Tag: Valentin Lopez
Amah Mutsun Reclaim Land Stewardship Through Land Trust
Through the Amah Mutsun Land Trust, the tribe is regaining it’s role as stewards and tenders of the lands traditionally occupied. “Creator gave us the responsibility to take care of Mother Earth and all living things,” said Valentin Lopez, tribal chairman. “We have to find a way to live up to that responsibility.” Santa Cruz Sentinel Read more…
California Indians Demand Cruelty to Ancestors Be Disclosed as California Mission Foundation Tries to Declare El Camino Real a UNESCO World Heritage Site
A proposal by the California Mission Foundation to have the state’s famed El Camino Real route declared a UNESCO Heritage Site is being bitterly opposed by state Indians who said it would only “honor and glorify the brutal conquest” of Indian lands. “Our tribe and many other California Tribes impacted by the California Mission system Read more…
AlJazeera Television Report on the Canonization of Junipero Serra
Some argue that California’s native peoples voluntarily joined the Spanish Missions founded by Junipero Serra in the 18th Century. “Not true,” Valentin Lopez of the Amah Mutsun told AlJazeera Television. “That’s why they had soldiers with them, to capture the Indians.” https://vimeo.com/140805432
“We are Stunned” Lopez Tells CNN
“We are stunned and we are in disbelief,” Valentin Lopez told CNN after the canonization of Junipero Serra in Sept. 23, 2015 in Washington, DC.
Native Americans Make Last Ditch Plea to Stop Serra Canonization
Native American activists and advocates met Tuesday, Sept. 22, in Washington, D.C., for one last-ditch effort to draw attention to their objection over the canonization of 18th-century Franciscan friar Junípero Serra. Read details in the National Catholic Reporter
Letter to Pope Francis, Sept. 2015
In a letter to Pope Francis outlining the reasons the Amah Mutson people oppose the canonization of Junipero Serra, Tribal ChairmanValentin Lopez says “Undoubtedly what puzzles and hurts us most is how the Catholic Church has ignored the humanity of our ancestors.” Read: Letter to the Pope Sept 2015
Call In: Valentin Lopez in a Discussion of Serra’s Canonization
Public Radio Station KALW featured Aman Mutsun Tribal Chairman Valentin Lopez in a discussion of the issues surrounding Junipero Serra during the program Call In on Sept. 14, 2015. Listen at http://kalw.org/term/elias-castillo#stream/0
Is America’s New Saint More of a Sinner?
The Amah Mutsun opposition to canonizing Junipero Serra is part of story reported by Public Radio International, a nonprofit orgaization whose content attracts nearly 19 million people around the world each month. “We’ve asked The Pope to work with our tribal members to begin a healing process. And we have not heard back from him,” Valentin Lopez, chairman Read more…
Letter to Gov. Jerry Brown August, 2015
August 31, 2015 Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr. c/o State Capitol. Suite 1173 Sacramento, CA 95814 Re: Open Letter Regarding the Canonization and symbolism of Junipero Serra YOU MAY SIGN A PETITION ON THIS REQUEST TO GOV, JERRY BROWN AT CHANGE.ORG Dear Governor Brown, My name is Valentin Lopez and 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…
Radio KPFA’s Visionary Activist Show
The July 23 program features Valentin Lopez of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band, and authors Matthew Fox and Elias Castillo discussing their opposition to plans to canonize Junipero Serra. (Audio)
Letter to Gov. Jerry Brown Regarding Serra Canonization
The Amah Mutsun Tribal Band Chairman Valentin Lopez has asked Gov. Jerry Brown to join the tribe in opposing the canonization of Junipero Serra. The request was made in a letter delivered to the Governor’s Office July 17, 2015.Letter to Gov Brown re Serra
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…
How the Hummingbird Got Fire
Mount Umunhum gets its name from the Ohlone word for “resting place of the hummingbird.” Hummingbird is a central figure in the Ohlone creation story and an important part of their culture. Valentin Lopez, Chairman of the Amah-Mutsun Ohlone tribal band, reads the legend of how Hummingbird got fire from the Badger People. KQED Qwest Read more…
Return to Mt.Umunhum
The Amah Mutsun Land Trust is cooperating with the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District in the planning fo and initiation of landscape restoration and traditional management at Mount Umunhum in the Coastal Range of Santa Clara County, CA. The peak, to which public access is currently being restored, is a sacred site to the Amah Read more…
Respuesta de Amah Mutsun a la Encíclica de la Iglesia Católica con relación al Medio Ambiente
1ero. de Julio del 2015 Su Santidad Papa Francis Casa de Marta Ciudad del Vaticano, Roma 00120 Italia Re: Respuesta de Amah Mutsun a la Encíclica de la Iglesia Católica con relación al Medio Ambiente. Su Santidad, Papa Francis, Mi nombre es Valentin Lopez y soy el presidente de la Banda Tribal Amah Mutsun. Read more…
Historic Trauma is Real, Valentin Lopez Tells a Symposium at UC Riverside (Video)
Valentin Lopez, chairman of the Amah Mutsun Band, argued against canonizing Junipero Serra at a symposium at UC Riverside on March 13, 2015. “Historic trauma is real and it ties back to mission times,” he said.
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)
Testimony at the The United Nations United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
Valentin Lopez, Chairman, Amah Mutsun Tribal Band Speech Delivered to The United Nations United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues: Intervention April 23, 2014 New York City miSmin Tuuhis, kan-raakat Valentin Lopez, tumsan-ak kannis riccami makke nii. Dear distinguished members of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, my name is Valentin Read more…