The Rainbow Family has made a last-minute change of plans for its 2024 gathering, moving it from Modoc County to Plumas County following opposition from the Susanville Indian Rancheria.
The event, which could atract thousands of visitors, was originally planned for a location in the Warner Mountains in Modoc County. It was moved June 17 to a site near Antelope Lake on Plumas National Forest land.
U.S. Forest Service and Plumas County Sheriff’s Office officials are gearing up for an influx of people in early July.
Since 1972, the Rainbow Family of Living Light has been staging annual gatherings on national forest land. They have been attended by as many as 10,000 followers from throughout the United States and other countries. The loose-knit group has congregated and camped each year at a different location during the first week of July.
This year’s gathering is expected to draw about 10,000 visitors to the area, according to the Forest Service.
The move to Antelope Lake followed a June 14 letter to event organizers from Susanville Rancheria Tribal Vice Chairman Robert Joseph. “The Susanville Indian Rancheria does not support this gathering taking place within our ancestral lands, which overlap Lassen, Plumas and Modoc counties,” Joseph said. He cited the rancheria’s highest priority: protection of the area’s cultural and religious resources.
In response, on June 17 organizers announced plans to move the event to a location about 5 miles north of Antelope Lake on the Mount Hough Ranger District of the Plumas National Forest. The Forest Service considers this event an unauthorized noncommercial group use. A special use permit is required for any gathering of 75 or more people on national forest land, a Forest Service press release stated.
In the past, the gathering’s organizers have consistently ignored the requirement, claiming they have no leaders, and therefore no one can sign a permit on behalf of the group.
While the Rainbow Family claims to promote peace, stewardship of the land, sustainable living, and respect for Native American traditions, their gatherings have often not lived up to those ideals. Over the years, organizers have been accused of cultural appropriation in the form of faux-Native American rituals conducted at the event. There have been reports of unauthorized fires, damage to forest environments including diversion of streams and trampling of flora, and debris left behind, including abandoned vehicles. Nearby communities have noticed increased criminal activity such as theft and occasional violence. At last year’s gathering in the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire, the forest service issued 116 citations including 56 for drug offenses.
The 2024 gathering at Antelope Lake is opposed by the Pit River tribe. In 2004, the Rainbow Family descended upon the ancestral territory of the Hammawi Band of Pit River, in Modoc County, causing damage to sensitive cultural sites, while blatantly disregarding appointed Pit River delegates, said Yatch Bamford, Pit River tribal chairman. Other Native American groups have opposed gatherings in the Black Hills of South Dakota.
Past experience has led to local concern regarding this year’s gathering. The Plumas County Sheriff’s Office has committed to a substantial law enforcement presence in collaboration with state and federal partners. In a press release, PCSO encouraged participants to “respect our community, residences and local businesses. Any unlawful activities that cause harm or damage will result in appropriate law enforcement action.”
U.S. Forest Service Public Information Officer Hilary Markin said a 65-member incident management team has arrived in the area and is getting set up to coordinate responses to any issues. Officials are tentatively planning a public meeting for the evening of Tuesday, June 25.
“We’ve been hearing from a few concerned citizens, and we’d love to help them feel a little better about this incident and our response to it,” Markin said.
More information about the Rainbow Family gathering is available on the Forest Service website.
To ask questions or express concerns, call the USFS public information line at 530-638-2214 or send an email to [email protected].