For thousands of years, the San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians have been singing the bird songs.
These are the songs passed down to their ancestors by four sacred birds. These songs are not just stories. They are also a way of life, said bird singer Raymond Belardes III.
"It's how our people should live. And it tells a story from sun up, sundown and all around," he said. "So these songs are very sacred to us."
The rhythmic songs are accompanied by dances and gourd rattles. And they're part of the Indigenous Peoples' Day's celebration on Monday at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. It's the third time the San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians has hosted the celebration there. The park sits on land that historically was part of the San Pasqual territory.
The holiday replaced Columbus Day four years ago, when Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a proclamation in 2019, declaring in part that we should recognize "resilience" instead of "commemorating conquest." President Joe Biden made the holiday national with his proclamation in 2021.
The local tribes say it’s a recognition of their culture, but, for them, every day is Indigenous Peoples' Day.
“It's a day for us to truly celebrate who we are, where we came from," said Jenny Alto, the secretary-treasurer for the San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians. "It's been a battle for decades. Our ancestors really fought very hard, and to see it come to fruition is an honor.”
At the Zoo Safari Park, in addition to bird singing, there was the telling of the tribe’s creation story and an exhibition of Indigenous artisans. In the kids activities area, children learned about Native American folklore and games, such as chíwxat — a Payómkawichum game.
“The Payómkawichum are also known as the Luiseño," said Ami Admire. "And these games, they help us practice hand-eye coordination and also teach us about patience, which is very important to have.”
Admire, an Indigenous educator at 'ataaxum Pomwkaan, an organization working for the survival of Indigenous peoples, their languages, customs and histories, said the object of the game is to catch all the rings made from acorn tops through a stick one by one, in order.
Apart from celebrating native cultures, Alto said, the day is about celebrating "who we are, where we came from."
Honoring where they came from is why Belardes III continues to sing the bird songs and to pass that tradition on.
"I always tell the kids: Keep learning, keep dancing, keep trying — ask questions," he said. "There's no wrong answers or wrong questions. Just get out there and do it yourself. So that's why I do it."
And to keep the traditions alive for the next thousand years.
