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28 August 2005

Mike Honda: Indian Gaming Giver

"Indian gambling on tribal land became a significant political issue in California in the last decade. California has more gaming tribes than any other state, with 43 currently hosting some form of gambling. Gaming revenue in California grew in 2002, increasing 17.2 percent from $2.92 billion in 2001 to $3.43 billion in 2002. With huge increases in revenue, tribes have entered the political arena by donating large sums of money to both Democratic and Republican candidates." -- Institute of Government Studies Studies, University of California, Nov, 2004

Our representative in Congress, Mike Honda (representing California's 15th congressional district, which encompasses Gilroy and Silicon Valley) recently introduced legislation that would expedite federal recognition of the Amah Mutsun, a branch of the Ohlone/Costanoan peoples who inhabited the Bay area for at least 1200 years before the Europeans arrived. Passage of the bill (HR 3475) would officially transform Sargent Ranch, a 6,000+ acre area of prime open space south of Gilroy, and other swaths of undeveloped lands on the Santa Clara-San Benito county border, into tribal territory.

Honda[at left, Mike Honda, sponsor of HR 3475, specious special interest legislation on behalf of Indian gaming interests]

The bill's passage would also guarantee Indian gaming sprawl in the South Valley. Keep this in mind: Since 1988 -- and the passage of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, which defines how tribes may operate large-scale (class III) gaming casino operations -- federal recognition of Indian tribes by the Bureau of Indian Affairs has been closely followed by the development of Indian gaming casinos on supposedly sacred tribal lands.

Now let's examine the politics and potential deal-making around Honda's bill.

A dubious faction of the Amah Mutsun (led by Woodside resident and self-annointed Amah Mutsun tribal chairperson Irene Zwierlein) has signed a treaty with Sargent Ranch developer Wayne Pierce to develop the land if and when the tribe receives federal recognition. Although the agreement between Pierce and Zwierlein doesn't currently call for an Indian gaming casino, it's a good bet that the agreement would change if Honda manages to get his bill through Congress. You only have to know that for the last 13 years Pierce has tried, and failed, to develop his Sargent Ranch holdings. Pierce is more desperate than ever to cash in the ranch (Ranch mired in debt -- 21 Feb 2005, Gilroy Dispatch).

Zwierlien is likely a poser. She claims to be the tribal leader of the "Amah Mutsun of San Juan Bautista," but her claim to leadership is probably fraudulent. As reported by the Dispatch, the document she used to "prove" her leadership contains photocopied signatures (Forgery Claim blurs Tribe's Fate -- 27 Aug 2005, Dispatch). Zwierlein's bogus claim to tribal leadership has made her unpopular with the legitimate Amah Mutsun and the real tribal chairperson, Valentin Lopez. One of Zwerlien's letters containing photocopied signatures of tribal leaders, and addressed to the BIA, requests that the federal government recognize Zwierlein's paper tribe as the real petitioning tribe, "a separate tribe from the other tribe that we left."

Lopez' band, the legit Amah Mutsun, wants federal recognition also, but they aren't interested in Indian gaming operations. The legit Amah Mutsun are dedicated to celebrating and renewing their cultural authenticity. They hold storytelling festivals, basket weaving seminars, and ceremonies honoring women elders. They recently raised a traditional village house pole, an act typical of their dedication to maintaining an historical identity. You can learn all about the legit Amah Mutsun and the ways of local native peoples at this web site: http://www.indiancanyon.org/. The legit Amah Mutsun don't seem to need federal recognition to be a tribe. And they don't acknowledge Zweirlein's claims.

No one believes that Zwierlein is the authentic leader of the Amah Mutsun -- except Zwierlien and our own Mike Honda. He swears that he's not taking sides in the dispute between the real Amah Mustun and Zwierlien's psuedo-tribe, but no matter how much Honda backtracks, there's no getting around the fact that the language of his bill specifically recognizes Zwierlein the usurper: "To require the prompt review by the Secretary of the Interior of Petition No. 120 for Federal recognition of the Amah Mutsun of Mission San Juan Bautista as an Indian tribe, and for other purposes." There it is in Mike Honda's own writing -- his bill specifically acknowledges the name Zwierlein is using to differentiate her bogus tribe from the real tribe.

