JOHN TRUDELL: Good evening and welcome to Indian Land Radio from Alcatraz Island. This is John Trudell welcoming you on behalf of the Indians of All Tribes. Tonight we’ve got quite a busy evening. At seven-thirty, Congressman George Brown, the Democrat from Los Angeles, we will be speaking with him. Earl Livermore, the coordinator for the Alcatraz Movement is here, and we will be speaking with Congressman Brown about the resolution that he and ten other Congressmen introduced into Congress urging Mr. Nixon to start negotiations with the people of Alcatraz so that they can turn the island over to us. And also, there have been no further reports on the accident that happened to Yvonne Oakes. There have been no further reports on this. She is still listed in a critical condition, I believe.
I know the G.S.A., Mr. Hannon and members of the G.S.A, and various other government agencies have said that the island is dangerous and that they are concerned about our welfare here. Well, I would like to ask these people, where is their concern, or why aren’t they doing anything about the Indian infant mortality rate which, after the first month of life the death rate is three times the national average. Or the average lifespan of the American Indian is forty-four years. Or the Indians yearly income is only fifteen hundred dollars. I’d like to know, where’s the concern on these issues? Suicides among Indian teenagers averaged three times the national rate, and on some reservations the suicide rate reaches ten times the national average. And when the late Senator Robert F. Kennedy visited the Fort Hall Idaho Reservation, they were told that two suicides had occurred as early as ten years of age. And two days after the Indian Education Subcommittee visited a sixteen year old boy with whom the late Senator Kennedy had chatted, he committed suicide. Took his life in the county jail, where he had been placed without a hearing and without his parent’s knowledge. Accused of drinking during school hours. He hanged himself from a pipe extending across the cell. Two other Indians from the same reservation had committed suicide in the same cell, using the same pipe in the previous eleven months. And one of these was a seventeen year old girl from the same school. And there was an Indian child in the state of Washington who objected to the American history text that called her ancestors dirty savages. The girl was then expelled from the public school, and the reason? The child was uncontrollable. The mother was forced to send her daughter all the way to Oklahoma to the Bureau-run Fort Sill Oklahoma Boarding School. Hundreds of other uncontrollable and problem children are routinely shipped thousands of miles away from home where they can only see their parents two or three months out of the year. And I want to know where is Mr. Hannon, and where’s the G.S.A., and the other departments of the government, where is their concern about this? The list is endless. This goes on and on every day. And it goes on on all the reservations. And because we have an accident here, I don’t think they should come down on top of us and start trying to rip us off this island. I mean, accidents do happen. And the things I just quoted a little earlier here, these are facts and these aren’t accidents. These things did happen. And well, that’s my editorial for tonight.
Alright, tonight we have with us Mister Vernon W. Conway. He’s forty-five years old and he’s a Wailaki and a Yuki Indian from northern California. Professionally he’s a cook and he’s been out here donating some of his time, his off-working hours, I believe. He comes out and he cooks for us.
Mister Conway. You’re working hours, now you come out here and cook after you get off work, correct?
VERNON CONWAY: Certain times. Various hours.
And you have how many children?
Five. Four girls and one boy.
And are they all on the island?
Yes. All stay here and went to school here.
They are going to school here?
Yes.
Let’s see now, when did you first start coming out to the island?
I came on the boat when it first came out, when all five jumped off to come to the island. And I came back over here a couple weeks afterwards. And I’ve been coming off and on since.
I’ve noticed you around quite often and I’d like your opinion. How do you think things are developing on the island?
I think they’ve come along pretty nicely. And then now they have the school for children and they’re able to watch them a lot better and everything. They’re in sight at all times.
Well, isn’t this kind of hard on you? Kind of a hardship working on the mainland, and then using your free time to come over here and cook, and then go back to the mainland and work and take care of five children?
It is, in a way. But being they’re over here I more or less have somebody responsible watching them. And over on the mainland I have a hard time getting a babysitter all the time. And I was off work quite a while, and before I didn’t have no babysitter. I couldn’t leave them by their self.
So it’s a hardship, but it’s not as bad as it could be?
No.
How long are you going to stick it out with us on the island?
I’ll try to stick out as long as I can.
Well, maybe tonight we’ll get a little more information about as to when negotiations will start, and we’ll have something definite. Because I’m sure once we get the island that there will be much employment on the island for the People, so that maybe you can work here.
Yes, there’ll be a lot more I imagine once they have possession of the island.
I know we’re speaking with Congressman George Brown from L.A. tonight. And all I know about the resolution is, I have some information here that they’re asking President Nixon to turn this island over to us. Start negotiations to turn the island over to us. So, I imagine after that I think this goes up in Congress about the nineteenth of this month when Congress reconvenes. So, maybe your future will be a little more certain as to the communicating between the mainland and the island.
