For many, Monday was Columbus Day, marking the arrival of Europeans to the North American continent. But an increasing number of people are instead choosing to recognize it as Indigenous People’s day, in honor of those who were already here.
One of those tribes lived in the South Bay and, on Monday, they arrived in the Nation’s Capital to demand that their existence be recognized.
Members of the Muwekma Ohlone arrived at the Arlington Bridge in Washington D.C. on Monday after a two-month journey by horseback that started at the Golden Gate Bridge. The tribe called it the Trail of Truth as they crossed the country, demanding to be included by the federal government.
“Muwekma Ohlone has been in a 45-year struggle to get, really, our existence acknowleged,” said Tribal Chairwoman Charlene Nijmeh.
Once numbering nearly 30,000, the tribe said it has about 600 living members.
Nijmeh said Muwekma was once recognized, but decades ago the Bureau of Indian Affairs ruled that they, in fact, didn’t qualify to be on the list of government-sanctioned tribes.