Vincent Medina and Louis Trevino Strengthen Ohlone Tribe in San Francisco Bay Area
Vincent Medina is a member of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe, where he also serves as a councilman representing his family’s lineage. He and Louis Trevino co-founded mak-’amham, an organization and restaurant focused on reviving traditional Ohlone foods and sharing them with their communities. Medina was born and continues to live in his family’s indigenous tribal area of Halkin, in the San Francisco Bay Area (Southern Oakland/San Leandro/San Lorenzo).
Trevino is a Rumsen Ohlone community member active in the cultural revitalization efforts of his people. He is focused primarily on the revitalization of the Rumsen language and traditional Ohlone foods. He longs for a full and holistic revitalization of the lifeways of his ancestors, including language, story, song, art, food and other aspects of traditional Rumsen Ohlone culture.
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Here are some highlights from the interview with Medina and Trevino:
- Their goals for Cafe Ohlone: Overcoming suppression of their culture and creating a space where others in the Ohlone community can see their traditional culture.
- Why integrity of culture is paramount in all mak-’amham does.
- How they build allies, create calls to action, and stand against misinformation and ongoing oppression.
- How to respectfully connect with local Indigenous communities.
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Reviving Indigenous Communities Through Traditional Food and Language was originally published in B the Change on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
