Anna Prieto Sandoval
Anna Prieto Sandoval | |
---|---|
Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation leader | |
Personal details | |
Born | Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation Reservation | May 14, 1934
Died | October 28, 2010 Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation Reservation | (aged 76)
Cause of death | Complications of diabetes |
Spouse(s) | Married twice |
Children | Five children |
Known for | Native American gaming pioneer who improved housing and helped lift her reservation out of poverty |
Anna Prieto Sandoval (May 14, 1934 – October 28, 2010) was an American leader of the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation of southern California and a Native American gaming enterprises pioneer.[1] She is credited with lifting the Sycuan Band reservation, which was plagued by poverty and substandard housing, to self-sufficiency by pioneering casino gambling on the reservation.[1]
Background[]
Sandoval was born on May 14, 1934, on the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation reservation.[1] She grew up speaking the Kumeyaay language as her first language.[2] Her mother, Ada Prieto, was also born on the Sycuan reservation.[2] Sandoval attended Dehesa Elementary and Grossmont High School in El Cajon, California.[2]
Sandoval was married twice and raised five children.[1] Her first marriage, which occurred in 1953, ended in divorce.[2] She attended Grossmont College in El Cajon after raising her children.[1] Sandoval later taught the Kumeyaay language at San Diego State University.[1]
Leadership[]
Sandoval became the chairwoman of the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation in 1972.[2] In 1972, the year she took office, none of the eighty Sycuan members who resided on the reservation had full-time employment.[1] The housing on the reservation lacked indoor plumbing, with a small meeting hall and a deteriorating one-hundred-year-old Catholic Church.[1] Most structures were on the reservation were dilapidated.[1]
After the state of California allowed Native American tribes to open gambling operations, Sandoval was approached by Pan American International, which operated a Seminole bingo hall in Florida at the time, with a proposal to open a bingo hall on Sycuan land.[1] Sandoval then spearheaded the Sycuan Band's transition from poverty. She overcame initial resistance from the Sycuan tribal council regarding the idea of opening a bingo hall on reservation land.[2] Members were concerned about potential pollution and large numbers of people swamping the small reservation.[1]
Sandoval opened the Sycuan Bingo Palace in 1983 after several years of preparation and negotiations.[2] The new operation quickly grossed higher revenues and profits than initially expected.[1][2]
In 1987, Sandoval and the Sycuan Band broke away from Pan American International and began to run the Sycuan Bingo Palace independently.[1] Under Sandoval, the tribe constructed a new 68,000-square-foot (6,300 m2) casino, which opened to the public in 1990.[1] The Sycuan Band used the revenues from the casino to build new facilities on the reservation, including a new fire station, church and clinic.[1] Unemployment, which had been rampant on the reservation before gaming, became nonexistent and the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation became one of the wealthiest tribes in the United States.[1] The Sycuan Band also became one of the largest employers in San Diego County.[1] Likewise, Sandoval became one of the wealthiest Native Americans in California due to the windfall from the casino.[1]
Controversy[]
Despite the new prosperity, Sandoval alienated some Sycuan Band members during her tenure as chairwoman. In 1991, she lost her re-election by just three votes.[1] She later expressed regret that the increased prosperity had come at the expense of traditional Kumeyaay values and culture.[1][2]
Death and legacy[]
Anna Prieto Sandoval died of complications of diabetes at her home on the Sycuan band reservation on October 28, 2010, at the age of 76.[1] She was survived by her brother, George Prieto, and by three sons, Joseph, Raymond and Orlando; fifteen grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.[1] She was predeceased by two daughters, Marquette Riberas and Cheryl Haywood.[2] Most of Sandoval's possessions and clothing were burned in accordance with Kumeyaay traditions.[2]
Honor[]
Anna Prieto Sandoval was nominated and inducted into the San Diego Women's Hall Of Fame in 2010 hosted by , Commission on the Status of Women, University of California, San Diego Women's Center, and San Diego State University Women's Studies.
References[]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Woo, Elaine (2010-11-07). "Anna Prieto Sandoval, 76; Sycuan leader was a pioneer in Indian gaming". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-11-14.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Gonzalez, Blanca (2010-11-01). "Sycuan tribal elder Sandoval dies at 76, The tribal leader was instrumental in bringing gaming to reservation". San Diego Union Tribune. Archived from the original on 2012-10-17. Retrieved 2010-11-14.
External links[]
- 1934 births
- 2010 deaths
- Female Native American leaders
- People of Kumeyaay descent
- 20th-century Native Americans
- San Diego State University faculty
- People from El Cajon, California
- Deaths from diabetes
- 20th-century Native American women