Agua Caliente exhibit opens at the Smithsonian

Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians Tribal Chairman Jeff Grubbe and the tribal council traveled to Washington D.C. for the official reveal at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American-Indian.

​​​​​​The exhibit, “Section 14: The Other Palm Springs, California,” tells the story of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians’ work for justice and rights to their land. The title refers to the square-mile section of land that forms the heart of the tribe’s reservation. The exhibit chronicles the lives life experiences of the people who lived on this historic track, especially during the pivotal decades from the 1940s through 1960s.

The museum says that the exhibit “exposes a compelling story in the battle for tribal rights and exemplifies the long and ongoing conflict in the west between non-Indian economic ambitions and the rights and authorities of the Indian nations.”

The exhibit will be open until January 2020.