A few extra words in the bill's language -- of Mission San Juan Buatista -- would give Zwierlien the legal position to negotiate the development of an Indian gaming casino on Sargent Ranch or on other supposedly sacred tribal lands.

And that stinks. But it shouldn't surprise. There are a lot of sharks in the water waiting to pounce if and when Honda's bill is passed. Despite ardent, organized local opposition to "gaming sprawl" (see this Greenbelt Alliance article) in south Santa Clara county's back yard, plenty of people who matter remain quietly eager for casino development. You can wager they'd like to see Honda put Zwierlein into a position of negotiating strength. 

The list of erstwhile casino investors who have positioned themselves to reap the profit from Indian gaming operation buildout includes:

  • Kirk Rossmann, one of the founders of Heritage Bank
  • Sal Rubino, a farmer whose family has lived in Santa Clara County since 1892
  • Joe Giacalone, a lifelong resident of the area who owns an electrical contracting firm
  • Pepper Snyder, owner of Sprig Electric
  • Gilroy's own Chris Vanni, owner of Hillcrest Ministorage.

These folks recognize that Indian gaming is an enormously lucrative, mega-billion dollar industry. They know full well how it works: A lot of uneducated common folk get crappy casino jobs and a select few investors, tribal leaders, and construction firms becoming wealthy and wealthier.

Rossman has organized the wannabe casino developers under the banner of two investment groups, Game Won and Game Too. Both entities are currently assisting the California Valley band of Miwok Indians (all of five members; based in Stockton) to court local and state officials with plans to build a casino near the San Benito-Santa Clara county line. If Honda's bill passes, and Zwierlein gets to make her deal with Pierce, you can bet that Game Won and Game Two will be waiting to pounce on that opportunity as well.

The labor unions are also licking lips over the prospect of casino development on federally-recognized tribal lands in the area. Labor unions are huge supporters of Indian gaming, which is a labor intensive business. Labor unions are inextricably central to the construction, maintenance, and operation of Indian gaming casinos. Given that 42% of Honda PAC contributions come directly from labor (see opensecrets.org' spage on Mike Honda), it's no wonder that he has introduced legislation that would legitimize Zwerlien's false tribal leadership claim, open up enormous profit-making opportunities for land developers, and expand the labor unions' sphere of influence. (Note that a tribe is not free to develop its own measures relating to unionization. It must participate in the state-wide labor relations scheme established by the State of California in the Tribal Labor Relations Ordinance. So where casinos are concerned, uniformity to the rules of the existing labor unions is required. In other words, labor and Indian gaming are in lockstep.)

Now we can look at the timing of Honda's bill -- why he's trying to rush through Amah Mutsun federal recognition that's supposed to happen anyway.

We know that motives behind federal recognition of Indian tribes have frequently been tied to gaming influence on United States senators and congressman. But that's going to change. In the future, the burden of proof will be on the tribe to prove that it meets all of the criteria.

A GOA report in 2002 found that the seven criteria for tribal recognition have been widely ignored, with many psuedo-tribes like Zwierlien's receiving recognition they don't deserve. The Dodd-Leiberman amendment, introduced in September, 2002, put the brakes on tribal recognitions. The Federal Acknolwedgement Process Reform Act of 2003 made it more difficult for Indian gaming interests to peddle their influence. The point is that the proliferation of Indian gaming casinos and public awareness of the pitfalls of the Indian tribal recognition process are making it much more difficult for Indian gaming interests to work behind the scenes to pbuild casinos on tribal lands, much more difficult than, say, ten years ago.

