Page 8 - March 2002 • Southern California Gaming Guide

SAN DIEGO GAMING GUIDE
The Sycuan Band’s Deep Roots in the San Diego Community
The Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation has been a part of San Diego for thousands of years.
With so many people moving to San Diego each year, people who have lived here for over 10 years are often considered San Diego “natives.” The Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, however, puts this in a different perspective. The Sycuan people and their ancestors have lived in the
San Diego area for over 12,000 years. While the pyramids were being built in Egypt, the ancestors of the Kumeyaay Nation were living peacefully in what would eventually become Southern California. No wonder the Sycuan people have such deep roots in the San Diego community!
The rst documented native San Diegans were the San Dieguito Paleo-Indians, who lived here as early as 10,000 b.c. As the environment changed, the San Dieguito Paleo-Indians also evolved into different groups, including the Southern Diegueño, the direct ancestors of the modern day Sycuan Band, who rst appeared about 3000 b.c. San Diego County is home to thirteen Kumeyaay Bands, and a total of 18 tribes—that’s the greatest number of tribes in any single county in the United States.
The Kumeyaay enjoyed San Diego’s beautiful cli- mate for thousands of years. Their lands extended as far as El Centro in the east, Escondido in the north, and Baja California to the south. Much of the Kumeyaay culture and tradition survives to this day, and is still honored and practiced.
European Tourist Troubles
San Diego’s reputation as a beautiful place to live dates back as far as 1542, when Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo rst encountered the Kumeyaay. He returned to Europe (where they actually have winter) with tales of the beautiful San Diego climate, and the
Mexico (who overthrew the Spanish government in 1821), America (as a result of the Mexican-American war in 1848) or the United States government (once California became a state in 1850), the treatment of
the peaceful Kumeyaay nation was entirely unspeak- able. Disease and outright aggression reduced the Kumeyaay population from nearly 30,000 in 1769 to approximately 3,000 in 1850.
The Sycuan Tribe Rebuilds
The 640-acre Sycuan Reservation in Dehesa Valley was part of an executive order implemented in 1875 by President Ulysses S. Grant, that set aside speci c lands in San Diego County for the exclusive use of the Kumeyaay. In 1891, the government nally recog- nized the sovereign status of California Indian tribes, allowing the Sycuan Band to start working towards regaining their self-suf ciency.
Indian gaming was rst legalized by federal law in 1988. The most signi cant step towards Sycuan’s self-
reliance and independence occurred in November of 1998 when California voters passed Proposition5, and later Proposition 1A, which allowed California
accepts nearly all insurance plans, and participates in programs for the uninsured and the under-insured. The center offers four different areas of expertise including family practice, pediatrics, internal med- icine and podiatry, as well as a wide range of dental services. For questions or information regard- ing physicians or accepted insurance plans, call 619-445-0707.
Sycuan’s philanthropic efforts extend far beyond the tribe. Sycuan is committed to supporting chari- table and civic-minded organizations with the inten- tion of being the best neighbor they can possibly be within the community. One of the primary objec- tives of the Sycuan tribal government is to help those in need and to improve the quality of life for those less fortunate. To that end, the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation support an extensive list of well over 250 organizations from Admiral Baker Men’s Club, Adopt a Block and AIDS Walk in San Diego to the Zoological Society of San Diego. For the full list, as well as for more information about the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, visit the Sycuan web site at www.Sycuan.com.
The Sycuan Medical & Dental Center provides quality health care to the entire San Diego Community.
migration to
Southern Cali-
fornia of cially
began. We may
complain about
the Arizona tour-
ists clogging the
freeways and hog-
ging the beaches,
but the Kumeyaay
had real problems.
In 1769, Father
Junipero Serra
founded the Mission and Presidio of San Diego. Of course, he didn’t come alone—he brought a group of Spanish soldiers and missionaries with him.
And they brought with them measles and smallpox. The Kumeyaay did their best to resist the domina-
tion by the Spanish, and many moved away from the coast towards the mountains. Higher altitudes didn’t protect them from the new European dis- eases though, and much of the Kumeyaay popula- tion died as a result.
Each time a new government assumed control of the region, the Kumeyaay’s situation worsened.
Whetherthelandwas“owned”bytheSpanish,by
Indian tribes to continue gaming on their own land.
Thanks to the revenue from Indian gaming, unemployment rates have dropped more than
50% on reservations with gaming, and welfare has been cut by more than 70%, and in some instances, elimi- nated completely.
And the revenue from Indian gaming bene ts all
tribes, not just tribes with casi-
nos, supporting health care, education, housing and economic development.
Sycuan’s History of Community Support
For thousands of years, the Sycuan Band and their Kumeyaay ancestors have wanted nothing more than to be able to take care of themselves, and to help support their neighboring communities. One of the areas of Sycuan’s focus is health care. Proudly cel- ebrating its twenty-third year, the Sycuan Medical & Dental Center provides health care to not only the Native American community (and of course to Sycuan Casino’s employees and their families), but also to the surrounding community. The center
The Kumeyaay were here. Evidence of the Kumeyaay ancestors in San Diego dates back over 12,000 years!
Page 8 MARCH 2002
Native American Hosts: Spotlight on the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation