Ed Castillo
Encyclopedia
Edward Castillo, of the Luiseño-Cahuilla tribes, is a Native American
activist who participated in the American Indian occupation of Alcatraz in 1969. Current professor
and director of Native American Studies at the Sonoma State University
in California
, he wrote several chapters in the Smithsonian Institution
's Handbook of North American Indians and in Mission Indian Federation: Protecting Tribal Sovereignty 1919-1967, published in the Encyclopedia of Native Americans in the 20th Century. He is editor of Native American Perspectives on the Hispanic Colonization of Alta California and The Pomo, A Tribal History. Castillo is a regular contributor of book reviews to historical journals such as Indian Historian, Journal of California Anthropology, Western Historical Quarterly, American Indian Quarterly
and California History.
outside San Jacinto
. After high school, he enrolled in the University of California at Riverside with a major in American frontier history and a minor in Latin America
n studies. After graduating in 1969, Castillo took a minority counseling position at the University of California, Santa Barbara
. In that same year he was hired as a graduate student instructor in UCLA’s newly established Native American Studies program.
when Richard Oakes
, the foremost organizer of the demonstration, gave a speech at UCLA attempting to get more support for the protest in mid-November 1969. Oakes had been giving similarly effective speeches at San Francisco State
, UC Berkeley, and UC Riverside. Castillo, along with about two-thirds of the Native American studies class he was teaching, agreed to take leave from his position at UCLA and join the occupation. He was 21 years old at the time.
When he arrived at Alcatraz, Castillo was one of the original members on the island council, along with Richard Oakes and a number of other college students. The island council oversaw everything that occurred on the island. Castillo also worked in the make-shift mail room of the island.
Early on during the occupation, Castillo was voted as security chief of the island, but soon resigned from the difficult position after numerous threats from much larger young Indian males.
When Richard Oakes left the island due to the death of his daughter, Castillo began to notice the burgeoning of inner conflicts within the island’s population. He believed the original idealism
of the island was faltering, and many of the island’s leaders were focused more on the political and financial benefits of the protest. After nearly three months of participating in the occupation, Castillo decided to return to UCLA to fulfill his teaching duties.
program at Sonoma State University. He has worked on numerous books, usually dealing with the history of California Native American tribes. The majority of his scholarly works focus on the impact of Spanish colonization on Native Americans in the 17th and 18th centuries. He coauthored Indians, Franciscans, and Spanish Colonization: The Impact of the Mission System on California Indians with Robert H. Jackson
.
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
activist who participated in the American Indian occupation of Alcatraz in 1969. Current professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
and director of Native American Studies at the Sonoma State University
Sonoma State University
Sonoma State University is a public, coeducational business and liberal arts college affiliated with the California State University system. The main campus is located in Rohnert Park, California, United States and lies approximately south of Santa Rosa and north of San Francisco...
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, he wrote several chapters in the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
's Handbook of North American Indians and in Mission Indian Federation: Protecting Tribal Sovereignty 1919-1967, published in the Encyclopedia of Native Americans in the 20th Century. He is editor of Native American Perspectives on the Hispanic Colonization of Alta California and The Pomo, A Tribal History. Castillo is a regular contributor of book reviews to historical journals such as Indian Historian, Journal of California Anthropology, Western Historical Quarterly, American Indian Quarterly
American Indian Quarterly
American Indian Quarterly is an academic journal devoted to the indigenous peoples of North and South America.-See also:*Journal of Indigenous Studies*AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples*Indigenous Law Centre...
and California History.
Early life
Castillo was born in 1948 in California. He was raised on a rancheriaRanchería
The Spanish word ranchería, or rancherío, refers to a small, rural settlement. In the Americas the term was applied to native villages and to the workers' quarters of a ranch. English adopted the term with both these meanings, usually to designate the residential area of a rancho in the American...
outside San Jacinto
San Jacinto, California
San Jacinto is a city in Riverside County, California, U.S.A. It was named after Saint Hyacinth and is located at the north end of the San Jacinto Valley, with Hemet to its south. The mountains associated with the valley are the San Jacinto Mountains. The population was 44,199 at the 2010...
. After high school, he enrolled in the University of California at Riverside with a major in American frontier history and a minor in Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
n studies. After graduating in 1969, Castillo took a minority counseling position at the University of California, Santa Barbara
University of California, Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara, commonly known as UCSB or UC Santa Barbara, is a public research university and one of the 10 general campuses of the University of California system. The main campus is located on a site in Goleta, California, from Santa Barbara and northwest of Los...
. In that same year he was hired as a graduate student instructor in UCLA’s newly established Native American Studies program.
Participation at Alcatraz
Castillo first got involved with the American Indian occupation of AlcatrazOccupation of Alcatraz
The Occupation of Alcatraz was an occupation of Alcatraz Island by the group Indians of All Tribes . The Alcatraz Occupation lasted for nineteen months, from November 20, 1969, to June 11, 1971, and was forcibly ended by the U.S. government.-Background:...
when Richard Oakes
Richard Oakes
Richard Oakes may refer to:*Richard Oakes , Mohawk Native American leader of the 1969–71 occupation of Alcatraz Island*Richard Oakes , English musician and former member of the band Suede...
, the foremost organizer of the demonstration, gave a speech at UCLA attempting to get more support for the protest in mid-November 1969. Oakes had been giving similarly effective speeches at San Francisco State
San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University is a public university located in San Francisco, California. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers over 100 areas of study from nine academic colleges...
, UC Berkeley, and UC Riverside. Castillo, along with about two-thirds of the Native American studies class he was teaching, agreed to take leave from his position at UCLA and join the occupation. He was 21 years old at the time.
When he arrived at Alcatraz, Castillo was one of the original members on the island council, along with Richard Oakes and a number of other college students. The island council oversaw everything that occurred on the island. Castillo also worked in the make-shift mail room of the island.
Early on during the occupation, Castillo was voted as security chief of the island, but soon resigned from the difficult position after numerous threats from much larger young Indian males.
When Richard Oakes left the island due to the death of his daughter, Castillo began to notice the burgeoning of inner conflicts within the island’s population. He believed the original idealism
Idealism
In philosophy, idealism is the family of views which assert that reality, or reality as we can know it, is fundamentally mental, mentally constructed, or otherwise immaterial. Epistemologically, idealism manifests as a skepticism about the possibility of knowing any mind-independent thing...
of the island was faltering, and many of the island’s leaders were focused more on the political and financial benefits of the protest. After nearly three months of participating in the occupation, Castillo decided to return to UCLA to fulfill his teaching duties.
Later life
Castillo is currently the director of the Native American studiesNative American Studies
Native American Studies is an interdisciplinary academic field that examines the history, culture, politics, issues and contemporary experience of Native peoples in North America, or, taking a hemispheric approach, the Americas...
program at Sonoma State University. He has worked on numerous books, usually dealing with the history of California Native American tribes. The majority of his scholarly works focus on the impact of Spanish colonization on Native Americans in the 17th and 18th centuries. He coauthored Indians, Franciscans, and Spanish Colonization: The Impact of the Mission System on California Indians with Robert H. Jackson
Robert H. Jackson
Robert Houghwout Jackson was United States Attorney General and an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court . He was also the chief United States prosecutor at the Nuremberg Trials...
.