S1: Welcome in San Diego , it's Jade Hindman. On today's show , a new episode of Historic Places tells the story of indigenous peoples in our region before the American Revolution. Host of historic places Elsa Sevilla joins us to discuss. This is KPBS Midday Edition. Connecting our communities through conversation. Next month , the United States will mark 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence as ideas of revolution took root in the East Coast. Another important history was unfolding in the West and that of the First Peoples of Southern California. A new episode of the TV show Historic Places tells the story of indigenous peoples in the region before the American Revolution , and how they've preserved their history for millennia. Elsa Sevilla is the host of Historic Places , and she joins me now. Ailsa , welcome back to the show.
S2: Thank you for having me.
S1: Jade , always great to have you here. So how are the First peoples of Southern California or who are they rather? And why did you want to tell their story?
S2: The first people of Southern California are the Wickham , the Cahuilla , Koopa , and the Kumeyaay. And the reason that I wanted to tell their story is that it's rarely told. We don't get to hear their story as often , and we also don't get to hear it from their perspective. So we are remembering honoring America's 250. And so we wanted to know what was happening in the West Coast. And a lot of people have actually said , well , there is nothing happening in the East Coast at that time. But in reality , the first people have been here for millennia , and they talk about their history , their ways of life. They're connected to the land. They are sophisticated. They are Um , so intelligent , living off the land and preserving their ways even till today. Um , what was really interesting , we went to one of their traditional villages to see their way of life , and it was an it was an incredible experience for me as a producer. And so I wanted to share that with KPBS viewers.
S1: So paint a picture for us. I mean , what was life like in Southern California before the arrival of European colonizers?
S2: Well , life in Southern California for the first people of the region was it was a simple life. But at the same time , as I mentioned , it was sophisticated. It was they used the solar system to , um , cosmology in order to know when to hunt , went to harvest , when to have ceremonies. And so while we may look at their way of life today , um , pre-contact , it was simple , simple life. Right. But at the same time , it was sophisticated. And it was really interesting to see that they say that everything in nature was either food or medicine , and they knew all the plants. They knew when it was time to harvest. They knew when it was time to migrate because they used up all the resources , and they never wanted to overuse those resources. And so they would move to different areas , always being close to water. I'm really impressed with their knowledge of the region , the plants , the animals , the solar system. And so to me , it's just it's so interesting and I want to share it with others.
S1: That's great. Simple. Sounds smart , streamlined , efficient. Exactly.
S2: Exactly. Sustainable.
S1: All of that. Well , you know , like we said , America will soon mark 250 years since independence. What throughline did you want to draw between that anniversary and the story of the First Peoples?
S2: Well , the line to draw is basically what was happening in the East Coast and what was happening in in the West coast and in the beginning , the Spanish. Obviously , we know that they invade and conquer Mexico. And then they moved to Florida , and then they move into what is the the southwest. Gradually it takes some years. But then we also know that the French go into what is now Canada , the British into what is now what would be the 13 colonies and now America. But what happens is that there are similarities. There are certain patterns that are similar , um , on the East Coast and on the west coast , the Spanish were in Florida , but then they make their way to the West Coast , and it's Juan Rodriguez. Cabrillo , who comes to the west coast , arrives in Kumeyaay territory in 1542. He only stays about five days and leaves , but the information he gathers is sent back to Spain , and it would take Spain another 227 years before they come back to Kumeyaay territory. And this time it's with Father Junipero Serra , and this time it's a permanent settlement. Hmm.
S1: Hmm. Well , as you mentioned , you put indigenous perspectives front and center in telling this story. Tell us about some of the voices you featured and why.
S2: Some of the voices we featured in this episode are people in the Kumeyaay Nation , from Barona , from Viejas , from San Pasqual , people who know the history of the Kumeyaay Nation that wanted to tell their history from their perspective. I think we we hear a lot from the American perspective , from the Spanish perspective , but rarely from the Kumeyaay perspective. And they have been preserving their story for the last 250 years since the , um , the Spanish arrived. And so they want to share their story. They want their voices to be heard , but also they want their story from their perspective. Because we all have a different perspective of what has happened to us. And so we wanted to share that perspective.
S1: Well , you know , this this was a time of enormous change , right? So what did it take to hold on to culture and identity during that time? And how do we see that play out in the documentary?
S2: Yeah , the how to hold on to their culture , their ways , their language , their foods has been a very challenging thing for them because you have to remember that they were what they called as encroach , invaded by Spain. Then it was the Mexican period and then the American period. And all of those different periods were very challenging and very destructive for their territory and their way of life. And when I talk about way of life , it's about their heritage , their language , their foods. And so because of the destruction that happened between the Spanish and then the Mexican and American periods. They lost a lot. They lost a lot of their elders , who were the ones that carried all that information and passed it down. And so they've spent the last , I want to say , 60 , 70 years since the 1950s , recovering their heritage , their language , their foods , their way of life. And so in recovering all that , now they're teaching the younger generation here in San Diego , they have the Kumeyaay College. And so through the Kumeyaay College , they're able to share and teach the younger generation about what their way of life was like for millennia.
S1: How does one start uncovering history and culture that may have been lost?
