SACRAMENTO – Assemblywoman Patty Berg is urging the FBI to help find the arsonist who burned down the Karuk Tribe’s sacred dance house, a place of healing and spiritual activity since the 1970s.

Berg, D-Eureka, sent a letter to the FBI’s San Francisco field office, calling for a timely and thorough investigation of the July 2nd blaze, which left little of the Kaatimiin dance house standing.

“We must have justice in this case,” said Berg. “Even if this were only about the structure, it would be a serious crime. But this desecration is about more than logs and planks, it is about a sense of community and about the basic right of all North Coast tribes to live free of fear.”

Yurok and Hoopa tribal members have reportedly offered to help rebuild the structure, which has tentatively been valued at about $50,000.

In her letter to the FBI, Berg wrote of the “devastating impact this crime has had on our community.”

“I was deeply saddened by the desecration of such a notably important cultural site,” she wrote. “Many local Tribes utilized the Karuk sacred dance house in healing ceremonies and have rallied around the Karuk Tribe during this sad ordeal.

“Those responsible for such a demonstration of hate must be arrested and convicted in a timely manner. I ask for the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s involvement to bring a swift and conclusive resolution to this vicious hate crime.”