Dos Pueblos is a sacred place where our grandmothers and grandfathers prayed, where our language was spoken, where we raised our families and buried our loved ones. It is a place of ceremony, gathering, and sustenance. The land is inseparable from who we are as Chumash people. Our connection to Dos Pueblos extends beyond the colonial idea of ownership. While we do not hold legal title, in the Western sense, we have always cared for it, loved it, and remained tied to it. We are a landless people, not by choice, but through a history of dispossession, yet we remain tied to Dos Pueblos.
We oppose the Northern Chumash Tribal Council (NCTC) acquiring Dos Pueblos. We ask that the public, donors, and institutions to read this article before donating to NCTC. This acquisition is unethical for several reasons:
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NCTC’s Dos Pueblos land acquisition is unethical because Violet Sage Walker’s claim to being Chumash is questionable
NCTC has claimed that the Dos Pueblos Ranch acquisition is “for the Chumash”, but the question must be asked: which Chumash?
Evidence entered into court records show that Violet Sage Walker’s father, Fred Collins, does not hold Chumash or any California Indian ancestry. In Collins v. Salinan Heritage Preservation Association (San Luis Obispo County Superior Court, 2016), Collins sued the Salinan Tribe for $10 million in defamation after they stated he was not Chumash. The case was dismissed. Evidence submitted to the court states:
“In conclusion, the evidence is conclusive that Fred Harvey Collins (b. 1949) is not of Chumash Indian descent or any other California Indian descent” (Exhibit B, p. 033 - See link below).
According to genealogical records submitted, Collins is not Chumash or California Indian, but Collins also took actions that placed him in direct opposition to Indigenous peoples. In 2015, he attempted to prevent the Salinan Tribe from holding a ceremony at Morro Rock (Pemberton, P., March 16, 2015), and he pursued litigation against a legitimate tribe for millions of dollars.
Collins was presented as NCTC’s former tribal administrator. His daughter, Violet Sage Walker, now serves as NCTC chair, with additional family members holding seats on the board. Unless Walker’s mother is Chumash and a direct descendant of Dos Pueblos, a connection she has not publicly disclosed, there is no genealogical evidence of her being Chumash or even California Indian.
This is a matter of accountability and representation. The question remains: Who stands to benefit from this acquisition under the name of the Chumash?
2. NCTC’s Dos Pueblos land acquisition is unethical because that organization does not represent most families from Dos Pueblos.
Certain members of the Pommier family have endorsed NCTC’s efforts, while others who descend from the same Dos Pueblos ancestors have not. The Pommiers are only one of six descendant families tied to Dos Pueblos. At least five other Chumash families can prove ancestry from the two original Chumash villages of Dos Pueblos, and after directly speaking with the heads of those families, they do not endorse this acquisition.
In the Santa Barbara Independent on Sept 26, 2025, one particular group of Pommier descendants described the project as “a path of healing for our families, our people, and our homelands.” It is important to note that their endorsement was made without consultation or consent from the other families with ancestral ties to Dos Pueblos. Healing cannot be claimed when entire families of the community are excluded. This act of exclusion causes harm to the Chumash people by attempting to erase our many voices.
We have never been consulted about NCTC’s acquisition of Dos Pueblos. Meanwhile, NCTC Chairwoman Violet Sage Walker is raising funds under the claim that this purchase benefits “the Chumash people.” Yet the evidence shows it benefits a narrow circle, some of whom have not demonstrated genealogical ties to this land.
This raises an important question: why is Violet Sage Walker, whose father, Fred Collins, was found in court records to have no California Indian ancestry, the arbiter of this land?
If this acquisition is truly “for the Chumash,” then all descendant families must be included in decisions about their homelands. Anything less is misrepresentation. Let’s just call it what it is: a land grab disguised as Indigenous stewardship, pursued for personal recognition and monetary gain. This is not land back.
3. Genealogy is not optional.
For decades Chumash descendants of Dos Pueblos have been dealing with people impersonating our tribal affiliation, identity, and profiting off of our culture. This is not new to us. A common argument that we hear is that “we don't use colonial records” or "We don’t have to prove this".
While it is true that colonization disrupted our families and histories, every legitimate tribe requires genealogical records for enrollment. This is not an arbitrary rule but a safeguard to protect tribal sovereignty. For example, the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians requires proof of descent from a specific census roll, genealogical documentation among other requirements. Many tribes also require documentation such from the Bureau of Indian Affair’s Certificates of Degree of Indian Blood (CDIB), and some even require DNA and even blood tests. Genealogy is not optional, it is the foundation for tribal citizenship and protection against false claims.
