For the fourth consecutive year, and marking three decades since the city of Berkeley hosted the first Indigenous Peoples Day celebration, Governor Gavin Newsom proclaimed October 10 as Indigenous Peoples Day in California.
“Today we honor and celebrate the perseverance, rich diversity, and contributions of all Indigenous peoples, from the first peoples here to those around the world who now call California home,” the governor said in the proclamation.
Newsom said that at a time when many seek to exploit differences, “California understands that our diversity has long been our greatest strength.”
He also noted that the first peoples of this place descend from one of the largest and most diverse populations of indigenous peoples in the nation, who, despite all adversities, have persisted in the face of successive waves of newcomers, sometimes hostile, seeking to extract, displace and destroy, and sometimes hopeful, seeking a better future for their children.
"Since then, California has welcomed indigenous peoples from all over, all of whom we now call fellow Californians," he stressed.
“Today we celebrate not only the survival, but also the tenacity of indigenous peoples to succeed despite deeply rooted historical, institutional and cultural barriers.”
Newsom noted that just this year, a Wailaki citizen of the Round Valley Indian Tribes became the first Native American woman in space, as indigenous Californians claim their right to manage coastal lands under a first-in-the-nation program in partnership with the state.
She also noted that offensive place names have also been removed across the state, the California condor has been reintroduced to Yurok lands, and Native lands and foods have been restored to indigenous peoples throughout California.
“As Indigenous peoples gather today on Alcatraz to commemorate the Native American rights movement’s occupation of the island, we stand in solidarity with and support Native and Indigenous-led movements toward balance, reciprocity, and respect, understanding that these changes will require a re-evaluation and renewal of our collective values,” he said.
He also explained that we live in times of massive change and existential threats, as climate, cultural and capital changes "demand that we welcome one another with an open heart and mind, stripping ourselves of the colonial thinking that allows us to dehumanize and degrade ourselves too often in the search for personal well-being."
Finally, Newsom stressed that California rejects the celebration of the conquest of the lands we now call the Americas, and instead called on Californians to reflect on and celebrate the resilience and tenacity of indigenous peoples everywhere.
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