How many years of experience have you had as a cook?
Well, I came here through a relocation through BIA, cooking and baking. I been working about three and a half years.
Are you from a reservation in Northern California?
Ranchaeria. Chico Indian Rancheria.
What’s it like there?
Well, it’s only 27 half acres there originally, but then the State college, Chico State College, took over 13 acres. We had about 14 acres left and we were terminated here a few years ago. So now we don’t have nothing except the graveyard.
Termination. That’s kind of a dirty word with Indian people. Well, I’ve got a lot of complaints against the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and I’m really down on them. But at this time, they’re kind of the lesser of many evils. That’s all we’ve got. And maybe they could improve it. So the biggest part of this termination was during McCarthy days back in the ’50s. Is that when yours was terminated?
Yeah, in the ‘50s.
Yeah. During the witch hunts?
Yes.
Yeah, it got us too. They go after anybody. They’ve always managed to drag us in there. It’s terrible. When they terminated your reservation you were still eligible for the BIA programs, like the relocation?
Yes, that’s what I came in there for, but they said I was too old to go, and I guess got younger as the years went by. They let me go.
Yeah. I read a joke somewhere about BIA thinking, and that fits right into it, what you just said. How is it here to make a living as a cook in the Bay area? I mean, is it satisfactory? Are the wages satisfactory for what you need?
Yes.
They are?
Now it is. But, we’ll get a living costs raise. That’s what helps out a lot when you get a living cost raise.
I noticed you were here almost all day today?
Yes.
So do you have to go back and work this evening?
Well, I have to go back to mainland to see a doctor over there because I have trouble with my feet from standing.
Maybe we’ll get you a chair back there.
That would be good. Wheelchair.
Your children. They stay with someone on the island when you’re not here?
Yes, I have someone to watch them.
I want to get back into this termination thing. Was your reservation and your tribe, your People, were they given a choice of termination or keeping the reservation?
Yes they were, but it was a little over half approved, so majority rules. So we were terminated. Had to sell out to the state college. 13 acres. And the other 14 acres we’d just sell out to private individuals.
Did they dangle a lot of promises?
Oh, yes.
They did? Did they come through with the promises?
Well, I had a home down in Sacramento. The property was valued at around $4,500 through the BIA, but when it came to selling it they only offer you about half the amount, not to BIA, but the private parties. So I only received about $2,700 and didn’t have enough money to save my home.
Well, I thought the BIA was supposed to look out for our interest.
Well. they didn’t to us.
Yeah. Seems to be common knowledge. I think the BIA looks out for the BIA.
They told me it’s up to us to sell or not. And if you need the money there’s not much you can do, see.
But I’ll bet you if you received a large sum of money, if they found oil or something valuable on your land, the BIA would sure look out for you then.
They’d probably take it back.
Sure. They’d declare you incompetent and handle it for you. I hope I don’t get sued by the BIA or something. Well, I haven’t got any money anyway, so it doesn’t really matter. All right, one other question on the termination. Once you’re terminated the land is sold, right? So you can’t get back into a reservation status?
No. My mother’s from the [?] reservation, but she never did keep her enrollment up, so she’s more or less out of [?] too.
Then all the Indians that were on reservations, that were terminated, then they’re just wandering individuals?
Yes.
With nothing at all. I mean, no place to go.
No. No place they can call their own.
Wow, well I guess we’re going to have to put a strong fight up against any further termination. We’re gonna really have to get down on these people. Well it’s about time for the station break here. I’d like to thank you Mr. Conway for coming in and talking with us. It’s people like you that help us keep this thing going.
I heard on the news tonight that they had talked to some Indians and the Indians said that we had about reached an agreement with the government about taking something in place of Alcatraz. And if anyone else hears that, it’s a falsehood. It’s entirely untrue. And that is the word straight from the island, and I think we know quite a bit about it.
We will be speaking with Mr. Brown here shortly. I think it’s about time for a station break. This is Indian Land Radio from Indian Land Alcatraz Island in the Bay of San Francisco, California. This program is being brought to you through the courtesy of the Pacific Networks. The stations will take a small little break.
[John Trudell speaks with Earl Livermore]
JOHN TRUDELL: Welcome back. Right now we have Mr. Earl Livermore with us. He’s the coordinator for the Alcatraz occupation. He’s coordinating things between the island and the mainland. Any important information that comes through, or any important developments about the island, Earl would know about them. He gets this information. So Earl, while we’re waiting here I’d like to ask, could you give us some information on what I was just talking about? About us selling out?
