In an article published on January 28, 2011, the reporter 
writes about the remains of the first indigenous inhabitants of Los Angeles and about the “…many people whose Native American names were recorded by a friar from Majorca who made a point of learning Indian languages.” Latinos and Native Americans with ancestry from the beginnings of the “Pueblo de Los Angeles”, are deeply concerned with the appropriate reburial of these ancestors. Numerous retellings of the story early this year, reported that the remains of these ancestors were in the possession of the Los Angeles Archdiocese. On June fifth I spoke with an elder from one of the California Tribes who reminded me that the remains need to be returned as soon as possible to their families and Tribes of origin so that they may be honored and re-buried with respect, each for individual ancient tradition and culture. After this conversation and considering my credentials with the Church, I felt compelled to contact the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles in hopes of expediting this process. I wrote an email requesting his attention to this issue, to Archbishop Jose Gomez and received the following email in response.
Dear Fran:
Greetings from Los Angeles! Your email to Archbishop Jose Gomez regarding the disposition of remains from the excavation at La Plaza was forwarded to me for reply.
There have been numerous media reports, most of them early in 2011, detailing the role of the Archdiocese in the La Plaza excavations. In short, the Archdiocese did not know about the extent of, nor did it approve of the excavation project. Nor did the Archdiocese take possession of any remains unearthed in the excavation.
The builders of La Plaza sent the excavated remains to Cal State Los Angeles for storage. That is where they are at present.
The Archdiocese favors the reburial of the remains where they were found. It is our understanding that officials of Los Angeles County, Supervisor Gloria Molina among them, are planning to rebury the remains at the original site. Details of when and how that will be done are still unknown to the Archdiocese.
I would respectfully recommend that you address your concerns over the disposition of the remains directly to Los Angeles County officials. They might have more information to share with you.
I hope this helps clarify the Archdiocese’s position regarding the La Plaza excavations. Thank you again for your email.
Regards,
Tod Tamberg
Director of Media Relations
Archdiocese of Los Angeles
Any activist, reporter or any other communicator is only as reliable as his or her sources. It is obvious that my sources in regards to La Placita have jumped to conclusions and reacted emotionally in a prejudice manner towards the Archdiocese. I am disappointed by the lack of integrity of those concerned individuals and by my own expectations in the reliability of their word. I made immediate and humble amends to Tom Tamberg, the Media Relations Director and decided to publish the experience in hopes that no one else passes these false reports any further throughout Indian country. In the future we will address our needs to the appropriate office. I apologize to my readers and to the Archdiocese for my indiscretion. It is vital that as we make the sacred journey into eldership and try to protect the sovereignty and honor of all First Americans, we express dignity and humility in the message we carry and when we are wrong, promptly admit it and that we teach our youth to do the same. Aho!
