O, My Ancestor: Recognition and Renewal for the Gabrielino-Tongva People of the Los Angeles Area

Description

In O, My Ancestor, members of the Los Angeles area’s Gabrielino-Tongva community reflect on what it means to be Gabrielino-Tongva today, when centuries of domination by the Spanish and then Americans have left little of the native culture intact. This book gives voice to the Tongva community’s leaders, activists, educators, and artists and is part of an ongoing reclamation of their heritage. Essays by historian William McCawley interspersed throughout the book introduce Tongva history and traditional culture, providing context for the issues the community now grapples with. Faced with the challenge of reconstructing forgotten cultural practices in one of the largest metropolises in the world, the Tongva inspire fascinating questions of identity, culture, sovereignty, and the impact of the past on life today.