Rep. Mike Thompson Requests Rep. Nick Rahall Hold Oversight Hearing on ENFORCEMENT of the Indian Civil Rights Act.

REMEMBER WHEN? THANK you Congressman Thompson, for standing UP for what is RIGHT.

It seems our contingent in Washington D.C. as well as Rep. Darrell Issa have gotten the word out. We need a hearing on the enforcement of ICRA.

The Honorable Mike Thompson has requested Rep. Nick Rahall, who is Chairman of the Committee on House Resources, to hold and oversight hearing on the enforcement of the INDIAN CIVIL RIGHTS ACT.

Here is a copy of that letter, and THANK YOU, Rep. Thompson, for standing up for your constituents and for ALL who have been harmed by their tribes.

originally published September 14, 2010.

Indian Civil Rights Act 68 Ltr.doc[1] by OPechanga

Syrian & South African Sovereignty and Tribal Sovereignty, Birds of a Feather?

 Our President, Barack Obama is preparing to attack a sovereign country, Syria for attacks on their own people.  The Congress of the United States imposed sanctions on the sovereign nation of South Africa for the oppression of their majority population.

Why then, does our congress refuse to act against sovereign tribal nations, such as The Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians, which is currently running as apartheid system on their reservation?  Why does the Democratic Party, supposedly the party of civil rights, stand by when civil rights are obviously violated, in Pechanga’s case by members of their own Native American Caucus?

Currently, the Pechanga Tribal Council, led by Mark Macarro, has eliminated 25% of his tribe.  He has threatened landowners with expulsion from the reservation for the egregious acts of:  Using playground equipment and being in the park area unaccompanied by a tribal member.  He had his Tribal Rangers, trespass on private property to threaten allottee against trespassing on tribal land.

Yes, he has stripped the equivalent of 8 MILLION CA voters of their right to vote in tribal elections, thereby ensuring he maintains his power base and can spend tribal money with no oversight, and cover for his brother’s spending of tribal money on personal family trips.  All the while keeping politicians in check with campaign contributions and keeping local politicians in line with a few thousand dollars to local schools, this after he segregated the tribal school, forcibly removing children with the power of his Tribal Rangers.

It is past time for our politicians to do the right thing for the people who have been abused by tribes that wield sovereignty like a club against the weak.   

This is not an issue that affects only Pechanga, it includes tribes like the Pala Band of Luiseno Indians, and others in the north, including the Picayune Rancheria of Chukchansi Indians, the Redding Rancheria and one tribe angling Gov. Jerry Brown for a casino, the Enterprise Rancheria.    

The news media is strangely quiet. You won’t read much of this in the Press Enterprise, who blithely looks the other way and some local police incident reports look like press releases.   At one protest, the sheriff’s department lined up to protect the TRIBE against a concerned group of elderly women, men and young children.   Hiding behind the walls of the Pechanga Casino, they missed the threats from tribal members to protesters.

Readers, it’s time to stand up against tribal abuses.  HOW?   Do not patronize their businesses and let them KNOW why you aren’t coming back. In Temecula, there are plenty of places to spend your entertainment dollar. If you want to gamble, there is the San Manuel Casino in San Bernardino, Casino Pauma is nearby.  AVOID Pala!  If YOU respond economically, the tribe will react.   Don’t attend functions there and ask your local politicians to no longer use their casino for meetings and dinners.  All the while informing these corrupt tribes WHY you are no longer coming.   It worked in South Africa, it can work here.   Reform is needed and you can help.

Before we look to our President to launch Tomahawk cruise missiles at a sovereign nation, We should look to he and Congress to stand up to sovereign tribal nations that abuse American citizens.  Sovereign status comes with sovereign responsibility to their people and Pechanga has shamed their ancestors with their abuses.

Pechanga Stonewalls Temecula, San Manuel Works With San Bernardino

All tribes are NOT alike. We know that Pechanga cheated its own people, here's a different tribe doing what is right. It seems to be a habit with San Manuel.

The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians will pay the city of San Bernardino about $3 million over the next three years to cover the cost of policing city neighborhoods near the tribe's reservation and casino, officials said Tuesday.
The tribe will pay for six San Bernardino police officers, one sergeant and one part-time detective, as well as for vehicles and equipment, crossing guards and additional police resources for special events.

The new money, which officials said has already been factored into the city budget, will replace money San Bernardino used to get from a state fund - a fund San Manuel is no longer required to contribute to.



