The following letter was published in this week’s issue of the Gazette.
To the editor:
Today we are spending a lot of time reviewing our history and how we are the beneficiaries of that shameful past. What we are not spending any time on is specific steps to atone for our shame.
“Returning the Gouveia property to its rightful owners will not be anywhere near full compensation for the injustice of the past, but it is a start. By giving Gouveia to the Shinnecock, both the taxpayers of Croton and the Shinnecock will come out winners.”
As the Village of Croton Board of Trustees noted in the June 15 resolution, all of us are living on lands which once belonged to a branch of the Algonquin tribe. For a brief period of time last year, here in Westchester had a fad whereby at the start of a meeting, the first speaker would ask if there were any Lenape “elders” who objected to us speaking. The trend faded in part because there are no nearby Lenape, elder or otherwise. I have a modest proposal to address at least this particular collective shortcoming.
There are branches of the Algonquin tribe which remain in New York State, including the Shinnecock on Long Island. As partial reparations, the Village of Croton could return Gouveia Park to the Shinnecock, as successors-in-interest of the native peoples whose land was stolen to create Croton.
We were told that the “natural amphitheater” of Gouveia would be a place for concerts and poetry readings, but the Board of Trustees has been unable to persuade anyone to appear, despite the best efforts of the village’s event marketing team. Even Charlie Puth won’t consider a concert, and he is jobless. But the Shinnecock are interested in expanding their revenue sources, and in negotiations with Andrew Cuomo for a casino permit. Using the Gouveia house as a casino plus the outdoor “natural amphitheater” for concerts has a chance of success. We still won’t get Beyonce, but Charlie Puth would be in reach. Given a choice between Charlie Puth and a poetry reading, it is a close call. But you take what you can get.
The Shinnecock are also good at marketing, and the Shinnecock Smoke Shop is a major destination on Long Island. That suggests that a similar operation on the Gouveia property (renamed, of course) would draw economic activity to Croton and the surrounding area.
Returning the Gouveia property to its rightful owners will not be anywhere near full compensation for the injustice of the past, but it is a start. By giving Gouveia to the Shinnecock, both the taxpayers of Croton and the Shinnecock will come out winners.
Paul Steinberg