Palm Springs Section 14 prayer vigil: 'We are gathered here tonight to start that healing process'

About 200 people gathered in Palm Springs on Saturday to pray for unity, justice and healing for those with ties to the forceful evictions from Section 14 in the 1960s.

The event was held at Frances Stevens Park and organized by Section 14 Survivors — a group of about 415 people who lived on Section 14 during the time of the evictions and their descendants — that is currently advocating for the city to compensate them for the trauma and losses that resulted from the evictions.

Between 1930 and 1965, Section 14 was property owned by members of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, and was home to many Black, Hispanic, Indigenous and other minority residents. And after changes in federal law allowed for longer-term leases of tribal land, the City of Palm Springs facilitated the eviction of Section 14 residents, which lead to the destruction of homes and personal property so the property could be developed commercially. Many residents reported that they were given little or no notice before their homes were burned.

Other residents, however, including some former city leaders, have disputed that claim and say the evictions were a necessary step to bring sovereignty over the land to the tribe and note that the city has never been found to have done anything illegal with regard to the evictions. Still, they generally acknowledge that the evictions caused pain and hurt for those evicted.

About two dozen people who said they once lived on Section 14, who refer to themselves as survivors, attended the event along with many more descendants and supporters. Pearl Devers, founder of the group, said it was the first time there has ever been such a reunion of survivors and descendants since the evictions, which saw many families relocate out of the city.

"Hello family," said Betty Mayfield-Taylor, who lived on Section 14 as a child and spoke during the event. "I tell everybody we were having a reunion here in Palm Springs... It is so good to be home; it is so good to see home."

Among the speakers during the roughly 90-minute program was Areva Martin, a Los Angeles attorney who recently joined the legal team that has been hired by the Section 14 Survivors to help it seek compensation from the city.

A proposal outlined in a letter sent to the city in August by attorneys for the group calls for the city to provide $100 million in direct compensation for people who can prove they lived on Section 14, plus other benefits for descendants, including down payment assistance for houses and $5 million for higher education scholarships.

"I've personally witnessed the traumatic injuries that continue to fester and ate because these families were robbed, robbed of an opportunity to address their trauma and to heal," Martin said. "We are gathered here tonight to start that healing process."

She also pledged that the story of atrocities that happened in this community "will not remain a secret for long."

Kavon Ward, founder of an organization called Where Is My Land that advocates for the return of lands to Black people that has also joined the reparations effort, said that the survivors group would not stop until justice was served and called on people to join the movement.

"Don't just talk about the movement, join the movement, boots on the ground, get the justice that these descendants and survivors deserve," she said.

Devers discussed the impact the eviction had on her father, who he said became an alcoholic and "was literally destroyed" after the family was pushed off Section 14.

"Every survivor out there has a story..." Devers said. "We will hear your story, your story will be told."

City Councilmember Grace Garner, whose district includes the Desert Highland Gateway Estates neighborhood where many families with ties to Section 14 now live, also spoke. She said it was a great honor to serve as part of the council that gave a formal apology for the forced Section 14 evictions last year.

In September 2021, the council voted unanimously to issue a formal apology for the city's role in the evictions.

“As a ceremonial mayor of the city of Palm Springs in 2021, I truly apologize for those actions. They were wrong then, they are wrong now, they created devastation in our community and different outcomes for the Black community and Latino community that still exist today, and segregation that still exists today," then-Mayor Christy Holstege said of the Section 14 evictions at that 2021 meeting.

"I told you then and I will tell you all now we don't need or deserve a thanks," Garner said. "This conversation is just beginning; there is so much more for us to do for the descendants and survivors of Section 14."

She added that she looked forward to being a part of city efforts "to do everything we can to make amends."

The event concluded with the crowd linking arms while a minister read a prayer.

Martin said the event had originally been conceived as a protest but was later changed to a unity rally and vigil.

"I wanted to start the healing process and in the Black and brown community faith is so important and prayer is so important so what better way to start that process," she said.

Tomeeka Grizzell, a member of the survivor's group's board whose grandparents lived on Section 14 before moving to the Lawrence Crossley neighborhood, said it was amazing to see so many people at event, which she noted was very peaceful.

More: Palm Springs native to examine history of discrimination in the city in talk at art museum

"It was nothing but love here," she said. "[My] appreciation to the city of Palm Springs to hearing everybody out even all these years later."

Just as the concluding prayer ended, a Desert Hot Springs woman who goes by the name "Team Mom" let out a loud plea:

"When you all leave here don't forget you heard...," she yelled. "Keep this on your heart, take it home with you. Don't forget about the survivors."

Paul Albani-Burgio covers breaking news and the City of Palm Springs. Follow him on Twitter at @albaniburgiop and via email at paul.albani-burgio@desertsun.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: 200 gather at Section 14 rally and prayer vigil in Palm Springs