Tribes are sovereign nations with the inherent authority to determine their own enrollment criteria. While it is unreasonable to survey every tribe in the United States, it is clear that the vast majority of legitimate unrecognized and recognized California tribes require genealogical documentation as part of their enrollment process. They do not accept membership based on hearsay or family stories alone. These requirements exist to protect tribal sovereignty.
Claims such as “I was told by my grandmother (or another family member),” “I don’t believe in colonial records,” or “I don’t need colonial records to tell me my identity”, or “we ran away”, cannot replace genealogical evidence. Without such standards, anyone could simply claim to be Chumash, or claim affiliation with any tribe, without accountability. All legitimate tribes require documented genealogy or use of colonial documents as part of their enrollment process.
We acknowledge the history of our lands has been complex. Coastal Chumash communities lack federal recognition today and have endured wave after wave of colonization that has disrupted our community. Through each wave, records were kept: mission baptismal and burial books, census rolls, California Indian rolls, diseños collections, Bureau of Ethnology anthropological accounts, and Bureau of Indian Affairs documents, and even federal allotment land records. Like other tribes, we use these records to trace our genealogy.
The descendants of Dos Pueblos who author this statement can trace their lineage through these records, confirming our ties to this land. To our knowledge, the only tribal government in the Santa Barbara and Goleta coastal region that requires complete genealogical documentation, including certified birth certificates, for Chumash membership is the Barbareño Band of Chumash Indians. Its members and leaders are all Chumash by genealogy, that is something that cannot be said of NCTC.
Being Indigenous is also about protocol, kinship, and accountability. Indigenous people introduce themselves by naming their families, their grandparents, and their villages. We take pride in our lineage. We know who we are and honor generations of our families openly. By contrast, the biography on the NCTC website Board highlights political roles, business ventures, and hobbies but it contains no mention of grandparents, no ancestral names, and no villages. This absence speaks volumes.
The descendant Chumash families of Dos Pueblos, and other villages and even neighboring tribes, maintain enduring kinship ties and relationships. Our histories are intertwined, and our connections are generational. As the authors of this statement, we can say with certainty: we do not know the Collins family, we have no shared kinship, and we have no generational ties, because they are not from Dos Pueblos or from any other Chumash village in our homelands.
When individuals like Fred Collins, the father of Violet Sage Walker, falsely claim Chumash identity, they do more than tell a lie; they erase the voices of the real Chumash families. They exploit our struggles for their personal, political, and financial gain, manipulating public sympathy while silencing those with real lived experience and generational ties to the land.
In a Los Angeles Times article, Frank Rocha, who has reaped more than $12 million by claiming a Chumash identity without genealogical evidence, blatantly stated, “We don’t have to prove this.… They’re not the Chumash police or the Chumash God.” That statement alone reveals the arrogance of entitlement. Proof matters. Without it, these claims are nothing more than fabrication, a distortion of history for profit and personal gain. We are not “identity police.” We are simply demanding truth, accountability, and an end to the exploitation of our community.
Co-opting, fraudulently self-identifying, an Indigenous identity is a growing phenomenon. We encourage all readers to learn about the impact of false claims of Native American / Indigenous identity because they cause harm and trauma to real Indigenous peoples and undermine tribal sovereignty. Please see our Educational page for recommended readings.
In Conclusion: We do not endorse the Northern Chumash Tribal Council
As descendants of Dos Pueblos, the land is part of our history, our present, and our future. We will always remain connected to it, because it is not simply land, it is our family. We appreciate advocacy that protects our lands and waters, and we welcome true allies to stand with our people. But it crosses a line when allies impersonate us, claim to speak for us and without us, and then ask for money in our name to buy our homeland. We are used to our land being taken from us, but we are not used to seeing our land purchased by individuals using an unethical public fundraising campaign under the guise of being Chumash and serving the Chumash community.
The descendants of Dos Pueblos are not against the idea of land return. We are against false representation and the unethical solicitation of donations in the name of being for the Chumash.
Is NCTC's Board of Directors [Collins family] Chumash?
Collins v. Salinan Heritage Preservation Association (Salinan Tribe), the case can be found in the San Luis Obispo Superior Court Records.
This link will allow you to view an excerpt (compendium of evidence) from the Collins v Salinan Heritage Preservation Association case file, the evidence submitted by the defendant, Salinan Tribe, who contracted with a very reputable genealogist to conduct Fred Harvey Collins genealogy.
Collateral is a term used to describe someone who is not your direct lineal descendant but still shares a family connection.
Example: Your aunt’s husband — you share no direct lineal descent or blood relation.
Now, consider this: if your aunt’s husband were a tribal member, would you take on that identity for yourself, even though you are not a lineal descendant? Would you start a tribe based on your aunt’s husband’s tribal affiliation? Would you purchase your aunt’s husband’s ancestral land, claim it as your own, and exclude the real tribal members? Would you consider this to be fraudulent and unethical?