Manassas Sign Resonates With Indian Activists

Pro-Immigrant Poster Claims Discrimination

Oregon resident Bonita Leonard, who visited Manassas this week, is making plans to return in a few months.

Unlike others drawn to the city for its rich history and its quaint Old Town, however, Leonard said she will make the 2,800-mile journey for a different local "attraction," the 12-by-40-foot pro-immigrant sign at 9500 Liberty St.

"I agree with everything the sign says and am willing to stand and defend it," she said. "All life is sacred, and we all deserve to be treated equally."

Leonard was one of 20 Native Americans who camped next to the sign this week to support Gaudencio Fernandez, the billboard's creator. "It's all moving, and it makes valid points," said Alfred Lee Homer Homewhytewa Moquino Shije of Arizona, referring to the sign. "It's the truth, and that's what people are afraid of and why people want it down."

Fernandez and his wife, Delia Alvarez, had been scheduled to appear in General District Court on Tuesday because Manassas officials say the sign and the property on which it rests are not in compliance with city codes and ordinance. The court date, however, was moved to Sept. 5 at the request of the couple's attorney, Mark Voss.

"I will be back in September," Leonard said. "I am willing to defend all indigenous people."

The Native Americans who arrived in Manassas on Monday are part of the People's Walk, which is a spinoff of the Longest Walk 2. Participants in both groups are walking from San Francisco to the District to draw attention to environmental problems and to the injustices they face.

"We want to keep the land rich and usable for the future. Now lots of land is being destroyed for money," said Arizona resident Lando Nez, a member of the Navajo Nation. "And there is a lot we can't do as Native Americans. I quit my job and sacrificed a lot for this walk because I felt it was something I should do for my people."

The Longest Walk 2 began Feb. 11 at Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay and followed two routes, a southern one through Texas, Tennessee and North Carolina and a northern one through Nevada, Illinois and Pennsylvania. The walkers camp along the way and survive on the generosity of people who donate food, water and gas money.

Nez said the participants walk about 20 miles a day, and a vehicle covers 60 miles. The People's Walk was formed in Tennessee after some walkers were dissatisfied with the leadership of American Indian Movement activist Dennis Banks, head of the Longest Walk 2 and founder of the first walk, which took place in 1978.

The groups will reunite in the District over the weekend.

"The biggest challenge is just walking every day," said Nez, who had never traveled beyond New Mexico. "You are tired and have blisters but have to keep going. I read about the long walk of the Navajo, and that gave me strength. They did it, and so can I."

Nez said his group was told about the Liberty Street sign while in Roanoke and wanted to support Fernandez. Native Americans, too, have faced discrimination and mistreatment, he said.

"We wanted to come support him because what's on the wall pertains to all of us," Nez said. "Everything on there is true, and I feel strongly about it. I even took a picture in front of it to show people I was here."

The walkers arrived from Charlottesville on Monday afternoon with two vans carrying their belongings. Many said they support "every word" written mostly in blue and red block lettering on the sign, which includes the phrase "European American exterminated millions of Native Americans in order to steal America."

The walkers camped next to the sign Monday and Tuesday nights. To pass time, they played cards, beat drums, prayed, and grilled corn on the cob and chicken for dinner. They also spent time with Fernandez.

"They want to express their support of our struggle here in Prince William," Fernandez said. "I feel honored that they are thinking about our problems. They see that what we suffer today is nothing new and is something they have suffered over and over."