Read more: http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_15808632#ixzz0wyMk2yor

George Lopez, Outspoken on AZ Immigration Law, In Bed With Civil Rights Violators by Performing at Pechanga

Say it isn't so, G-Lo. We reported that you stood with CUBAN civil rights protestors. You commented on the AZ immigration law that could possibly violate civil rights. But when it comes to ACTUAL civil rights violators HERE in CALIFORNIA.... you help support THEM?

Please CANCEL your performances scheduled for September 16 and 17 at Pechanga because of THEIR civil rights violations.

George, here is a portion of the letters written to Attorney General Holder on the civil rights violations by tribes in CA:


Throughout California Indian Country, tribal officials have taken actions which have denied and/or stripped thousands of California Indians of their membership status and denied them access to federal benefits and programs in the areas of housing, education, health, voting and public works assistance. In some instances, the illegal actions occurred decades ago, however, there has been a marked increase since Indian Gaming was approved and later expanded in California.


Tribal leaders justify their right to systematically deny civil rights and expel their citizens under the guise of tribal sovereignty. Tribal leaders have routinely committed acts to deny Indian individuals due process; equal protection of tribal, state, and federal laws; property interest rights; and voting rights. Theses actions have been carried out in gross violation of laws enacted to guarantee and protect the rights of the individual Indian.


We can no longer allow those who oppose upholding the civil and voting rights of thousands of California Indians to claim that this is a sovereignty issue that rests solely within the domain of tribal courts and tribal law. Few California Tribes actually have tribal courts. Therefore, in most cases, the tribal government officials responsible for the violations of law are the very same people who pass judgment as to whether or not laws have been violated - they are the judge and jury all rolled into one.

Cracks in Tribal Sovereignty Dam: Federal Overtime Laws Apply to Labor.

A Payallup tribal member on trust land was cheating his employees out of rightful pay.


The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals recently held in Solis v. Matheson, No. 07-35633 that the overtime provisions of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) apply to a business owned by a tribal member and operating on trust land within the boundaries of a reservation

The court made two additional decisions that impact tribal sovereignty. First, it determined that because the FLSA applied to this business, the Secretary of Labor could enter onto the reservation to investigate FLSA claims and obtain wage and hour records. Second, the court concluded that if the business was ordered to pay overtime wages and associated penalties and failed to do so, the court could appoint a receiver to take over the finances of the business to ensure that payment was made.



This decision represents another move by U.S. courts to apply federal employment laws to tribal employers, notwithstanding tribal sovereignty. Tribal members who own or operate businesses should be aware that they may be subject to a growing body of federal employment laws under these decisions, and may want to seek advice on whether these laws apply to them and how to comply

CA Democrat Darrell Steinberg Says Boycott AZ for New Immigration Law, IGNORES Civil Rights Violations by Indian Tribes in His OWN STATE

Mr. Steinberg, there are huge civil rights violators in YOUR own state. Look HERE first. Do the names: Pechanga, Picayune, Enterprise, Robinson, San Pascual, Los Coyotes mean ANYTHING to you. NO? The have your staff follow this blog, sir. Forget about Arizona, that state is NONE OF YOUR DAMN Business. They have elected politicians in that state. Protect the local California INDIANS who have HAD THEIR CIVIL RIGHTS violated ALREADY. Why worry about illegal aliens from another country. LOOK INWARD, tell your leadership to no longer support tribes that VIOLATED the civil and human rights already.


California Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg said today he has asked Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to work with him to review all state contracts with Arizona and possibly break them because of Arizona's new immigration police law. OP: BREAK contact with tribes, no longer have meetings at their hotels, don't take their political donations,

"That bill is a gross civil-rights violation. We hope it will be overturned by the courts quickly," said the Sacramento Democrat, who sent a letter to Schwarzenegger today. OP: There is NO violation, the bill hasn't taken effect. Meanwhile, elders are abused, health care taken away, voting rights cancelled, in your own back yard.

The new Arizona law requires local police officers to demand proof of legal status in the United States when officers believe there is reasonable suspicion that someone is an illegal immigrant. Latino and immigrant rights groups say the law will lead to racial profiling and vow to sue to stop it. OP: Meanwhile, tribes are violating tribal constitutions with impugnity, using LESS THAN reasonble suspicion to accuse people they DON'T LIKE.

"It's a civil-rights issue whenever you set somebody aside because of the color of their skin or where they come from," said Steinberg, who is a lawyer. "And that applies to both legal immigrants, citizens and undocumented immigrants. I mean, how do you define reasonable suspicion? There's only one way under that law. And it's somebody who looks Mexican. Period."


Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/static/weblogs/capitolalertlatest/2010/04/post-12.html#ixzz0mKwBVpQn