Tongva Tribe Calls Out Billie Eilish Over ‘Stolen Land’ Remarks
The Native American tribe whose ancestral territory includes the land beneath Billie Eilish’s multimillion-dollar Los Angeles mansion says celebrities should be more precise if they want to invoke Indigenous history for moral statements.
The Tongva tribe confirmed that the “Bad Guy” singer’s $3 million home is located on its ancestral land after the 24-year-old artist used her Grammys acceptance speech to criticize ICE and declare that “no one is illegal on stolen land.”
Known as the “First Angelenos,” the Indigenous people of the Los Angeles Basin said they appreciate the sentiment behind Eilish’s remarks. However, they noted that she has never reached out to them directly and said public figures should explicitly acknowledge the tribe by name.
“Eilish has not contacted our tribe directly regarding her property, we do value the instance when public figures provide visibility to the true history of this country,” a Tongva spokesperson told the Daily Mail.
“It is our hope that in future discussions, the tribe can explicitly be referenced to ensure the public understands that the greater Los Angeles Basin remains Gabrieleno Tongva territory,” the spokesperson added.
Eilish faced widespread ridicule following her comments on Sunday, when she shouted, “F–k ICE” from the stage while condemning the United States as land taken from Indigenous people.
“Oh, gee, this ‘stolen land’ nonsense again? Maybe she should step up and forfeit her Southern California mansion since it is supposedly on ‘stolen land,’” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis wrote on X.
“Any white person who does a public ‘stolen land’ acknowledgement should immediately give his or her land to native Americans. Otherwise they don’t mean it. Also, I’m pretty sure they don’t mean it,” wrote Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) on X.
“A gentle reminder that Billie Eilish, worth $50 million, has given $0.00 to the original inhabitants of this ‘stolen land,’” independent journalist Manny Marotta posted on X.
