The City of Berkeley will soon return sacred land to an Indigenous trust, in what Berkeley’s mayor has called the largest urban land give-back in California history. After nearly a decade of litigation the city acquired a 2.2 acre parking lot in West Berkeley which sits on the last undeveloped land of the oldest Ohlone shellmound, which was designated as a city landmark in 2000. The city acquired the land for 27 million dollars, mostly with money from the Sogorea Te’ Land Trust.. We’ll talk about the plans for the site and what it means for Ohlone people, the city of Berkeley and the future of the land back movement.
Berkeley Returns Long Contested Ohlone Land
Few cars are parked in a lot at 4th Street and Hearst Avenue in Berkeley, Calif. on Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2020 where a sacred Ohlone shellmound was historically located. ( San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers via Getty Images)
Guests:
Sophie Hahn, councilmember, Berkeley District 5
Corrina Gould, director, Sogorea Te’ Land Trust; spokeswoman and Tribal Chair, the Confederated Villages of Lisjan
Melissa Nelson, board president, Sogorea Te' Land Trust; professor of Indigenous Sustainability, Arizona State University
Farimah Faiz Brown, City Attorney, Berkeley
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