Alex Darocy Photography

Residents in Santa Cruz gathered at the Town Clock on September 13 as part of a national day of action to oppose the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline, and to support the Standing Rock Sioux and the Native Americans protecting the land and the water near the tribe's land. "Join us to call on President Obama to instruct the Army Corps of Engineers to revoke the permits for this dirty oil pipeline," an announcement for the event in Santa Cruz read. "The movement to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline is growing stronger by the day, and it's time for all of us to rise up and play a role in this fight - no matter where we live. " The rally at the Town Clock, which was organized by the Earth Democracy committee of the Santa Cruz Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, brought together a large, energetic crowd. As rush hour traffic passed by, community members held signs inscribed with statements of solidarity with the Standing Rock Siou...

Linda Yamane constructs a traditional tule boat at Ohlone Day. Photo: September 10, 2011. Linda Yamane, who is of Rumsien Ohlone ancestry, is an Ohlone basket weaver and cultural preservationist who lives in the Monterey Bay Area. She spent years researching Ohlone basketry before producing her first traditional basket in 1994. Yamane's were the first Ohlone baskets to be made in over 150 years. She and her students are the only authentic Ohlone weavers alive and working today. A young person sits in a tule boat on display at Ohlone Day. Photo: September 10, 2011. Yamane is also the author of  the book, "When the World Ended, How Hummingbird Got Fire, How People Were Made: Rumsien Ohlone Stories." For more information about Linda Yamane, see: Tule Boat (donated to the Oakland Museum of California by Linda Yamane and others) The Ohlone Basket Project (Oakland Museum of California) Linda Yamane (Alliance for California Traditional Arts website) Lin...

Local residents rallied is Santa Cruz on June 14 to oppose the Catholic Church's plans to canonize Junipero Serra this September, which was approved by Pope Francis. Serra presided over the brutal California mission system during its founding in the 18th century. The purpose of the rally was to educate the public about the Native American lives that were lost at the missions and the torturous conditions that were imposed there, as well as to encourage community members to contact Priests and other religious and spiritual leaders, including the Pope, in order to attempt to change his mind about granting Serra sainthood. An event announcement released before the rally described the intentions of the participants: "In Solidarity with our indigenous neighbors - we stand for a correct history. We stand for the greatness and the wisdom the native Americans hold. We stand because they are human like us and only want to live in a society of truth and understanding. "Junipe...

On May 2, Native American community members and Interfaith supporters, including clergy leaders, demonstrated outside of Mission Dolores in San Francisco to oppose the impending canonization of Junipero Serra by the Catholic church. Pope Francis has reaffirmed his decision to name Junipero Serra a saint, despite strong opposition from Native Americans who say the man is responsible for the killing of hundreds of thousands of Indigenous people when he helped to establish and then presided over the California mission system in the 1700s. "My ancestors were directly enslaved at Mission Dolores here, and at Mission San Jose in Fremont, and I want to make sure that the Vatican knows that we, and Native people allies, do not agree with the canonization of Junipero Serra," said Corrina Gould, who is of Karkin and Chochenyo Ohlone ancestry. Individuals of Coastal Miwok and Chumash ancestry, two other Californian tribal groups gravely affected by the establishment of the mission syste...