Tag: mission
Tribal Chairmen’s Assn. Letter Opposing Serra Canonization
The Southern California Tribal Chairmen’s Association, in an August 2015 letter to Pope Francis, opposes the canonization of the Franciscan Friar Junipero Serra. Fr. Serra was responsible for founding and building, by means of the forced labor of our Native ancestors, nine of the twenty-one Spanish Catholic missions that were eventually built on the traditional Read more…
California’s Saint, and a Church’s Sins
An opinion piece by New York Times writer Lawrence Downes describes opposition to the canonization of Junipero Serra. The piece quotes Valentin Lopez, chairman of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band: “How can Pope Francis and the Catholic Church speak or act with moral authority when they know that they have mistreated the indigenous people?” and the Read more…
Far from Human and Scarcely Civilized
Letters written by California Mission founder Junipero Serra and one of his successors, Fermín Francisco de Lasuén, help create context for the attitude of leaders of the missions toward Indians. Told by church officials to allow Indians to “change their location” and “journey from place to place,” Lasuén protests that this would never work for Read more…
Letter fro Steven Newcomb to Gov. Jerry Brown
Steven Newcomb, author and co-foundeer of the Indigenous Law Institute, challenges California Gov. Jerry Brown to oppose canonization of Junipero Serra. Earlier the governor called Serra “one of the innovators and pioneers of California” in a letter July, 2015. Letter from Steven Newcomb to Gov. Brown
The Impact of Colonization on Native California Societies
By 1769 the Spanish had had nearly two and a half centuries of experience in dealing with American Indians, and were therefore prepared for managing the California Indians who had nothing worth taking, and who fell in that class of people called “Barbarians.” Spanish Indian policy was at heart that of the obligation to civilize Read more…
Sainthood for Founder of California Missions Angers Native American Groups
Members of several Native American groups gathered on Easter Sunday at the historic Carmel Mission to protest the proposed canonization of Franciscan priest Junipero Serra, who is buried there. The gathering sought to honor their ancestors who were also buried at the mission nearly 250 years ago after being stripped of their kinship ties, culture Read more…
Author Shatters the Image of California’s Missions
In a presentation to the San Francisco Commonwealth Club, Author Elias Castillo refutes the myth that the 21 Franciscan missions in California were idyllic sites where Franciscan padres and Native Americans lovingly commingled. In reality, the missions were death camps in which the Catholic missionaries, guided by mission founder Junípero Serra’s direction that the “savage” Read more…
Letter to Pope Francis regarding the Encyclical July 1, 2015
Letter-to-Pope-Francis-re-Encyclical-1 July 2015 The Amah Mutsun’s Response supporting the Catholic Church Encyclical on the Environment and reiterating the request that the Pope reverse his decision to canonize Junipero Serra. Respuesta de Amah Mutsun a la Encíclica de la Iglesia Católica con relación al Medio Ambiente (en Español)
Letter to the Pope from Donna Schindler, April 24, 2014
April 25, 2014 Your Holiness, Pope Francis It was with great pleasure that we received your letter of Oct 19, 2013. As a sign of our gratitude, we are sending you a t-shirt of the Amah Mutsen tribe and a necklace of abalone in a traditional Mutsen design, which Val Lopez has made for Read more…
Letter to Pope Francis from Donna Schindler March 15, 2015
Pope Francis Vatican City March 12, 2015 Your Holiness, After two centuries of struggling to heal since being enslaved by Franciscan priests, California mission tribes will be hit with another damaging blow: the upcoming canonization of Junipero Serra. As the founder of the California missions, Fr. Serra is responsible for a legacy of cruelty to Read more…