Gilroy
– The local Amah-Mutsun Indian tribe has been bitterly divided
since a schism in March 2000, but members of both sides agree they
would oppose a gambling casino here.
Gilroy – The local Amah-Mutsun Indian tribe has been bitterly divided since a schism in March 2000, but members of both sides agree they would oppose a gambling casino here.
Miwok Indians and a coalition of non-Indian investors – at least one from Gilroy – have notified San Benito and Santa Clara county supervisors that they plan to build a casino and hotel on state Highway 25 in San Benito County, right next to the Santa Clara County line.
Miwoks, who operate other casinos, are spread throughout California, including parts of the north coast and the Sierra Nevada – but not here. They, however, are recognized as a sovereign tribe by the federal government, something the Amah-Mutsuns are not.
Valentin Lopez is chairman of what he says is the true Amah-Mutsun tribal council. He agreed that the south Santa Clara Valley is a desirable spot for any development, casino or otherwise, but he said it is “totally inappropriate” for Miwoks to encroach on his tribe’s ancestral land.
“Hopefully, we’ll talk soon and come to an understanding that this is our tribal territory and they are wrong for trying to come onto it,” Lopez, a Live Oak High School graduate who now lives in Sacramento, said. “We hope the local people will stand by us, … and the local governments. We are the historical tribe of the area, and we’ve been there for thousands of years.”
Mel Ketchum is an Amah-Mutsun who has lived in Gilroy all his life. So did his ancestors. His great-great-grandmother was Ascencion Solorsano, a famous Amah-Mutsun medicine woman and the namesake of Gilroy’s newest middle school.
According to Lopez, however, Ketchum was one of several tribal council members who parted ways with the “legitimate tribe” four-and-a-half years ago.
Nevertheless, Ketchum, like Lopez, said he personally opposes any Indian casino on Amah-Mutsun ancestral land. His band has been approached several times about starting a casino but has rejected it each time, he said.
“We’d rather have job development,” Ketchum said. “We want to get schooling and stuff for people in our tribe.”
Ketchum and Lopez each called the other’s side a “splinter group,” but they could perhaps find common ground if they unite to fight the Miwoks’ casino.
“I intend to investigate it a heck of a lot more because it’s definitely something we cannot support or have in any way,” Lopez said. “We need to take steps to make sure it never occurs.”
Amah-Mutsuns belong to the Costanoan, or Ohlone, family of tribes, who inhabited the land from the Bay Area south to Monterey County.
