We Will Receive Justice

Lee M. Panich is a professor of anthropology at Santa Clara University. He is the author of Narratives of Persistence: Indigenous Negotiations of Colonialism in Alta and Baja California and is the coeditor of several volumes, including most recently Archaeologies of Indigenous Presence. Gustavo Flores is a lecturer of anthropology at San Jose State University.

• List of IllustrationsIntroductionChapter 1. MissionsChapter 2. FreedomChapter 3. LaborChapter 4. LandChapter 5. PropertyChapter 6. RebellionChapter 7. JusticeBibliography

"With implications far beyond the region it covers, We Will Receive Justice opens up new ways of understanding the lives of Indigenous Californians in the mid-nineteenth century. Lee Panich and Gustavo Flores show how, at a time when the missions were in ruins and settler colonialism was yet to take root in Mexican California, California Natives imagined new futures for themselves in defiance of powerful missionaries and land-hungry colonists. Anchored in Native voice and historical and anthropological methods, We Will Receive Justice is mandatory reading for all who wish to understand Native survivance on the California frontier."—Steven W. Hackel, professor of history at the University of California, Riverside"I've found myself moved by the exploration of issues like liberty and rebellion, which are woven throughout this remarkable book by two authors whose insight pierces the heart of our tribe's human struggle to exist and be. The deep research by Lee Panich and Gustavo Flores is illuminating. So much of the history that they uncover reflects today on our tribe's spirit of resistance against oppression. For us, this text resonates powerfully with our journey to reclaim our ancestral lands, to protect our culture, and to assert our sovereignty. Their masterful articulation of liberty as both a personal and collective aspiration inspires us, capturing the fire of defiance that burns in those who challenge unjust systems. The stories and struggles of our ancestors are, in many ways, beacons through which we can see and appreciate the resilience of communities who rise against erasure. This history is not over yet. Today, our people are locked in a fight for recognition and justice. This text is a testament to the struggle of our people to be free, rendered with such clarity and passion that it stirs the soul. I am grateful for this brilliant work, which not only educates but also kindles hope and determination in all who seek freedom."—Charlene Nijmeh, chairwoman of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area"Lee Panich and Gustavo Flores's groundbreaking book centers Indigenous agency and pushes beyond the broad demographic studies that characterize studies of this era to provide an intimate look at the Indigenous communities of Missions Santa Clara and San José, and their fight for justice and survival, through the colonial violence of the Spanish, Mexican, and American eras. We Will Receive Justice sheds light on a history that is badly in need of illumination, drawing on overlooked archives, ethnographic testimonies, and oral histories to demonstrate how Indigenous peoples understood themselves and their own stories."—Martin Rizzo-Martinez, author of We Are Not Animals: Indigenous Politics of Survival, Rebellion, and Reconstitution in Nineteenth-Century California