The Mono Lake Kutzadika’a Paiute Tribe of California’s gold country, seeks federal recognition for its 88 members.
According to Tribal Chairwoman Charlotte Lange, the tribe has sought recognition several times through the years. It is based in the central part of the state between Yosemite and the state line with Nevada.
As Lange puts it, “it was a tough place to live anyway,” for her ancestors. Some families have kept their original 1907 allotments, but others sold theirs and moved away. In a twist that could almost be taken from the classic film Chinatown, most of their traditional lands are owned by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP.)
When the water is turned off to the region so that it flows to Los Angeles, it dries up the local creeks, she said, putting a strain on the local ecology.
Rep. Paul Cook, who represents Apple Valley in Congress, and is the ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples, recently filed a bill that would recognize the tribe.
In press release he said, “Federal recognition of the Mono Lake Kutzadika’a Tribe is long overdue, and it’s time we honor their tireless efforts in preserving their culture and history.” Cook added, “I commend the hard work and dedication of Chairperson Lange and the Mono Lake Kutzadika’a people for their unwavering commitment to their tribe and to Mono Lake.”
The neighboring seven federally recognized tribes in Mono and Inyo counties support the recognition bill and from the seven affiliated tribes of Yosemite National Park. The Mono County Board of Supervisors has also gone on record supporting it.
Lange is saddened that some elders have died before the tribe could be recognized. She told Native News Online: “It breaks my heart to hear our elders say, ‘I won’t see it in my lifetime. I hope it happens so we can bring our people home. They all want to come home and we want them home.”
