SPECIAL EDITION
With this special edition of News from Dorothy Ramon Learning Center, Center President and Elder Ernest Siva (Cahuilla-Serrano) invites you to join us at Dorothy Ramon Learning Center in a joyous return to in-person events after two years of the pandemic.
EVENT DETAILS:
May 2, 2022,
Dorothy Ramon Learning Center’s Gathering Hall
127 N. San Gorgonio Ave., Banning, CA 92220
Suggested donation: $10 per person.
5 p.m. RECEPTION
Join in celebrating the Center's 19 years of saving and sharing Southern California's Native American cultures at the Center's Gathering Hall in downtown Banning, California. Support and join our work! Yummy refreshments courtesy of the Rupert Costo Endowment of UC Riverside.
6 p.m. DRAGONFLY LECTURE
Co-sponsored by the Rupert Costo Endowment of UC Riverside
And the San Gorgonio Pass Historical Society.
"The Treaty of Temecula: A Story of Invasion, Deceit, Stolen Land, and the Persistence of Power," by Dr. Sean Milanovich.
The signing of this treaty changed history in January 1852, but most scholarly work leaves out the Native American voice — until now.
Dr. Sean Milanovich of the Agua Caliente Band used Indigenous research methodologies to gather and tell the story of invasion on tribal lands and the plot to take control of all Indigenous lands through violence, thievery, installation of a new government, and treaties in California.
The Cahuilla, Cupeño, Luiseño, and Serrano attached their marks to the Treaty of Temecula, to unite their communities and prepare for a new world that included the survival of their people.
The people persevered and continued to thrive despite genocide, incarceration, and lack of resources. Between March 1851 and January 1852, Indian commissioners produced eighteen treaties with at least 139 tribal bands. In July 1852, the United States Senate rejected the treaties, and kept them secret.
Dr. Milanovich will share about the leaders who signed the treaty — ancestors of some Native Americans we know today — and will discuss why and how this event affects everyone today, for example enabling tribal sovereignty and helping preserve Native American cultures.
By adding Native American voices to this history we understand better the staggering depth of the losses. We also learn that the Indigenous experience is not only about suffering, but also shining bright with cultural strength and resilience.
About our Dragonfly Lecturer:
Sean Milanovich, a member of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians in Southern California, is an Indigenous family man — a loving husband, proud father, and blessed grandfather to two grandsons. He received his PhD in Native American history at the University of California, Riverside. Sean engages with his community by serving as Vice President of the Native American Land Conservancy, Secretary of the Native Land Trust Council, and President of the Wicahpi Koyaka Tiospaye. His interests lie in Indigenous ecological knowledge, getting out on the landscape to embrace the gifts of the Creator, and sharing a laugh and song with his community members.
This is an in-person event.
Thank you to our co-sponsors, the Rupert Costo Endowment of University of California, Riverside, and the San Gorgonio Pass Historical Society.
The last two years have been tough for many, including Dorothy Ramon Learning Center, our small 501(c)3 nonprofit that saves and shares Southern California Native American cultures, languages, history, and music and other traditional arts. We thank you for all your support! Come join Learning Center President Ernest Siva in joyfully re-opening our Gathering Hall for events and activities.
Singing and dancing before the pandemic (Carlos Puma Photo)
Suggested donation: $10 per person.
Dorothy Ramon Learning Center welcomes all donations. (MORE INFO.) We welcome your EMAIL. Thank you from Editor Pat Murkland, April 19, 2022.