The Pain & transformation of California Indians

There is a great article published in Indian Country Today.. it's about the pain and transformation of us California Indians.. check out the video..

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2011/06/the-tribes-of-california-present-transformations/

We NativeAmericans posted this video on YouTube about the transformations California Indian tribes went through after contact with non-Indians.

“We have survived. We’ve survived termination, we have survived the wars against us, we have survived the diseases brought to our people,” Sue Masten

“We’re one of the few tribes that was never removed from their ancestral lands,” says Clifford Lyle Marshall, Hoopa Valley Tribe chairman. “This area was explored for gold, fortunately they didn’t find gold. To the north of us, the Upper Klamath Basin there was a lot of mining so our neighboring tribes were decimated by the gold rush.”

He said his tribe’s location made it difficult for non-Indians to contact them, and contact wasn’t made until the 1840′s.

“One thing non-Indians don’t understand, they don’t understand when you live amongst your people you carry the scars of your grandparents and the pain is still there, the pain will always be there,” Marshall said. “But we’re also very proud because what they endured has made us stronger, that’s why we believe we’ll always be here.”