Starting at the Beginning - Why You Should Have A Land Acknowledgement
In 2019, I was invited by the Education Director of a local art museum to attend a sensitivity training for interpreting Indiginous art. The museum was about to open a gorgeous exhibit of art by Indigenous female artists, and they hosted the training specifically for their volunteer docents. Graciously, they invited staff from museums across the city to participate, as well.
It was a wonderful learning experience for me and it was the first time I had heard of land acknowledgements. Tragically, Indigenous culture was all but extinguished in Tennessee by the early 19th century because of colonizing settlers, unfair and manipulative treaties, and of course, ultimately because of federal removal policies in the 1830s. The result of these actions reverberates to today; there are no state or federal services, recognized lands, or representation of native people in a state whose very name is an Indigenous word, Tennessee.
Consequently, for someone who is not a part of Indigenous culture, I didn’t know what I didn’t know. I didn’t know anything about land acknowledgements.
What is a Land Acknowledgement
At its most basic, a land acknowledgment is a simple statement that intentionally voices the recognition that the land you are literally standing on was once occupied by someone else. From what I understand, land acknowledgments are more common in New Zealand, Australia, and Canada. Native tribes living in the United States also use them, and there is a growing movement in the U.S. to encourage cultural institutions, businesses, and individuals to utilize land acknowledgements, as well.
Land acknowledgements often contain some or all of the following elements:
Formal acknowledgement and naming of the tribes who lived on a specific area of land
Recognition that these tribes had a caring relationship with the land
Recognition that Native tribes no longer live on a specific area of land due to colonization, violence, and forced removal
Honoring the elders - past and present - of the tribes who once lived where you are located
Why A Land Acknowledgement Is Important
“ Acknowledgment is a simple, powerful way of showing respect and a step toward correcting the stories and practices that erase Indigenous people’s history and culture and toward inviting and honoring the truth. Imagine this practice widely adopted: imagine cultural venues, classrooms, conference settings, places of worship, sports stadiums, and town halls, acknowledging traditional lands. Millions would be exposed—many for the first time—to the names of the traditional Indigenous inhabitants of the lands they are on, inspiring them to ongoing awareness and action.
”
In offering a land acknowledgement, you are performing several actions at once:
Shifting power dynamics by naming and honoring voices that have long been silenced in broader American culture
Elevating Indigenous history and culture
Reminding others that Indigenous people are still very much a part of American culture
In short, land acknowledgements are a relatively easy first step toward decolonizing your institution.
How to Write a Land Acknowledgement
There are multiple resources online to help you write your land acknowledgement statement. When crafting a statement for the museum where I work, I relied heavily on the Honor Native Land Guide produced by the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture. They also have a great downloadable set of resources and backgrounds for use in your virtual meetings.
Another valuable resource is the Native Governance Center, a nonprofit organization that serves native nations. Their acknowledgement statement, in particular, is expansive and a great example of the power of words.
I won’t explain all the ins and outs of crafting a statement, because I encourage you to explore the resources linked above, which were written by Native Americans. But, I will offer you my suggestions on going through the process:
Visit the websites listed above and spend some time reading more about land acknowledgements and their meaning.
Do the research. Learn the names of the tribes who lived on the land where your institution is located and how to pronounce them. Are there tribes or organizations that support Indigenous people near you?
Do not ask native people groups to do this work for you. If you feel you need to reach out for assistance, make sure you’ve budgeted to pay consulting fees. Do not expect someone else to do your emotional work for free.
Make sure you have buy-in from other departments and administration at your institution. If you don’t already have it, get your thoughts and research together to explain to them why you need a land acknowledgement.
Expect to spend some time crafting this statement, but don’t agonize over it. Using well done examples, particularly those in the Honor Native Land Guide, make this process fairly painless.
What To Do With a Land Acknowledgment
Once you have a land acknowledgment written, use it. Your statement should be placed where visitors can see it; it should be repeated on every tour. Depending on the structure of your institution, this step may take longer, but stay passionate. Keep bringing it up in meetings until all roadblocks are removed.
At my institution, we have two statements. Our Land Acknowledgement Statement, which acknowledges and pays respect to the tribal nations who called Tennessee their home, is printed in our Visitor’s Guide, and is verbally included in our guided tours and education programs. Additionally, we have an expanded statement, which more explicitly recognizes the complicated legacies of violence, migration, enslavement, removal, and colonization that affect us all. The expanded statement is displayed alongside our mission statement on our website and is printed on an interpretative panel on our site.
Going Beyond a Land Acknowledgement
A word of caution: Don’t let having a land acknowledgement statement make you complacent. This step is a good one - and one that I believe all institutions, organizations, and businesses should take - but it is only one small step. Really, it doesn’t take a lot to craft a statement. I challenge you to not let the statement become just a bunch of words.
Seek out organizations that work with Native people in your area. (For anyone in Tennessee, check out the Native American Indian Association of Tennessee.) Follow these organizations on social media, and go to their events. Do some research and find out how your organization can support them. Consider what you can do to make your site more welcoming to Indigenous people. A good place to begin as you think through this topic is to read the book Decolonizing Museums, by Amy Lonetree. Or, if you want a quicker intro into what decolonizing looks like in the museum setting, see the article “What Does It Mean to Decolonize a Museum,” published on MuseumNext’s website in May 2021.
At the heart of it all, land acknowledgements are an opportunity to push back against the forced silence and invisibility of native history and culture. They invite the possibility of deeper, more complex conversations about the treatment of Indigenous people by Europeans and their descendants. In short, land acknowledgements are an important first step in creating a space that is welcoming and open.
