Bill seeking formal apology from state for atrocities during state’s formation would create Rowena Mae Ramos Act in honor of legislator’s mother
SACRAMENTO— A measure requiring the California Legislature and courts to formally apologize to the state’s Native Americans for the state’s role in atrocities committed against them during the early formation of the state and its entry into the Union was approved on a unanimous bipartisan vote in the state Senate.
Assemblymember James C. Ramos, the first California Native American elected to the Legislature, introduced the bill, AB 2115, that would create the Rowena Mare Ramos Act in honor of the legislator’s mother and also require that a plaque be displayed in the State Capitol to memorialize the Legislature’s apology.
Ramos stated, “AB 2115 would provide that the State of California recognizes and accepts responsibility for all of the harms and atrocities committed by its public officials, those who promoted, permitted, facilitated, and enforced policies of violence against California’s First People. My mom, who passed last November, was an elder in our tribe and always sought to teach our history and culture to her family and people. She believed that understanding our history and standing tall in our identity gave us strength. It is one of the great truths that she taught us all.”
Ramos noted that the state conducted a war against tribes between 1851 and 1859 to remove tribes from their land according to a 2002 California Research Bureau report, “Early California Laws Related to California Indians.” The Legislature also agreed to pay bounties for the heads of Native Americans after the first governor called for a war of extermination against Indians. During the referenced period, claims submitted to the State of California Comptroller for the expeditions against the tribes totaled $1,293,179.20.
In 1852, the Legislature voted against ratification of 18 treaties negotiated between the United States and California tribes. The agreements would have secured tribal homelands and guaranteed protections for Native people. An 1850 state law, “Act for the Government and Protection of Indians,” eased the path to remove Indians from their lands, separate families and indenture Native Americans. The law also established punishments for “vagrancy” and if the “vagrants” could not raise the bail, they were hired out to the highest bidder.
Ramos said that although Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a formal apology on June 18, 2019 for the actions of past administrations, the Legislature and courts have yet to apologize. At the time, Newsom said, “It’s called genocide.” The governor continued, “That’s what it was, a genocide. No other way to describe it. And that’s the way it needs to be described in the history books.”
In the almost eight years since Newsom’s apology, the Legislature and courts have not yet to acknowledge their own roles in the massacres, denial of civil protections and rights such as the right to vote and other abuses.
Ramos said in speaking of the early state legislatures, “Their actions remain a stain on California’s history, one that has not been truthfully or fully told. California’s First People deserve an apology for the harm they endured and the generational trauma that continues to affect their communities to this day.”
AB 2115 is sponsored by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians. Chairman Kenneth Kahn emphasized the significance of the measure stating, “On behalf of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, we are pleased that Assembly Bill 2115 has passed the Legislature. This important and long overdue legislation provides a formal apology to California Native Americans from the California State Legislature and Supreme Court of California for historical injustices that have had lasting impacts on Native communities throughout the state. We thank Assemblymember James Ramos for his leadership and unwavering commitment to advancing this meaningful measure, and we are honored to have served as a sponsor of this historic legislation.”
Kahn added, “The impacts of those policies are not confined to history books. They are reflected in the lived experiences of our elders and the challenges still faced by our communities. At a time when California is working more closely than ever with tribal governments, it is both appropriate and necessary that the Legislature formally recognizes its role in this history.”
AB 2115 is also supported by the California Rural Indian Health Board and CFT – A Union of Educators and Classified Professionals, Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake, Morongo Band of Mission Indians, Yurok Tribe and Society for California Archeology.
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Assemblymember James C. Ramos proudly represents the 45th Assembly district that includes the Cities of Fontana, Highland, Mentone, Redlands, Rialto and San Bernardino. He is the first and only California Native American serving in the state’s legislature. Ramos chairs the Assembly Budget Subcommittee #6 on Public Safety and the Assembly Select Committee on Native American Affairs.