It's no stretch of the imagination to believe that these same interests have influenced Honda to submit his bill to expedite recongition of the Amah Mutsun. It's no stretch to view Honda's bill as an end-run on behalf of local Indian gaming pushers. It's no stretch to view Honda as a silent-but-willing Indian gaming patron and his bill as specious special interest legislation.

Indian gaming sprawl is new to south county, but it's not an unusual story in California. As a result of the 1988 Indian Gaming act, little-known groups with the barest of genealocial links to local native American identity have petitioned and received recognition as federal tribes, mostly in order to open casinos for "economic development purposes." Once recognized, the tribes act like sovereign nations, free to operate without restriction of whatever state regulations may exist regarding gambling. Call it red man's revenge on the white man for a 150 years of demeaning subjugation known as reservation life. Call it payback.

Just don't call Irene Zwierlein a legitimate Amah Mutsun leader. It's debatable whether she is even an Amah Mustun proper. Responding to a posting on an ancestry message board,  Zwierlein, who gives her email address as [email protected], wrote the following:

"... my ancestors are orginally from
Mexico they came with
Anza and the Portola Expiditions

1769 Census in CA
Manuela Cantua
Julian Cantua in Santa Calrain the 1800
living at the San Ysidro Rancho in the 1900 Census"

So by her own admission, Zwierlein is a Mexican who calls herself an Amah Mutsun. Which is OK. Anyone with ancestral links to people who lived, worked, and died at missions San Juan Bautista or Santa Cruz prior to 1840 are considered legitimate Amah Mutsun. The question remains: who does Zwierlein represent, really?

In a March letter to the Dispatch, the tribal band's true chairperson, Val Lopez, pointed out that Zwierlein  "resigned as chairperson of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band, in writing, effective March 18, 2000." He then went on to say this about Zwierlein's pal, Wayne Pierce:

"We reiterate our opposition to Mr. Pierce’s plans to develop any portion of Sargent Ranch and strongly encourage the community to continue it’s opposition to this proposal. We are the Amah Mutsun People of San Juan Bautista, we speak for ourselves, and we will continue to support protection of open spaces and cultural resources in our aboriginal territory."

Again, it doesn't matter what the Amah Mutsun's true leader says about Zwierlein. Mike Honda's bill recognizes Zwierlein as the real deal, as the true leader of the Amah Mutsun. That's what matters.

How dare this diverse assemblage of the scurious connive to bring a casino to our area, you ask? Why not? Just look at the geography, the demographics, and recent history.

South county is close to a major metropolitan area, with plenty of undeveloped land available to build on. Ad hoc big box development is standard practice in garlic town -- remember that Gilroy's city council cleared a path for the Bay area's first super Wal-mart without gaining a single concession to improve Gilroy's ratty downtown. What is it that makes you think Gilroy wouldn't embrace all the tacky pleasures a casino may bring? What makes you think a casino deal wouldn't be one-sided and stupid? Hollister has a history of making atrocious land development decisions, the village of San Juan Bautista is run by a collection of dunces, and Gilroy's town fathers are notoriously anti-green and obstinately proud about doing development  poorly.

Casinos are gaudy, unsavory temples to shlock, greed, and overstimulation. They are criminal magnets. Any economic benefit that might arise is overshadowed by the spectre of low-paying, dead-end jobs, an influx of drug dealers and prostitutes, a general increase in the population of unsavory characters, and a dramatic rise in gambling addiction. But let's face it, many folks round these parts would consider $7/hr to $15/hr casino jobs to be lucrative. They'd be happy. So perhaps this was meant to be. Mike Honda and the labor unions, Wayne Pierce and Irenne Zwierlien, Game Won/Game Too and the California Wiwok Tribe -- they're all just a means for the inevitable Indian gaming casino sprawl that is destined to arrive.

Further readings

28 August 2005 in Indian casinos, Only in Gilroy, Republic of Gilroy, San Benito Nation |

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