Pechanga, the Manuela Miranda descendents.

Your dead cease to love you and the land of their nativity as soon as they pass the portals of the tomb and wander away beyond the stars. They are soon forgotten and never return.

Our dead never forget this beautiful world that gave them being. They still . . . yearn in tender fond affection over the lonely hearted living, and often return from the happy hunting ground to visit, guide, console, and comfort them. – Chief Seattle

There is perhaps nothing more reviling about disenrollment, than the disenrollment of ancestors, or what offending tribes call “posthumous disenrollment.”

It has happened at Saginaw Chippewa, at Las Vegas Paiute, at Robinson Rancheria, and most recently, at Grand Ronde. And it could happen to your ancestors, and to you.



The reason the offending tribes–or more precisely, their lawyers–or even more precisely, their non-Indian lawyers–disenroll the dead is because many IRA tribal constitutions include language that says if you descend from an enrolled tribal member (and satisfy other requirements, like blood quantum), you are entitled to tribal membership too.

As such, in order to disenroll large swaths of tribal members, as is happening at now epidemic levels, an offending tribe must go back multiple generations on a family’s tree, to disenroll not only the living, but the dead.

Beyond rightful moral outrage to so disturbing and dishonoring the ancestors, the maneuver raises due process questions, especially insofar as an offending tribe does not give even the ancestors’ living descendants notice or opportunity to be heard.

To some tribes death is so sacred that the community can never again utter an ancestor’s name; they are to be left in peace.

To other tribes, nothing is sacred.


Learn More on Disenrollment, Ethnic Cleansing in Indian Gaming Country at these Links:
Gaming Revenue Blamed for Disenrollment
disenrollment is paper Genocide
CA Tribal Cleansing
Tribal terrorism
TRIBAL TERRORISM includes Banishment
Nooksack Disenrollment




5 comments:

Anonymous said...

The truth is crystal clear. The only answer the Bad Actors use to justify the unjustified actions is We Can Do What We Want. We Have A Sovereign Shield To DO It Our Way.

Sad the Bad Actors forget why or how they got the Sovereignty shield. Instead of honoring "ALL" ancestors, they would rather disrespect and shun "ALL" in hopes others would understand and except the actions. The truth is more honoring even if we can't agree.

Anonymous said...

The bad actors liars,
"The Pechanga Tribal Council consists of six members and one chairperson. The tribal council sets policies, administers government programs and executes the will of the General Membership. The tribal chairperson and members of the council are charged to uphold and enforce the Pechanga Band's Constitution, bylaws and tribal ordinances. They are responsible of upholding the rights of each tribal member, without malice or prejudice. The tribal council members are obligated to act in the best interest of the Pechanga band. Election for tribal council are held every two years. The tribal council meets at least on a monthly basis, and reports to the General Membership (which meets at least once a month)."
The truth, "After the General Membership said ALL MEANS ALL and to stop disenrollment. the bad actors stopped meetings until the council allowed the disenrollment's to occur." They did this without following custom and tradition, or allowing rights to be protected. Instead they used tribal rangers in bullet proof gear to push families through the slaughter farm while they ignored truth from tribal elders. Sad if you still support the Bad Actors and the ones who justify these non Indian practices.

lets unite said...

I am from the Mohegan tribe in ct. This tribe is as corrupt as they come. I no longer consider us a tribe. Over the past couple of decades I have witnessed a transition from a tribe to now just a corporation. The council I now refer to as board members. The members of the board do not make any major decisions, it is the people that fund us that control the tribe. My own people have caused me to lose faith in humanity because of they love paper currency more than life it self. They have burried myself and many others alive because we come foward with truth and cries for help. they are giving indian country a bad name. I myself have done 1,000's of hours of research on this worsening issue. I have turned my focus at washington dc. now. congress needs to hear us because they oversee federal tribes and are the only ones that can change our laws. I would like to see restrictions put on "immunity" if not even revoke immunity, so these tribal council members can be held accountable for human rights violations, bullying, intimidation, fear and corruption. Ithink all of us being abused should become united and stand together as one. there is power in numbers. It's time our cries for help are heard! please if anyone has any suggestions feel free to contact me via e-mail. taz45cal@gmail.com. I AM NOT AFRAID TO STAND UP FOR WHAT IS RIGHT. MORE GUTS LESS FEAR! Thank you.

White Buffalo said...

I see this is an old post OP, but I am glad that you have brought it back. I apologize for not visiting or contributing to the fight in the last month and year. I have been extremely busy with work and the issues of life. I pray your current readers do not give up hope in this ongoing struggle. It is a life struggle that will not be won without sacrifice by all who are affected. Our ancestors suffered greatly at the hands of the settlers and the governments of Spain, Mexico, and the US. Our ancestors had no choice but to carry on and hope for better things for their descendants. We are those people and we should not forget their sacrifice and hardship. I pray gentle reader that if you have been wronged by your tribe that you continue to fight in honor and respect of your ancestors. We owe them that much. As for our tribes they have lost their way and the circle that keeps us in harmony with nature and our way of being. I can't help but pity them as they will wander aimlessly in the next life without hope and in utter darkness forever regretting what they did in this life. Now I believe in the promise of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and I also must forgive them, yet this does not mean that I should just passively let them get away with what they are doing. I hope to see a uniting of all disenrolled in a cause to change the structure of sovereign rights for the individual who is indigenous to this land. Our fight is hard and it is long. Have heart and talk with one another about what you think the solution is. It is there waiting for us to take hold and push it into reality.

Anonymous said...

Its starting to boil in Native country. And when it boils over. There's going to come a major resistance. And where there's a resistance, there is Anon,and where there is Anon... oh boy...