The Chumash tribe's fight for federal protection is emblematic of the struggle many Indigenous people face as they attempt to reclaim pieces of their heritage.
, with traditions and spirituality that revolved around the water. They fished using traditional plank canoes, called tomols, ate clams, mussels and abalone, and passed down their history and spiritual stories through song and dance.The tribe’s size started to dwindle after members were killed by diseases brought by European settlers and during grueling work building Spanish missions.
He discovered he was not Mexican American but Chumash when he was 19. His aunt shared the family secret, he said, and it changed his perspective on his identity. He learned his grandfather spoke Chumash but chose to speak only Spanish or English to his grandchildren, probably out of fear of the consequences of being identified as Indigenous, Gutierrez said.
Alilkoy, whose name means “dolphin” in Chumash, has been performing traditional dances since she was 9 months old, she said. She spends her weekends making crafts for her regalia, using feathers and shells and other natural elements meaningful to the Chumash. The marine sanctuary would mean “finally letting us have access to the whole picture of what we’re about, not just the land but the water itself, the ocean itself, the creatures above and below the water,” he said. “Having that opportunity to regain that and to take steps to revitalize that whole maritime caretaking and participation is invaluable.”When Fred Collins died in October 2021, his daughter placed his ashes on a tomol and pushed them into the ocean off Spooner’s Cove of Santa Barbara.
But that wouldn’t be the end of the process. If the sanctuary is approved, NOAA could take a year to incorporate the public’s suggestions, and Congress and California’s governor would also have a chance to weigh in.
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