Thousands mark Indigenous Peoples Day on Alcatraz as tribes decry Newsom’s vetoes of tribal bills

CalMatters ^ | October 13, 2026 | BY MELANIE HENSHAW

[artichokegrower]

Francisco Bay on Monday for a gathering to celebrate Indigenous resilience.

The observance, which highlights the struggles of Native communities worldwide, takes place twice a year at sunrise, on Indigenous Peoples Day and Thanksgiving.

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TOPICS: Culture/Society
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[artichokegrower]

When the tribes visited Alcatraz in 1971 they burnt all of the historical buildings down

Don’t understand the fascination with the Aztecs. Not a native tribe, lived 2,000 miles away were horrible people that performed human sacrifices and cannibalism

[Tommy Revolts]

Who were the indigenous people that were in California?

[Eli Kopter]

Its a “thing”, like Kwanzaa, and means absolutely nothing. I guarantee you that 99% don’t give a damn about it. I live in Indian Country, with more Indians than not, and that is the truth.

[Harpotoo]

NIMBY;-)

[alloysteel]

Believe it or not, there were several tribes of “indigenous people” in California.

The Pomo lived along the northern coast and built homes using slabs of redwood tree bark. The mountain-dwelling Miwok made cone-shaped bark houses, and the Maidu, who lived in valleys, created round lodges from earth. In the south, the Chumash built circular frames using wooden poles, covering the structures with grass and marsh plants.

The Tolowa built canoes from giant redwood trees; in the south, the Cahuilla made clothing, nets, and sandals out of desert agave plants.

People of the forest-based Cahto and Wintun tribes ate caterpillars, bees, and grasshoppers. The desert-dwelling Cahuilla and Chemehuevi snacked on snakes and lizards.

High in the Sierras, the Washoe people of Nevada had established homelands around Lake Tahoe.

So there was a very real established Native American culture all along the California coast, the valleys and mountain regions, until the Spanish came and laid claim to the land.

[Magnum44]

Film actors guild.

Hollywood tribe.

[Worldtraveler once upon a time]

--- "Newsom’s vetoes of tribal bills"

Great White Father no give more wampum....

[TexasFreeper2009]

no idea what indigenous peoples day is, but I had a great time on Columbus Day!

[RightOnTheBorder]

When the Spaniards first arrived in Mexico the locals, with no fore knowledge of who the Spaniards were, would immediately attack them. This was because the way of all the “indigenous people” was to attack their neighbor if they thought they could overpower him. If somebody unknown showed up it was to attack you, plunder your home, enslave your women and children, and murder you in ritual sacrifice if you survived the attack. The Aztecs were the most powerful and most proficient at this.

If you want to know how the Christian Spanish could abuse the natives as they did (other than the fact that we are all in a fallen world) imagine if you were on an expedition and in every new town you found a mini-holocaust. What might you think of those people.

I recommend anyone interested in the early Spanish endeavors in Mexico read “The Discovery and Conquest of Mexico” by Bernal Diaz del Castillo. He was a foot soldier with Cortez. Modern “scholars” dismissed him as a sensationalist until archeologists started digging up the walls of skulls that he describes.

[hanamizu]

Believe it or not, there were several tribes of “indigenous people” in California.

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One of the required reading for an anthropology course I took was about Ishi, the last ‘wild Indian’ found in California. He literally became an attraction at a museum in either Berkeley or San Francisco. His language was similar but significantly different from other neighboring Indian languages.

Interesting how the ‘celebrations’ are held on Columbus Day and Thanksgiving Day, isn’t it? Similar to how Juneteenth, National Independence Day is being pushed as an alternative to Independence Day. Almost like someone is trying to erase our history.

[Steve_Seattle1]

"The observance, which highlights the struggles of Native communities worldwide . . . "

Here in Washington State, many of the tribes are doing quite well and are better off than they were before the evil white man showed up. The tribes are the only ones allowed to operate full-service casinos, to sell fireworks, and to sell tax-free alcohol and cigarettes.

[Steve_Seattle1]

To finish my point, some of the tribes are so well-off that they run TV ads for their casinos during major sporting events. One tribe annoys me because their ads suggest that all of Western Washington was once under their control and that they now welcome visitors to THEIR former territory. In fact, most of the Puget Sound tribes consisted of small villages with limited land holdings.

[No name given]

Along with slavery.

[kaktuskid]

In Arizona, well before the white man set foot here, the tribes were in continuous war with each other-over land and property. The Navajo attacked the Hopi. The Apaches attacked the O’odham, Navajo and other tribes, who counter attacked them. The Apache themselves had inter-tribal battles between various clans/bands-which is why the US Military used Apache scouts from various bands (like the White Mountain band) against Geronimo and other hostiles.

[kaktuskid]

Which is why many of those tribes in Mexico allied with the Spanish against the Aztecs.

[Inyo-Mono]

So there was a very real established Native American culture all along the California coast, the valleys and mountain regions, until the Spanish came and laid claim to the land.

Don't forget the Paiute and Shoshone of the Eastern Sierra, and the Timbisha Shoshone of Death Valley.

[higgmeister]

Iron Eyes Cody (born Espera Oscar de Corti, April 3, 1904 – January 4, 1999) was an American actor who portrayed Native Americans in Hollywood films...

Cody was born Espera Oscar de Corti on April 3, 1904, in Kaplan in Vermilion Parish, in southwestern Louisiana, a second son of Francesca Salpietra from Sicily and her husband, Antonio de Corti from southern Italy.

[MrBambaLaMamba]

Happy First Invaders Day, honoring both the Indigenous Americans and those peoples whom they killed and surplanted during and after their Invasion of the Western Hemisphere.

[Honorary Serb]

“Indigenous Peoples Day” is really COLUMBUS Day!

All Americans must recover Columbus Day, Columbus statues and monuments, and other means of honoring Christoper Columbus.

AI Overview

A marble replica of a Christopher Columbus statue was installed on the White House grounds outside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on March 22, 2026.