Life in the Mission of Padre Killers with Dr. Martin Rizzo
Rupert Costo Endowment in American Indian Affairs presents “Life in the Mission of Padre Killers” Mission Santa Cruz, by Dr. Martin Rizzo, UC Chancellor’s Post-Doctoral Fellow.
Martin’s research sets out to answer the questions: who were the Indigenous people in the Santa Cruz region and how did they survive through the nineteenth century? Between 1770 and 1900 the linguistically and culturally diverse Ohlone and Yokuts tribes adapted to and expressed themselves politically and culturally over three distinct types of colonial encounters involving Spain, Mexico, and the U.S. They persevered through a variety of strategies developed through social, political, economic, and kinship networks that tied together Indigenous tribes, families, and individuals throughout the greater Bay Area. Survival tactics included organized attacks on the mission, the assassination of an abusive padre, flights of fugitives, poisonings, and arson. In some cases, strategies included collaboration with certain padres, tracking down of fugitives, service, labor, or musical performance. Indigenous politics informed each of these choices, as Indigenous individuals and families made decisions of vital importance within a context of immense loss and violent disruption.