OJAI : Several Hundred Gather to Honor American Indians

Under a hazy sky, several hundred people gathered at Libbey Park in Ojai on Monday to celebrate the heritage of the Chumash and other American Indians.

While the Chorro Grande Drummers from Pine Mountain performed songs from various Indian nations, Chumash Indians led children in making rope from yucca and necklaces of twine and beads. Later, John Trudell, an American Indian poet and leader of the Graffiti Man Band, took the stage to play a few tunes.

Event coordinator Kathleen Andersen said proceeds from the event will benefit a nonprofit group that offers a Chumash history program to schoolchildren in Ventura County. She said she hopes that the event--called “Good Red Day”--will become an annual celebration.

“I hope everyone who comes here will understand the beauty of the culture of the indigenous people,” Andersen said.

Vincent Tumamait, Ojai’s most famous Chumash elder, added: “It’s a chance for us to express ourselves. It’s a chance to come forth and bring the culture of our ancestors back to reality.”

The event also included a performance of Chumash and South American Aztec dancers, and a musical set by the Cajun group Gumbo La La.

John and Barbara Walton of Ojai spent most of the day at the gathering.

“It’s important to come together and show the children we are not separate groups,” John Walton said. “We can come together and be one heart.”