Being Ohlone in the 21st Century

I never deal with this, but I am so pissed I gotta vent. And for me venting is writing on tumblr. Dont know if that’s sad or not. Whatever.

I was out tonight and a cousin, a distant cousin, texted me and asked to join me. “of course,” I responded. What a regret.

My cousin embarrassed me so much. Apparently I stole his spot as the “next in line” Ohlone. How? Because I worked hard from a volunteer position to a stable job at the Mission?

Then he kept talking about his royalty and how he’s next in line and I stole his place. I told him to be humble and he said his grandfather, not mine, is the “chief.”

Fail. We all know our family is important.. We know our family has a line of chiefs, but do we brag? NO! This is not the Ohlone way! Our values include humility. Eldership and leadership are earned, and we are taught to be humble.

My grandfather, as my cousins, were out saving the Ohlone cemetery in the 1960s, decades before being Ohlone was easy. For this cousin to say his grandfather is the only Ohlone that matters, which is a lie, is incredibly insulting. I called him out on it.

Then I got insulted for reviving our language, which he said was led by my older cousin, which is a lie, I started learning alone.

I got called too “book smart,” but whatevs. I refuse to ride on the coattails of those before me, but instead make our future better and fight struggles of today. My cousin doesn’t get that. It’s screwed up sometimes fights are within.

I’ve always been an advocate of the more Ohlone working together, the better. Sadly, some don’t think like that.

Kalta. Tread on.