Page 23 - Southern California Gaming Guide • December 2021

Jamul Casino Donates $10,000 Towards Deported Veterans’ Cause and Honors Community Members
from East Count Magazine, by Elijah McKee
“We always say ‘Everyone comes home.’ The reality is, hundreds came home, and then we deported them,” said Nathan Fletcher, Chair of the County Board of Supervisors, as he addressed the crowd at Jamul Casino’s annual Veterans Day Celebration.
Jamul Casino and the Jamul Indian Village tribe of the Kumeyaay Nation hosted the lunch event at its Rooftop venue to honor veterans in their community — both employees and tribal members—as well as to donate to a veterans’ organization.
This year, the organization selected was Unified United States Deported Veterans (UUSDV), a chapter of Veterans for Peace. The $10,000 donation from Jamul Casino was awarded by Mary Cheeks, President and General Manager, and handed to Jan Ruhman, a project coordinator with UUSDV for the border region.
Erica M. Pinto, Chairwoman of the Jamul Indian Village, commended UUSDV during the event. “It serves as a resource for deported vets,” she said,
“assisting them integrate into their new community, while searching for legal avenues to return home to the U.S.”
As odd as it may be that a person in the military could be barred from living in the very country they served, that is currently by design, according to Ruhman. He explained how in 1996, Congress passed the Illegal Immigration Reform and Responsibility Act, which swept many people into a deportable demographic, regardless of former armed service enlistment.
“Everyone in uniform is a US national. But the cloak of nationalism is taken off them when they’re out of the military,” said Ruhman. “They dangle that carrot in front of them,” he continued. “They don’t care if you’ve got a Bronze Star or Purple Heart.”
Photo by Elijah McKee and courtesy of Jamul Casino
Following the awarded donation, Jamul recognized 36 employees and four tribal members with certificates and gift bags. They have served across the Air Force, Army, Navy, and Marine Corps, and they work throughout many of the Casino’s departments. Special applause was held for Vietnam veterans and for Indigenous women veterans.
DECEMBER 2021
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GAMING GUIDE
PAGE 23
December 2021 Tribes in the News