Guest Lecture, “Indian Slave Trade”
Clifford J. Walker will give a guest lecture, “Indian Slave Trade in the old Southwest,” at the San Bernardino County Museum on Wednesday evening, June 27, at 7:30 p.m. The presentation is free and open to the public.
Walker, the author of “gone the Way of the Earth: Indian Slave Trade in the old Southwest,” and “Back Door to California: The Story of the Mojave River Trail,” is a historian who teaches at Barstow Community College.
For decades he has researched the topic of the Mojave Desert Indian slave trade by Spanish and Mexican settlers during the 18th and 19th centuries. Acknowledging that the topic is “heavy,” he states “Just because it’s bad … doesn’t mean we should cover it up and that we can’t talk about it.”
According to Walker, the effects of this slavery continue to the present day. The breakdown of bands and tribes of Indians caused some to become extinct or to move in with other settlements and altered cultural patterns and inter-tribal relations. Genetic pools of New Mexicans and Californios were changed, and today millions of people throughout the west have Indian blood.
The San Bernardino County Museum is at the California Street exit from Interstate 10 in Redlands. Parking is free. For more information, visit www.sbcountymuseum.org. The museum is accessible to persons with disabilities. If assistive listening devices or other auxiliary aids are needed in order to participate in museum exhibits or programs, requests should be made through Museum Visitor Services at least three business days prior to your visit. Visitor Services’ telephone number is 909-307-2669 ext. 229 or (TDD) 909-792-1462.