Return-Path: <laamn@labridge.com> X-Sender: tazalolu@pop.loop.com Date: Sun, 16 Nov 1997 19:02:30 -0800 To: laamn@labridge.com From: "Los Angeles Alternative Media Network" <laamn@labridge.com> Sender: tazalolu@loop.com Subject: Urgent Appeal to Preserve Native Shoshone Gabrielino Sacred Site
All: Please help Native peoples STOP the Catholic Cathedral from being built on their sacred land. Wednesday is the final hearing in city council chambers to approve the ownership participation agreement with the Catholic Church. Please call the numbers below to ask that the hearing be postponed at least two weeks until a controversy over prehistoric human remains can be resolved. Also, at the same time request that at the next hearing public comment are allowed.
TO ALL YANGNA SUPPORTERS! Nov. 14, 1997
RE: The proposed Lady of Our Angels Catholic Cathedral to be built in downtown Los Angeles, on one of last sites of Yangna.
WHAT: We need help to convince the Los Angeles City Council to: 1. Postpone for at least two weeks, a final hearing scheduled for November l 9th at City Council Chambers on Yangna and the proposed Cathedral until a controversy about prehistoric human remains found on the site is resolved. 2. WHENEVER the final hearing is, to open the hearing to public comments (currently there is no plan to do so). This is a highly controversial issue and the public should have a right to speak. Please call as many city councilpersons as you can to ask them to do this. THANK YOU!
IF YOU WANT TO DO MORE: Call or write Cardinal Roger Mahony. Ask him to postpone the hearing, and to meet with Chief Ya'Anna Vera Rocha regarding the importance of this site to the Shoshone Gabrielino Nation. He can be reached at the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, 3424 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA phone: 213-637-7000.
NOTE:City Councilpersons snail mail & e-mail addresses, faxes are at the bottom of this e-mail
WHY? The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Los Angeles wants to build a new $50 million dollar Cathedral as his chief church in Los Angeles. It would be built downtown at a site bounded by Temple St., Hill St., Grand Ave. and the 101 Freeway. This area is an ancient village site of Yangna of the Shoshone Gabrielino Nation. It is one of the last important sites of Yangna that has not had a high rise placed on it. Chief Ya'Anna of the Shoshone Gabrielino Nation has asked that this project not be approved, due to Yangna's importance to their culture. According to the LA County Natural History Museum it deserves to be studied as an important archaeological and historical site. In light of the Catholic Church' s past history with the indigenous people who were removed from this land in the 1700's and forced to work as slaves in the mission system, they should talk to Chief Ya'Anna Vera Rocha regarding this site. Instead they have refused to contact her, and in fact Cardinal Mahony walked out of the room at the final Community Redevelopment hearing on 10- 15-97 before Chief Ya'Anna spoke. We need to educate the Catholic Church to respect the indigenous people of California.
ALTERNATIVES: 1. The Catholic Church can find another site to build their cathedral. 2. This site would then revert back to the City of Los Angeles where it would remain capped off by a parking lot, until such time as the residents of Los Angeles realize the significance of the thousands year old history of this city, and interest could be gathered to restore it in an appropriate manner as a cultural site of the indigenous people of this area.
FOR MORE INFORMATION contact Kathy Knight at (310) 581-0015, or SPIRIT OF THE SAGE COUNCIL at (909) 422-1637, P.O. Box 77027-102, Pasadena, CA 91107
________&________&________&________&________&________&
Phone Script Talking Points Or Letters
"Good morning. My name is________ and I would like to speak with Council Member or the appropriate field representative regarding the proposed Catholic cathedral project .
If the Council person and field representative is not available ,... "Excuse me I did not get your name. Well________, I would really appreciate it if you could take a message in writing and give it to Councilperson________. This is a matter of importance to me.
I've been following this Cathedral project and have read about it in the newspapers. Apparently human remains have been found and taken from the site. The Native American Indians firom the Shoshone Gabrielino Nation have stated that this area is a known cemetery and burial grounds that is sacred to them.
I am asking that Council person ________ and the City of Los Angeles recognize and respect the religious and cultural concerns of Vera Rocha, the hereditary Chief and traditional elder of the Shoshone Gabrielino Nation. At the very least Council person________ should make sure that there is a public hearing before the City Council. I support the protection and conservation of this sacred site and find no true need for the cathedral to be built at this site.
With $50 million in their pockets for this project, the Roman Catholic Church and the Los Angeles Archdiocese do have the ability to build the cathedral somewhere else and not insult or harm the Native Americans.
The parking lot that is currently on site protects any other human remains that are expected to be beneath its surface. It is not a matter of just human bones being disturbed but the flesh and blood that are part of the earth and the sacredness of this site.
It is a historic fact that before Los Angeles, there was Yangna (Yawn ga na). Councilperson ________ should consider the value of the cultural history of Los Angeles if she/he doesn't care about the Shoshone Gabrielino people
Many of the schools teach the children about the cultural history of LA. What is Councilperson _____ teaching the children if she/he allows this sacred site to be destroyed.
The Councilperson________ and City Council need to assist Vera Rocha with those in the Church and CRA (Community redevelopment Agency) who seek to divide the Gabrielino's by offering "monitoring" jobs and money in order to sell their culture out.
The City of Los Angeles and City Council have done nothing to honor the indigenous Shoshone Gabrielino Indians. Something needs to be done to rectify, the genocide and harm that has been done to these Native people.
I would personally like to see the City Council deny the Cathedral Project, as proposed on this site. I think a memorial park to the California Indians of Los Angeles that died in slavery would be more appropriate. Certainly a beautiful memorial park would fall under redevelopment and City improvement." __________________________________________________ City Councilpersons snail mail & e-mail addresses, faxes
snail mail address: NOTE Room Numbers LA City Council LA City Hall 200 N.Spring St. LA, CA 90012
CD1 Mike Hernandez, Room 318 hernandez@c01.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3451 213.485.8907 fx
CD2 Joel Wachs, Room M-39 wachs@c02.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3391 213.680.7895 fx
CD3 Laura Chick, Room 281 dsample@c03.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3486 213.485.8988 fx
CD4 John Ferraro, Room M-30 ferraro@c04.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3337 213.624.7810 fx
CD5 Michael Feuer, Room 380 council5@c05.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-5013 213.687.7406 fx
CD6 Ruth Galanter, Room 239 galanter@c06.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3357 213.237.0549 fx
CD7 Richard Alarcon, Room 218 alarcon@c07.ci.la.ca.us (213) 847-7777 213.847.0707 fx
CD8 Mark Ridley-Thomas, Room 290 mjones@c08.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3331 213.485.7683 fx
CD9 Rita Walters, Room 260 council9@c09.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3351 213.485.8990 fx
CD10 Nate Holden, Room 230 holden@c10.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3323 213.485.7683 fx
CD11 Cindy Miscikowski, Room 275 braude@c11.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3811 213.237.0637 fx
CD12 Hal Bernson, Room 237 bernson@c12.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3343 213.237.0638 fx
CD13 Jackie Goldberg, Room 240 goldberg@c13.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3353 213.613.0819 fx
CD14 Richard Alatorre, Room 375 alatorre@c14.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3335 213.237.0680 fx
CD15 Rudy Svorinich, Jr., Room 236 svorinich@c15.ci.la.ca.us (213) 485-3347 213.626.5431 fx
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Peace!
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