Who Owns the Park?
In his stirring 1969 statement “Who Owns the Park?” (also known as “The People’s Park Manifesto”) Frank Bardacke — one of the core of visionary radicals who created and defended People’s Park — described a scenario that is playing itself out again before our very eyes.
Though culturally dated — including its references to this land’s Indigenous peoples as “Indians,” the implicit assumption that “Americans” only means white citizens and other historical details — it nevertheless shines a searchlight on how land ownership happens, which is as relevant in Occupied Palestine today as it was and remains here in Berkeley.
“Someday a petty official will appear with a piece of paper, called a land title, which states that the University of California owns the land of the People’s Park. Where did that piece of paper come from? What is it worth?
“A long time ago the Costanoan Indians <actually, the Lisjan Ohlone> lived in the area now called Berkeley. They had no concept of land ownership. They believed that the land was under the care and guardianship of the people who used it and lived on it.
“Catholic missionaries took the land away from the Indians. No agreements were made. No papers were signed. They ripped it off in the name of God.
“The Mexican Government took the land away from the Church. The Mexican government had guns and an army. God’s word was not as strong.
“The Mexican Government wanted to pretend that it was not the army that guaranteed them the land. They drew up some papers which said they legally owned it. No Indians signed those papers.
“The Americans were not fooled by the papers. They had a stronger army than the Mexicans. They beat them in a war and took the land. Then they wrote some papers of their own and forced the Mexicans to sign them.
“The American Government sold the land to some white settlers. The Government gave the settlers a piece of paper called a land title in exchange for some money. All this time there were still some Indians around who claimed the land. The American army killed most of them.
“The piece of paper saying who owned the land was passed around among rich white men.
“Sometimes the white men were interested in taking care of the land. Usually they were just interested in making money. Finally some very rich men, who run the University of California, bought the land.
“Immediately these men destroyed the houses that had been built on the land. The land went the way of so much other land in America — it became a parking lot.
“We are building a park on the land. We will take care of it and guard it, in the spirit of the Costanoan Indians. When the University comes with its land title we will tell them: “Your land title is covered with blood. We won’t touch it. Your people ripped off the land from the Indians a long time ago. If you want it back now, you will have to fight for it again.”
Some of these historical roles, such as the petty officials and those who see themselves as caretakers and guardians, can be seen in Berkeley and Palestine today. In the case of People’s Park, there is plenty of room for more protectors!
Choose a role as a caretaker, a guardian or a protector and play it to the hilt so that People’s Park becomes a public commons, where everyone feels welcomed, safe and valued.
This article was first published in the Berkeley Times on August 26, 2022.
