Last year, Highland assemblymember James Ramos hadhis bill AB-855 signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom. The law established that every fourth Friday of September would be recognized as California Native American Day and be a paid holiday for all statewide court employees.
"Being a paid holiday is the significance," said assemblymember Ramos. In 2018, Ramos became the first Native American to ever serve in the California state assembly.
"California (Native American) Day was celebrated on Indian reservations, but it wasn't until 1998 that a piece of legislation that I actually lobbied... brought California Native American Day out into the academia world for schools to start to focus on the true history and culture of California's first people."
While all California court employees will be paid for today, it is currently not a paid holiday for any other state employees. Ramos hopes that will change."We're calling on other areas in the state of California. Other areas that have paid holidays, that maybe they now could honor California as a paid holiday to let their workers be able to go home in honor of California's first people and to learn about the true factual sights and sounds of the people of the state of California."
In exchange for adding California Native American Day as a paid holiday, the state court system no longer recognizes Columbus Day.
