A message with inflammatory, racist overtones has soured Thanksgiving for Native Americans driving past a billboard in Southern California.
Instigators placed the wording on a Yaamava’ Resort & Casino billboard on Thanksgiving’s eve, stating: “America is not on stolen land. Your ancestors were conquered. Happy Thanksgiving.”
Influencer and photographer Brandy Carlos took to X with an image of the defaced outdoor sign on Interstate 10:
According to the Desert Sun, the owners of the nearby casino and the sign, the Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation, said the tribe was “disappointed by the vandalism” and the culturally offensive language.
Yuhaaviatam tribal leadership released a statement about the vandalism, stating that, since “time immemorial,” the tribe has called “the sacred lands of Southern California” its home.
all have a right to exist”
“We have endeavored to exist peacefully and cooperatively even while a young and growing country expanded westward. We believed then as we do now that we all have a right to exist with and through our unique cultures endowed by the Creator.”
The statement from the tribal elders said the hateful Thanksgiving message was against “the values of respect and unity” that have allowed the Yuhaaviatam, cities, counties, and communities “to grow and enjoy the blessings of America.”
According to reports, the attack might be part of a series of right-leaning inflammatory messages being posted along SoCal’s I-10 “potentially by the same person.”
