Inland Empire

“Inland Empire is a brilliant response to the question: How did architects in Southern California pass off colonial dispossession as technological innovation? A story of Indigenous struggle against settler colonial architecture planning, it will change how we imagine the pristine photogenic modernism of the twentieth century.” - Swati Chattopadhyay, University of California, Santa Barbara

“Inland Empire uniquely and carefully unveils generations of injustices that were waged against the Coachella Valley’s first peoples from an urban planning perspective. This book is an imperative read for all Greater Palm Springs Area natives, residents, and visitors alike as it thoroughly explains how we have gotten to where we are now both socially and environmentally.” - Terria Smith, editor of the magazine News from Native California

“A nuanced, meticulously researched account of the political moves of the Agua Caliente and the challenges they faced from the people and government of Palm Springs and beyond, Inland Empire shatters the pristine, reflective gloss of the quintessential midcentury modern city that sprung up in their homelands. This productive break foregrounds the longer Native architectural traditions against which that modern aesthetic took shape and exposes the settler colonial imagination that elevated the prefabricated single-family home, the national steel industry, and all-white suburbs during the era of redlining.” - K-Sue Park, Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law