LONG BEACH : Suit Seeks to Bar Project at American Indian Site
The American Civil Liberties Union filed suit Tuesday against Cal State Long Beach, demanding a halt to the proposed development of a vacant parcel of university-owned land that is considered a sacred American Indian site.
The complaint, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, also asks that the university allow Indians access to the fenced-off site for “religious, ceremonial or spiritual purposes.”
The parcel is part of a 22-acre strip of land known to American Indians as Puvungna, an ancient village once inhabited by members of the massive Gabrielino tribe.
Until the university decided to develop the land earlier this year, the site had been used for years as an organic garden for students and faculty. The university has refused to abandon plans for a mini-mall at the site but has promised to conduct an archeological survey to determine its historical value.
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