SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today issued a proclamation declaring October 9, 2023, as Indigenous Peoples’ Day in the State of California.
The text of the proclamation and a copy can be found below:
PROCLAMATION
For the fifth year in a row, the State of California has now proclaimed Indigenous Peoples Day, recognizing the important role of Indigenous peoples in the origin, evolution and future of this state. Home to the largest and most diverse population of Native peoples before European contact, California inherited a rich, Native cultural heritage while bearing responsibility for its historic role in the near-destruction of Indigenous Peoples of California through their violent dislocation. Now, as we continue our journey toward atonement for those actions, we must learn from our mistakes by developing a California that is safe, sustainable and inclusive.
Humanity as a whole is currently in a battle to survive the existential threats of climate change, income inequality and cultural upheaval, and nowhere is this felt more than in Indigenous communities around the world. These stressors are not only changing the world faster than we can process or respond to, they are making the ancestral homelands of many almost uninhabitable. It is our duty then, if these conditions continue, to call upon our core human values and welcome those who can no longer sustain their lives, freedom and happiness in the places they hold dear.
As Indigenous peoples gather today at Alcatraz to honor their ties to the land and remember those who fought for collective Indigenous rights, we celebrate California’s Indigenous community who continue to lead the way in expanding cultural expression, climate action and restorative justice. for everyone. We live in an extraordinary time of cultural resurgence for Native and Indigenous peoples across the state, with historic food sovereignty movements; culturally-informed wellness; ancestral land management and climate adaptation; Native-led storytelling, public arts and filmmaking; and access and revitalization of Indigenous languages.
We are all stronger when we work toward a common cause, and California stands strong as an ally to Native peoples, tribal nations and Native communities as we collectively work toward an equitable , a sustainable and vibrant future rooted in our common humanity.
In that spirit, today we once again reject the celebration of conquest whose legacy continues to displace and humiliate the original peoples of this land, instead calling on Californians to embrace and celebrate the goodness and dignity of Indigenous people everywhere. .
NOW IT’S ME, GAVIN NEWSOMGovernor of the State of California, hereby proclaims October 9, 2023, as “Indigenous People’s Day.”
GAVIN NEWSOM
Governor of California
TESTIMONY:
SHIRLEY N. WEBER, Ph.D.
Secretary of State
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