T'eetilawuncha blog: September 2008

Monday, September 8, 2008

The Moratorium

I would like to know which family or clan has the largest number of applications stuck in the Moritorium on enrollments at the Temecula Band of Mission Indians Reservation.

The moratorium is illegal as it violates the bands constitution, which calls for open enrollment every January.

What Family or Clan are you from and how long have you been in the moratorium?

What are your feelings, and why do you think the illegal moratorium is in place?

Friday, September 5, 2008

Masiel Carjacks on the Casino Property

On September 3, 2008, at about 1930 hours, deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department responded to the 45000 block of Pechanga Parkway in reference to a reported carjacking. This is the Casino area.The victim reported that 26 year old Benjamin Masiel , a violent offender of the Temecula area carjacked the victim’s vehicle at gunpoint following a domestic dispute. The suspect fled the area in an unknown direction. Riverside County court records show Masiel has multiple felony convictions, including assault with a deadly weapon, criminal threats and domestic violence. HOW many strikes does this guy get.A search for the suspect was unsuccessful. That means he's OUT THERE, with a gun!On September 4, 2008, at about 1200 hours, Pechanga Tribal Rangers located the victim’s abandoned vehicle on a dirt road on the Pechanga Indian Reservation and notified the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. Deputies responded to the area and recovered vehicle.
The suspect is considered armed and dangerous and is still outstanding. The Pechanga Casino area could be a dangerous proposition for customers.

THAT IS A FACT

The Fact IS :

Tribes are not the harmonious band of people that non Indians think they are. There are always schisms and factions that do not get along with one another.What happens when one small group gains complete control of the Tribe with the added incentive of millions of dollars in their pockets (people have been killed for much less)? What happens when your accusers become your judge and jury (this is what happened to us)?

Before the Tribe had anything they were happy to have us as members, it wasn't until it looked like the tribe was going to get something that memberships were questioned. Our family has been recognized as members of the tribe for over 100 years according to the records on file with the BIA.

It is historical fact supported by certified documentation that our ancestor Paulina Hunter was an Indian that lived in the original Temecula Indian village. She was also recognized by members of that tribe as a member via witnessed and certified documents of that period.It is recorded that she was evicted along with the rest of the tribe from the Temecula village and moved to the area known as Pechanga to live with them.

One of the most revered and respected members of the Tribe, Antonio Ashman wrote before his death in a signed and witnessed document stating that he knew Paulina Hunter personally as a member of the tribe.

In 1915 tribal elders who needed translation from Luiseno who were alive at the time (1882) the reservation was created, said they knew her personally as a member of the Tribe, and gave signed witnessed depositions stating that they knew her as a member of the tribe and detailed her family. Tribal elders also gave signed and witnessed statements during our hearing that they have always recognized the Hunters as members of the tribe.Now more than a hundred years after her death, in a record of decision from the Pechanga Enrollment Committee, they state that she was some other kind of Indian, who just happened to live with the tribe in the original village, and the people from that tribe mistakenly believed she was a member. They say that she just happened to be kicked out of the original village to move to Pechanga with the rest of the Tribe to live.They say that the government mistakenly gave her an allotment on the reservation as a Pechanga Indian. That she is listed on the original Pechanga Reservation records as a Temecula Pechanga Indian by mistake (that I might add happened year after year, every year until her death).They say that tribal elders from the 1800's were mistaken when they gave signed witnessed depositions stating that they knew her as a member of the tribe.

FACT: The disenrollment committee hired Dr. John Johnson, curator of Anthropology at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History for an anthropology report on our ancestor Paulina Hunter. To their dismay he answered the questions in his report saying that he was 90% sure (he now says he is 100% sure) that she was a Pechanga Indian. Why the change in percentage you ask? There was a fire at the San Luis Rey Mission that destroyed documents from the time period that is relevant.Then a small group known as the CPP tell us that THEY know who "real" members are, and that documentation means NOTHING. We were even told by one member of the enrollment committee that we were going to be disenrolled no matter WHAT documents we provided. One member even slept throughout our hearing. We were told we could NOT take in writing tools or paper, and could NOT have legal representation, nor given a transcript of the hearings.Just to let those who are unaware of the history, Pechanga was the name of a place not a tribe, our tribe moved to the area known as Pechanga and later established the reservation on that land known as The Pechanga Reservation.

According to Dr Johnson's report:Mateo Quasicac Paulina Hunter's father was born in Pechanga (this was before there was a reservation). In fact he is the only Indian listed in the mission records as being born at Pechanga.

It would seem that her father being born an Indian at Pechanga makes him a Pechanga Indian even before there was a reservation named Pechanga.Paulina Hunter lived in the original Temecula Indian village (fact supported by signed and witnessed documents from the period). She moved with her tribe when they were evicted to the area known as Pechanga, an area well known to her and her family, as her father was born there. She is listed on each and every census record for the Pechanga reservation from its creation until her death. She was granted a land allotment (listing her as a Pechanga Indian) from the president of the United States in the 1800's. And now over 100 years after her death, some are claming she was some other kind of Indian? You might ponder "if it is a small group, why hasn't the rest of the Tribe tried to put a stop it?" Well we DID in 2005. As a matter of fact in the largest gathering of our Tribe in recorded history, we voted to STOP "ALL" disenrollment which removed the Disenrollment Procedure from Pechanga Tribal Law. This was the largest voter turnout since the inception of the Reservation. The margin was more than 2:1 in favor of removing the procedure.This so shocked the CPP(Corrupt Pechanga People) that has gained control that they stopped ALL tribal meetings for the next few months, and in secret behind closed doors, guarded by armed guards decided to disregard the vote and the will of the people and disenrolled the Hunters regardless of the law. This act resulted in removing 100+ adults from the upcoming political elections, quarterly bonus, and percapita distributions. Those who are left on the Rez live in fear that if they now speak up the same lawless actions will happen to them.

T'eetilawuncha blog

Monday, September 8, 2008

The Moratorium

Friday, September 5, 2008

Masiel Carjacks on the Casino Property

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Gabriel Pico Pechanga Councilman

Pechanga

Think NDN

About Me

Without a tribe?

THAT IS A FACT

San Luiseno

My Blog List

BLOGROLL & Favorite Sites

For all my Relations:

THICKER THAN BLOOD FAZELEZZ

Blog Archive

You Have to BE BETTER!