User:Hientnguyen/Laura Miranda

Laura Yvonne Miranda (b.1969) is a Native American tribal lawyer dedicated to protecting and advocating for the sovereign rights of California Indian tribes. She is a member of the Pechanga Tribe in southern California.

Miranda specializes in the protection and preservation of Native American cultural resources and sacred places and presently serves as the Vice-Chair of the California Native American Heritage Commission

With a passion for not only preserving her culture, but also celebrating it, Miranda founded Avelaka Design Group, Inc. in 2010, a fashion design company that explores the heritage of indigenous peoples by bringing elements of nature and native cultures into its contemporary women’s clothing collections.

Early Life
Ms. Miranda was born on June 7, 1969 in Hemet, California to Reuben Benjamin Miranda and Sandra Sue Nelson Miranda. Ms. Miranda’s paternal grandmother was Rebecca Monica Contreras (Miranda) from the Contreras/Guavish family of the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians. Ms. Miranda’s mother is of German descent.

As a child Ms. Miranda was a community participant in the Ramona Pageant, the official state play of California depicting the Spanish Rancho era, including the Luiseno Indian community, in the late 1800s.

From the age of 11 through high school Ms. Miranda was a competitive artistic roller skater winning numerous state and national competitions sponsored by the USA Roller Skating Association (USARS)

Ms. Miranda graduated from San Bernardino High School (SBHS) with honors. She then went on to attend the University of California of Los Angeles (UCLA) from 1987-1993 where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy. At UCLA Ms. Miranda was a member of the American Indian Student Association and co-founder of RAIN (Retention of American Indians Now), the first Indian student-run retention program for Native American students in the Country.

Indian Law and Policy Career
Miranda obtained her Juris Doctor from Cornell Law School in 1998.

Ms. Miranda’s career in Indian law and policy actually began with her grass roots work as a student at UCLA where she and other students assisted the local tribes in addressing human rights issues within the UC system. Her efforts were part of a catalyst towards state legislation, AB 2577 (1989-90) and AB 12 (1991-92) by Assemblyman Richard Katz – D Sylmar as well as the establishment of various UCLA UC-wide committees to address these cultural and religious rights issues.

Before attending law school Ms. Miranda continued to cultivate her dedication to human rights issues and government interests by serving as the Coordinator for the City of San Bernardino Human Relations Commission for former Mayor Tom Minor.

Upon graduating from Cornell Law School, Laura continued her community-based work as she began her legal career as an attorney for the California Indian Legal Services(CILS), the first…….representing Indian tribes and Indian individuals in areas such as education, Indian Child Welfare Act, Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, enviromenal laws, and freedom of religion/prisoner's rights matter. The main objective was to provide services for impoverished tribal communities that lacked basics such as health and education.

As Laura's experience grew and the Pechanga Band formed its own legal department, Laura heeded the call to serve her Tribe directly as Deputy General Counsel. A great portion of her work focuses on the Tribe's legislative and government affairs at state and federal levels.

Laura became the key part of the establishment of one of the first Tribal sacred sites protection laws in her County. She represented her Tribe in in the passage of legislation to protect tribal sacred sites from desecration of development and land use planning (SB 18-Burton). As lead counsel for her Tribe, Laura communicated the key issues to legislators, state committees, staff and oppositions. At the time, every lobbying group in Sacramento was against the tribal interests on this issue, but Laura and her Tribe prevailed because of their perseverance and their ability to find creative solutions that worked for all parties involved. Her efforts ultimately led to the passage of the bill and Governer Schwarzeneggar signing it in law in 2004.

In 2008, Laura was a member of the strategic advocacy team for the statewide ballot campaigns in supporting tribal gaming rights and sovereignity.

Fashion Career
In 2010, Laura founded the fashion design company, Avelaka. Avelaka means 'white butterfly' in Luiseno, the language of the Native people of what is now Southern California, of which Laura is a member. Avelaka explores the heritage of all indigenous peoples and the complexity of our shared cultures. Bringing elements of nature and indigenous cultures into its sophisticated pieces. Avelaka has an eye towards capturing and sharing a strong sense of place and self.