S2: Well , I think what happened after the American period , slowly they come together because they were pushed out from their original territory. And what the Kumeyaay did here in San Diego County is that they migrated from place to place , whether it was the coast , the valley , the mountains or the desert. And so when the Spanish arrived , they take the coast , right? And so they're not able to migrate to the coast as easily , but slowly , after the Spanish , Mexican and American periods , the Kumeyaay and the different bands come together and they slowly began to bring back their language. They identify the people in their community who have that language , who may have the the food recipe , if you will , how to make their foods , others , the baskets , the weaving , the art. And so little by little they're able to bring back their heritage. And then not only that , they they were able to , um , share it with others. They create this education program in the different bands so that they can teach that to the younger generation , but it has taken them a long time to recover that. But the one thing that they tell me all the time , it's like , you know , it's been about 250 years since the Spanish arrived , but we've been here for millennia. So millennia is way longer than 250 years , and we are still here and we're thriving indeed.
S1: So ultimately , I mean , this is a story of resilience and resistance. Why is that important for viewers to understand , you think?
S2: I think it's important for viewers to understand this perspective from the first peoples of Southern California , because we we need to learn their story. We need to know what what it was like for them to resist someone coming into their territory. Because , you know , we can imagine , like if someone came into the US right now , right? That would be a very difficult situation. So if we put ourselves , you know , about 250 years back when the Spanish first arrive , you know , that's what the Kumeyaay and the first people of Southern California were experiencing. And so they they thought this is a foreign , you know , um , country that's coming into our territory. And not only did they come into the territory , but they wiped out a lot of their heritage , their language , their culture. And so it's important to to learn about what happened and the truth about what happened. The other part that the Kumeyaay talk about is that the mission system is has this sort of romanticized view of history that , you know , the indigenous people were happy in the missions , but according to the Kumeyaay , that was not the case because they were they were the the workforce and what the Kumeyaay called. They were slaves. They were they couldn't leave. And so they were put to work. They were also malnourished. They were kidnapped. They weren't able to leave the the mission and go back to their families. And so it's important to tell this part of history. It's uncomfortable. But at the same time , when you tell the the truth , the real history , you're able to move forward and have conversations and connections throughout the community.
S1: And that seems to be just an overarching theme with your work. In particular , you've been hosting and producing historic places for many years. How does this episode fit in with others you've done and and the overall vision of the show?
S2: Yeah , the overall vision of the show for Historic Places has been telling the story of San Diego County and even Baja California. We've gone into Tijuana , Ensenada as well. But talking about the history here in San Diego , we want to share that with with people. A lot of times people will tell me , like , I didn't know that part of history , and I'm so glad that I was able to see that on historic places. And it's so important to tell that part of history to give a voice to those that don't have a voice , to tell the stories that were never told. Usually it was the people of color. Women. The first peoples as well. We don't get to see that history in the textbooks. And for me , I think it's very important because I want my history told. And I think that the people that I talked to also want their history told from their perspective and talking about their perspective. It's so meaningful because I want to tell my story the way I see it. Right? I don't want someone else to tell my story the way that they think it happened. And so it's important to give a voice to those that don't have one , or to those who are coming into their voice and talking about what happened to them. A lot of times , this history is sort of , you know , they want to they want to forget it. It's what it is. But the Kumeyaay want to talk about it. They want to talk about what happened. And they also want to talk about the fact that they were resilient and they resisted and that they're still here and thriving.
S1: Yeah , there's importance in that. What's been most fulfilling about telling these stories that are so rooted in San Diego for you?
S2: The most fulfilling part for me to tell these stories are a couple of things. I think for me personally , is when I find a story that's unique and rare and that people don't know about it , that excites me because I can , you know , tell this wonderful story and share it with KPBS viewers. And the second is when I do share it with KPBS viewers. They're they're so happy that they're hearing new stories , new history that they didn't know about , because I think that overall , we all want to learn things when we watch TV or read a newspaper or whatever it is , we want to learn something. And so I think that's the second part that gets me really excited. When people watch historic places and they learn something new and that they didn't know about , and they told me about it as well. So those are exciting things. Indeed.
S1: Indeed. Well , is there anything , you know that you've you've really been reflecting on when it comes to the show?
S2: Well , yeah. What I've been reflecting on when it comes to the show is telling more stories that haven't been told. And I'm just scratching the surface. We have been producing historic places since 2008 and have produced more than 80 documentaries , which is kind of wild to think , but when you add it up , it's incredible that we're able to tell these wonderful stories. At the same time. There are still so many more stories to tell , and that's my focus is to be more intentional , to tell more stories of communities that haven't been , you know , their stories and their history has not been told before or not to a certain level. So I want to tell more of those stories. Women of color , the first peoples of Southern California , they still have so many more stories to tell , but I also want to diversify it as well.
S1: All right. I've been speaking with Elsa Sevilla , host of Historic Places. And as mentioned , the episode of Historic Places will premiere on KPBS Thursday , June 11th at 9 p.m. you can also stream it on the KPBS plus app once it airs , and we'll link to more details on KPBS. Elsa , thank you so much.
S2: Thanks for having me , Jade.
S1: That's our show for today. I'm your host , Jade Hindman. Thanks for tuning in to Midday Edition. Be sure to have a great day on purpose , everyone.
