December 1. 1999
By Mike Fitch, Auburn Journal
Jessica Tavares still isn't comfortable being in the public spotlight.
She's getting used to it, though, because she really doesn't have much choice.
As chairwoman of the United Auburn Indian Community, she has been forced into the spotlight by the tribe's plans for building a 200,000-square-foot gaming casino south of Lincoln.
Critics hate the idea, saying the casino will increase traffic, crime and other problems in neighboring cities such as Lincoln, Roseville, and Rocklin.
Tavares responds by promising the tribe will be a good neighbor, but her resolve to proceed doesn't waver.
The proposed casino is a dream come true for the tribe. It's a chance to escape from decades of poverty, she says.
A Placer native, Tavares grew up on land near the edge of Auburn that used to be the tribe's reservation.
"Growing up was hard because we had very little," she said Tuesday, noting that her childhood home was lightened with kerosene lamps because it had no electricity.
She particularly recalls spending cold winter nights in the family's small poorly insulated house. "Most of the time, it was cold, very cold," she explained.
The hard times she remembers as a child help explain why she believes the casino is so important to her tribe. Even today, children endure similar conditions on the old reservation land.
"My dream is that these children get into safe, warm houses," she explained Tuesday.
Tavares went to Placer High School, but dropped out without graduating. "I made a lot of friends in school," she said, adding that most of her close friends were other tribal members.
She recalled often cutting classes, saying she was a reluctant student partly because she was embarrassed because she didn't have nice clothes. She got married at 16 and was a welfare mother for a while.
She dreamed of having a better house and nice car as most Americans do, but felt as though she was caught between two cultures and really belonged in neither.
To her way of thinking, that feeling helps explain why most of the tribe's approximately 130 adults are poor and the unemployment rate is high. Many don't feel at ease in the white man's world, and escape it by retreating to the old reservation land.
"Sometimes, I feel like it's a prison with no bars," she said.
She became more active in tribal affairs after Congress passed legislation in 1994 that restored federal recognition of the tribe. The legislation also declared that the tribe was eligible for federal trust land somewhere in Placer County.
Tavares said some tribal members misunderstood the intent of the legislation, thinking that it meant local authorities couldn't touch them.
The drive to build a casino has reopened some old wounds between the tribe and the outside world, but Tavares said Tuesday she's confident that many, if not most area residents don't oppose the tribe's plans. They're just not as inclined to speak out publicly as the project's critics are, she said.
The tribe hopes to build its casino in an unincorporated industrial area of the county. Recently, the tribe announced Station Casinos, Inc. of Las Vegas will help finance, build and operate the project.
The tribe also hopes to put about 1,100 acres near Sheridan in federal trust and to build homes for its members there.
Tavares acknowledged she sometimes gets tired of the frustrations and hectic pace that come with being the tribe's chairwoman. She stays because she wants to see the casino project completed.
"I froze when I was growing up," she explained. "I don't want my children freezing to death."
Copyright © 1999, Auburn Journal