EARL LIVERMORE: We’re not about to sell out. As a matter of fact we’re getting close to the time for negotiations. We have received a call from one of our representatives, a large law firm back in Washington. They had a meeting today with government officials. People like the HEWOIO, the National Council in Indian Opportunity under the vice president, and many federal groups. They’re preparing to come out here on the island and discuss negotiations. This will take place shortly. It’s just a matter of us setting up our agenda and getting the people who will be involved with the negotiations. It will be discussing ways and means of getting funding for our plans and proposals. And there will be further negotiations in the future. But at this time we are not going to give up Alcatraz.
[Earl Livermore speaks with Congressman Brown by phone. John Trudell comes into the conversation later]
JOHN TRUDELL: Congressman, I’m John Trudell, just to let you know who you’re talking to here. What do you think the chances are of your resolution being taken on?
CONGRESSMAN BROWN: Well, I’m fairly optimistic about it. You know, there’s ten other co-sponsors besides myself. And there was no problem at all in getting co-sponsors for this bill. We spent about half a day lining up additional support. And if we’d wanted to work at it we could have gotten possibly 50 or 100 congressmen interested in this. I think that we may want to go back and get some additional sponsors when Congress comes back in session on the 19th of January. With that many sponsors I think we can get a fairly quick hearing before the committee in Congress. And I hope get some favorable action fairly soon.
Would you say that, the general response by the elected officials, Congress is on our side?
I would say yes. You’ve got a very strong body of support back there. And it includes both Republicans and Democrats, and I think the sympathy of most of the officials in the Congress. I don’t know whether I can speak for the administration or not, but the ones that I’ve talked to in the Congress are extremely sympathetic.
Now, when does Congress reconvene this resolution? When will it be acted upon? When does this Congress reconvene, is it the 19th of this month?
They reconvene on the 19th. And they will get started immediately after that with the committee hearings and so forth. It’s a slow process, but I would think that within 30 days we ought to be able to get something moving on it.
Beautiful. The co-sponsors, I know I was reading the list of co-sponsors, and we seem to have a lot of support in New York and California.
Yes. And you’ll have even more. This list just reflects a few of the people that we contacted, very hurriedly.
Yes. Well as Earl stated, we do have our plans down pretty well. We definitely want to have an Indian university here, which would serve two functions. We would have a school set up that would be where Indian people could learn vocational trades and at the same time learn academics. And there will be classes which stress on tribal organization and Indian affairs, so that we can deal. You know, you have to learn the system before you can compete in it. And this is what we hope to be able to bring about with our university. And we want to establish a museum because we’ve got a very rich culture. Our past, we have nothing to be ashamed of in our past, and we hope to maybe have a place to show these things. We are a proud people. We always have been. And so this museum, would show many of the rich things that have come from our past, our heritage. And we hope to have an American Indian restaurant here to serve American Indian foods. Native American dishes. And an ecology center. We’re working on that now. We ship up our garbage and send it to the mainland.
I think that idea for an ecology center is the hottest thing you could be working on. You know, the Indians have more to teach us today about how to live in the environment. They learn to live in this country without ruining the water and the land and the air. And we need to get back to that kind of a wisdom about the importance of living in harmony with nature.
[Discussion with Congressman Brown ends]
JOHN TRUDELL: Good evening. That was Congressman George Brown, Democrat from Los Angeles who with ten other congressmen drew up a resolution urging President Nixon to start negotiations with the people on the island to turn control of the island over. And from listening to Congressman Brown I would say that our chances are very good.
I would like to thank Earl for taking his time out. I know he’s had a very busy day and I’d like to thank you for stopping in and talking with Congressman Brown. We had also intended to have some of the members of the council here to speak, but our boat system once in a while has a few faults so they didn’t make it back from the mainland. They had a meeting there this afternoon and the meeting got started a little late. It’s a good boat. I’m not knocking the boat, but we just have problems at times with getting people back and forth.
EARL LIVERMORE: In other words, we need another boat.
Yes, that’s what I’m trying to say in a very hard way. So I guess that’s about what we have for this evening. And thanks again Earl for stopping by.
It’s my pleasure.
So this evening’s program was brought to you through the courtesy of the Pacifica Networks, and before I do take off there was a Mr. Roger Spencer from Hayward, California that sent a card in and he one wanted to know what federal agencies or officials can be written to to speed the official return and development of Alcatraz Island back to the Indians. And I would say write to your congressman. Write to your senator. Write to Mr. Hickel. Write to Mr. Nixon. Write to any of these people. Write to all of them and tell them that you support what we are doing. Ask them to give us a break for a chance and for a change, and we’ll take care of it from here. I’d like to thank Mr. Spencer for sending the card in. It’s very warming to know that people are concerned. We realize that the American people’s support is very vital to what we’re doing, and we’re thankful for it. Well, this is John Trudell on behalf of the Indians of All Tribes on Indian Land Radio wishing you a very good evening. ~
SOURCE: https://pacificaradioarchives.org/recording/bb2310