Tuesday, August 22, 2017

The Faces of Disenrollment: Manuela Miranda Descendants: WE BELONG and ALWAYS HAVE

Is this story of Pablo Apis' FAMILY being told at Pechanga?  True descendants who belong in the tribe, eliminated because of POLITICS.
Manuela Miranda 
For centuries, the Pechanga/Temecula people lived in peace with one another. 
Despite occasional differences, we have always struggled and survived as a unified community. Indeed, under the leadership of Chief Pablo Apis and others, our common ancestors literally fought and died for the land which was set aside by Executive Orders in 1882 and 1893 for the use and benefit of the “Temecula Band or village of Mission Indians“.
HISTORY: The Temecula Indian village, from which our ancestors were forcibly expelled from in 1875, was located within the tribe's aboriginal territory on land which was deeded to Chief Pablo Apis as the Little Temecula Rancho and which was to be set aside for the Temecula Indians by the Treaty of Peace and Friendship. The treaty, which was signed at Chief Apis' adobe in the Tribe's village, was never ratified by the US Congress. The land on which the Pechanga Resort and Casino is located is actually a corner of Chief Pablo Apis‘ original land grant.

We are lineal descendants of Chief Pablo Apis. We trace or lineage through his daughter Juana Apis and granddaughter Manuela Apis Despierto. Our names, and the names of our ancestors stretching back to Chief Apis, are included in the Tribe's Official Enrollment Book and referenced in the Tribe's Constitution and Bylaws.

Members of our family served the Pechanga Band for generations in many different capacities. Manuela Miranda descendents have been elected to serve on the Cultural Resources Committee, the Enrollment Committee, and various other committees. We have been elected to represent the Pechanga Band as ambassadors for Indian Country through the Americans for Indian Opportuntiy program and we have been elected to represent the Pechanga Band as tribal liasons/representatives for multi-tribal organizations such as the Luiseno Intertribal NAGPRA Coalition and Indian Health Services.
We have served on the Constitution and By-laws Committee, the Pechanga Development Committee, and on Committees for the Pechanga Silver Feathers. We have donated countless hours to prepare meals, gather clothes and other goods for other tribal members and Indian people.

A family member also donated over a dozen palm trees to the Pechanga Band for planting at the Pechanga Park for the enjoyment of all Tribal members.

Yet, in spite of our solid and unbroken ties to the Tribe, our lineal descent was questioned by a group of “concerned tribal members”. This group launched a propaganda campaign to disenroll us from the tribe. This campaign, along with their association with those who make the decisions regarding membership issues, eventually led to our disenrollment.

Many, including the “concerned members”, thought that we would go away quietly. In fact, they were counting on shielding themselves and their actions from redress by invoking the Tribe's immunity from suit.

However, we are fighters. We will not allow the gross violations of Tribal, state, and federal law go without having our day in court. And, in July 2004, a Riverside County Superior Court judge ruled that the courts of California, as mandated by Congress in Public Law 280, have jurisdiction to hear our lawsuit against the individual tribal members who damaged us.

We will continue the fight in many arenas, on our disenrollment issue and disenrollments throughout Indian Country. #StopDisenrollment

Apis Family BELONGS
TOSOBOL Family BELONGS

HUNTER Family Belongs     BRING US ALL HOME

4 comments:

White Buffalo said...

We know the truth and the reason we were kicked out. ostly it was family harming family. We were told to go along with whatever we were told or we would get kicked out. We started asking questions and opposing Little Marcy and cronies. We knew we had the vote to have them removed in the next election and lo and behold we were given the boot. The tribe will say that we had our day in court and that the merits were heard, well that is just one of many lies that you were fed by the tribe. The story is long and I have work to do, so search this site for the story is there.

Anonymous said...

Family harming family....that's abuse in the highest order.
.
How can they sleep at night?

Anonymous said...

Why would the France Miranda family ALLOW her OWN relatives to be tossed from the tribe.

WHAT did she do that she was afraid of being found out?

Mary Rivas said...

Hello I have been doing some research off and on about my family and I discovered through tracing back that we are desendants of Pablo Apis. I want to get in touch with those who can tell me more about our history and family. My grandma was Mary Jane the daughter of Margaret Larieze Miranda whose mother was Mary Miranda whose mother was Nellie Apis,whose mother was Juana Apis...whose father was Pablo Apis.
My email is Erica333rivas@gmail.com