美国国家公共电台 NPR In California, Salinan Indians Are Trying To Reclaim Their Culture And Land

 

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

The lives of Native Americans are still shaped by decisions made by the federal government in the 19th century. In California, the federal government never officially recognized around 40 tribes, a decision that left them without land or sovereignty. Independent producer Allison Herrera is from one of those tribes, and shares what that's meant for her and for her family.

ALLISON HERRERA, BYLINE¹: I grew up in San Luis Obispo on the central coast of California. My grandmother, Anna Herrera, hardly talked about being a Salinan Indian. I wanted to find out why. What happened to our family? So one windy day in 1997, I asked my then-76-year-old grandmother to take me to where most of our family used to live, a place called Toro Creek².

ANNA HERRERA: All of them are buried out there nearly.

ALLISON HERRERA: We went through an old, rusty³ gate, past an old cabin to where coffee cans stuck out of the ground. They were tombstones here to mark the graves of more than 60 of my Salinan ancestors, including my great-great-great-grandmother.

ANNA HERRERA: The old lady - she was the boss.

ALLISON HERRERA: This land is prime California real estate, views stretching from the mountains to the sea. I asked her why the family left this place. She said it wasn't by choice.

ANNA HERRERA: There's thousands of acres back in there, though, the Indians thought they owned, but I guess not.

ALLISON HERRERA: My family lived here for generations. But unlike other tribes, the Salinan don't have land. One reason for that - the tribe lacks what's known as federal recognition. Because of many factors, including the tribe's forced relocation by Spanish missionaries⁴, they never had the opportunity to come to an agreement with the federal government. My great-great-grandparents managed to keep their home at Toro Creek until 1934. Since they didn't have a lawful⁵ claim on the land, it was sold out from under them.

ANNA HERRERA: There was a man - a cattleman named Marre, and they stepped in there and said, hey, this is mine.

ALLISON HERRERA: My family took the Marre Land and Cattle Company to court. I eventually got a hold of the court documents and found out they were ordered to leave their home. My grandmother seemed resigned.

ANNA HERRERA: And there was nobody to contest it. Nobody had any money.

ALLISON HERRERA: The tribe is preparing to apply for federal recognition. It's an expensive and time-consuming process, but Salinans are split on whether or not it's worth it. Some think the tribe's energy is better spent on educating the next generation on Salinan language and culture.

MARY BISHOP⁶: I was just going to walk down to the cemetery⁷.

ALLISON HERRERA: Mary Bishop, a Salinan elder, wants to appeal for that federal recognition. We met at Mission San Antonio de Padua, an 18th century Spanish mission. The Spanish used the Salinan as free labor⁸ to build this adobe⁹ church and monastery¹⁰ on what was their ancestral territory.

BISHOP: These Indians lived in these mountains very, very happily, comfortable. When the Spaniards came, they gradually got the Indians to come in here to build all of what you see.

ALLISON HERRERA: Bishop wants to be able to claim this land as our own.

BISHOP: And if we become recognized, which is - I'm hoping that we do, we can at least apply for a piece of this ground where our people walked when they were free.

ALLISON HERRERA: Gregg Castro is the former vice¹¹ chair of the Salinan tribe. He's worked on applying for federal recognition and thinks it's not worth the effort. He says we should recognize ourselves as Salinan first and foremost.

GREGG CASTRO: That's who you are. It's built into the fabric¹² of your being. You can acknowledge it or not. That's a choice you can make, but it's there nonetheless.

ALLISON HERRERA: I recently visited Morro Rock on the coast of California. This sacred place is now a state park. When my grandmother was alive, we'd come here often. I find it ironic¹³ that we as Salinans have to ask the federal government for permission to be who we already are and to live on land that we have lived on for generations. I know who I am. I'm Salinan. For NPR News, I'm Allison Herrera.

SIEGEL: That story was supported by the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.

1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 creek   

n.小溪，小河，小湾

参考例句：

• He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
• People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。

3 rusty   

adj.生锈的；锈色的；荒废了的

参考例句：

• The lock on the door is rusty and won't open.门上的锁锈住了。
• I haven't practiced my French for months and it's getting rusty.几个月不用，我的法语又荒疏了。

4 missionaries   

n.传教士( missionary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Some missionaries came from England in the Qing Dynasty. 清朝时，从英国来了一些传教士。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The missionaries rebuked the natives for worshipping images. 传教士指责当地人崇拜偶像。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 lawful   

adj.法律许可的，守法的，合法的

参考例句：

• It is not lawful to park in front of a hydrant.在消火栓前停车是不合法的。
• We don't recognised him to be the lawful heir.我们不承认他为合法继承人。

6 bishop   

n.主教，（国际象棋）象

参考例句：

• He was a bishop who was held in reverence by all.他是一位被大家都尊敬的主教。
• Two years after his death the bishop was canonised.主教逝世两年后被正式封为圣者。

7 cemetery   

n.坟墓，墓地，坟场

参考例句：

• He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。
• His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

8 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

9 adobe   

n.泥砖，土坯，美国Adobe公司

参考例句：

• They live in an adobe house.他们住在一间土坯屋里。
• Adobe bricks must drived dried completely before are used.土坯砖块使用前一定要完全干燥。

10 monastery   

n.修道院，僧院，寺院

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• She was appointed the superior of the monastery two years ago.两年前她被任命为这个修道院的院长。

11 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

12 fabric   

n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织

参考例句：

• The fabric will spot easily.这种织品很容易玷污。
• I don't like the pattern on the fabric.我不喜欢那块布料上的图案。

13 ironic   

adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的

参考例句：

• That is a summary and ironic end.那是一个具有概括性和讽刺意味的结局。
• People used to call me Mr Popularity at high school,but they were being ironic.人们中学时常把我称作“万人迷先生”，但他们是在挖苦我。