This Land is Theirs: Recognizing the Gabrieliño-Tongva Peoples.

California and the Los Angeles Basin in particular was the Gabrieliño-Tongva peoples’ before strangers arrived. The Sepulveda Basin, Sepulveda Blvd and the 405 freeway were UCLA is now, was once a footpath for the Tongva people. Historians estimate there were nearly 100 Tongva villages and nearly 5,000 Tongva people in the greater Los Angeles area at one point. Reports show that there is an estimate of 3,000 Tongva people in the region today. 

Major institutions in Southern California are working to support existing indigenous peoples by bringing awareness to the true history of Los Angeles and acknowledging that these have been built on stolen land. UCLA’s Chancellor Block has said, “It is important that UCLA prioritize respect for both the historic culture and the contemporary presence of American Indians throughout California, and especially in the Los Angeles area…To that end, and particularly as a public and land-grant institution, it is important for UCLA to acknowledge that our campus resides on what was historically the homeland of Indigenous peoples who were dispossessed of their land…”

In the spirit of UCLA Chancellor Block’s message and as an extension of the university, the RCMAR Coordinating Center at UCLA will begin acknowledging the Gabrieliño-Tongva indigenous peoples on our website and program materials as the original land caretakers of the geographical region in which our center stands. The work to end structural racism and heal from colonization runs deep in our institutions. The Coordinating Center encourages all academic universities to work towards a similar goal in acknowledging the historical silencing of indigenous communities by including them in their website and program materials. It is our responsibility to use our privilege to help undo structural violence in our communities.

The NIH-funded RCMAR program is part of a national team of centers throughout the country working to diversify the workforce by supporting and promoting scientists from underrepresented groups for sustained careers in aging research. The program was founded in response to the lack of diversity in the workforce, and in academia more generally. Here at the RCMAR National Coordinating Center our priority is to ensure that our diverse scientists are elevated with dignity and respect. We will begin to promote them in any future program communication in our references to UCLA.

Read interviews and learn more about the Tongva people.