Ceremony Honors Aztec Emperor : Indians Walk 3,500 Miles With Message of Unity

A weary but spirited group of Indians representing seven tribes in Mexico completed a 3,500-mile walk from Mexico City to Los Angeles Sunday to celebrate the birthday of the last Aztec emperor and to spread the message of unity among North American Indians.

The seven Indians who completed the 42-day trek carried a flame that was passed to elder members of the Chumash and Gabrielino tribes of Southern California during a festive ceremony of singing and native dancing in front of an East Los Angeles statue of Cuauhtemoc, the Aztec emperor who was hanged by Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes in 1525.

“We are here to share our strong roots and show our pride in our ancestry,” said Hunbatz Men, a Mayan who organized the march. Joining Men were members of the Olmec, Purepecha, Puebla, Tarahumara, Texcocano and Mexica tribes.

Men said that Indian tribes throughout North America share a common history of oppression that began with the first European explorers. Manuel Rocha, an elder of the Gabrielino Indians who were the original inhabitants of the Los Angeles area, said the ceremony Sunday next to Lincoln Park, which drew about 150 people, marked one of the first meetings of tribal representatives from Mexico and the United States in Los Angeles. Rocha said there are about 1,500 descendants of the Gabrielino tribe still living in the Los Angeles area.

Only half of the original 14 Indians completed the journey because immigration officials in El Paso would not let the group cross the border without each member posting a $1,000 bond. A group of Latinos in El Paso raised $7,000 in 12 days to allow seven to continue.

Hipolito Irepan, one of the group who completed the walk, said he came to represent his tribe, the Purepecha from the state of Michoacan, Mexico. His message: “We need to work and respect the earth, the sun, wind and water.”

The group stayed with Hopi, Navajo, Pueblo and Mojave tribes while in the United States. When there were no homes to accommodate them, they camped outside.

“We need to rediscover the ancient ways of looking at life,” said Tomas Rivero, 24, an American citizen who has lived most of his life in Mexico City and who joined the march in Los Angeles. “The values here in L.A. are you have to be white and pretty. I am not that. I am trying to be what the Aztecs say, someone with a true face and a strong heart.”