The land that the Acjachemen Native American tribe claims as its ancestral homeland is under the campus of the University of California, Irvine, in Orange County.
The campus was built in the 1960s over land that the tribe says was taken without its permission.
The tribe, which is also called the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians claims lands that are included in not only Orange but also San Diego, Los Angeles and Riverside counties.
It is seeking federal recognition in order to be able to offer education and health care to its members and to build a casino. It first applied for recognition to the Department of the Interior in 1978.
The tribe is attempting to recruit some of the socially-conscious members of the student body who attend classes at Irvine. A professor there, Tanis Thorne, who teaches Native American History, fears that not enough students know the history of California’s tribes and how they lost their land.
She told the campus newspaper New University: “Native American history is important to know because their fight is still not over but instead is a working dynamic. If we educate ourselves, it will keep us from perpetuating racist and ignorant stereotypes.”
She added, “Any person’s education at the university level is to broaden your awareness. So try to learn as much as you can about the world around you. That requires some effort…risk…something, because we all get into our comfort zones. It’s about becoming more aware and engaging in conversations with people because nothing is set. It’s all unfolding.”
The university has hosted symposiums that invited guest speakers to talk about the tribe’s situation. One symposium was entitled “Cultivating Consciousness of Acjachemen Homelands.”
So far the federal government says the tribe has failed to show that it is a distinct tribe with a functioning, autonomous government.
