#landacknowledgment — Public Fediverse posts

It's been almost a year since I made my #LandAcknowledgment action plan and so much has happened in this time. Here is an update...

1. Starting in 2024, I will make an annual donation to The SPACE, which is a Chumash-run organization working to share their culture through education and art with all people.
--> ✅

2. I will contact the Wishtoyo #Chumash Foundation fall 2025 to see if I can join their environmental restoration efforts
--> ✅ but no response so I talked with Mia Lopez about whether there are such opportunities. She said there will be when the Dos Pueblos Ranch acquisition goes through (https://northernchumash.org/dos-pueblos/)

3. I will contact UCSB in fall 2025 to see what actions they are taking/planning to take to build relationships with Chumash people and reconnect them with their land
--> ✅ but no responses from Chancellors Yang or Assanis

#LandAcknowledgment
Before and during this process, and currently, I feel very uncomfortable and scared that I am doing something wrong or that I am going to do something wrong or that I have already done something wrong. I’m sure I’m not doing this perfectly, but it is of utmost importance to me that I try. And this is me trying. I remember reading somewhere (I forget where) that, when taking #antiracist action, if you aren’t uncomfortable, you aren’t doing it right
[12/n]

#LandAcknowledgment
Thank you Mia and Alison!

Because I used sections of text from Land Acknowledgements that Mia Lopez (https://www.sunan-the-space.org/team) wrote, I wrote to Mia and received permission to use this text in this way. Mia is a wealth of wisdom and an inspiration, and I am really excited to be communicating with her!

The first paragraph of the Land Acknowledgement is based on text in Alison Ledgerwood’s (https://www.alisonledgerwood.com) email signature, which I found inspiring. I love how she acknowledged her position as a settler, that she is taking action, and she encouraged others to take that specific action as well (it makes it easy for people to act). I wrote to Alison and obtained permission to adapt her text in this way, and it resulted in a great connection!
[11/n]

#LandAcknowledgment STEP 3: RESEARCH

I have been learning about Chumash history online, at an Indigenous Artisan Market organized by The SPACE (https://www.sunan-the-space.org), and at an Indigenous DNA: Decolonize Native Art show (https://www.instagram.com/decolonized_native_art/). Through these events, I have had the privilege of meeting some prominent Chumash people and I am learning about the projects they are working on and what is important to them

https://nativegov.org/news/a-self-assessment/
[10/n]

#LandAcknowledgment STEP 2: I did a RESOURCE ASSESSMENT
https://nativegov.org/news/a-self-assessment/

#ACTION: I determined that I can (and I do) donate MONEY to an Indigenous organization. I'm currently supporting The SPACE (https://www.sunan-the-space.org/).

#ACTION: I have TIME to volunteer on environmental restoration projects, and I will contact the Wishtoyo Chumash Foundation this fall to see about joining their efforts (https://www.wishtoyo.org/volunteer), and see if The SPACE knows of any volunteer opportunities.

I am not registered to vote in California so I don’t have political power there, and there is no voluntary land tax in place in the area, so that isn’t an option at this time.

#ACTION: I do have MY RESEARCH that I can share - site visits to meet the grackles and I could give talks on what I am learning about this species. I will talk to The SPACE about this.
[9/n]

#LandAcknowledgment STEP 1: #6 FOR UNIVERSITIES: ARE YOU IGNORING HOW YOUR INSTITUTION HAS HARMED AND CONTINUES TO HARM INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES?
...continued...

I like the Associated Students of UCSB External Affairs Committee’s land acknowledgment (which includes a map; https://external.as.ucsb.edu/land-acknowledgment/). However, I do not see what actions UCSB is taking to build relationships with Chumash people and reconnect them with their land.

#ACTION: I emailed UCSB’s president to ask what actions they are taking, and I made suggestions (waive tuition for Indigenous students, and give land back). I haven’t yet heard back, but I am hopeful.
[8/n]

#LandAcknowledgment STEP 1: #6 FOR UNIVERSITIES: ARE YOU IGNORING HOW YOUR INSTITUTION HAS HARMED AND CONTINUES TO HARM INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES?
(cont.)

#ACTION: Tailoring UCSB’s Acknowledgment of Country to me would look something like this:

My name is Corina Logan and I am a UK, Irish, and French settler who grew up on the Salish Sea on dxʷlilap (Tulalip) and stuləgʷábš (Stillaguamish) ancestral lands. I would like to acknowledge that we are on land that was stolen from the Chumash Nations. I would like to pay my respect to the Chumash people, past, present, and future, for they hold the memories, the traditions, and the culture of this area. As part of my ongoing work to acknowledge the history of this land and my relation to it as a settler, I'm currently supporting The SPACE (https://www.sunan-the-space.org/), which is an amazing, Chumash-run organization that is bringing communities together. I encourage you to join me by donating and sharing this information with your networks
[7/n]

#LandAcknowledgment STEP 1: #6 FOR UNIVERSITIES: ARE YOU IGNORING HOW YOUR INSTITUTION HAS HARMED AND CONTINUES TO HARM INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES?

I'm affiliated with the University of California Santa Barbara & they are learning about & bringing awareness to their impact on Indigenous Nations through a statement on UCSB Guidelines & Protocols for Welcome to Country & Acknowledgement of People & Country https://dsp.sa.ucsb.edu/sites/default/files/2020-09/Chumash%20acknowledgement%20protocols.pdf

I learned that, if I host an event or give a talk, I should do an Acknowledgment of People and Country at the beginning. UCSB recommends that, if an Elder or a person of the land is present, then they would do a Welcome to Country.

However, the Native Governance Center advises against asking someone from a Native Nation to give a welcome. They refer to Cantemaza McKay's (Spirit Lake Nation) comment starting at 27 min and 38 sec at https://youtu.be/5atUxNB2l3M?feature=shared
https://nativegov.org/resources/a-guide-to-indigenous-land-acknowledgment
[6/n]

#LandAcknowledgment STEP 1: #4 ARE YOU PUTTING NATIVE COMMUNITIES AT RISK WHILE ON VACATION?
This is regarding COVID-19 exposure. I wear a mask if inside public spaces for more than 15 minutes, and I don’t leave the house if I am ill, so the exposure risk for others is extremely low

#LandAcknowledgment STEP 1: #5 ARE YOU ADVENTURING RESPONSIBLY?
“[…] consider whether your planned itinerary respects Indigenous sacred sites and Native nations’ sovereignty.” https://nativegov.org/news/a-self-assessment

Thanks to John Khus (https://www.instagram.com/john.khus/), I'm learning about Chumash sacred sites in Šmuwič (Santa Barbara, CA). They are either not marked by the colonizers as being a sacred site, or were only recently marked

#ACTION: Now that I know about these sites, I can try to help protect them. I'm going to be an environmental restoration volunteer at one of the sites for the SB Botanic Garden. I just asked UCSB president to consider giving land for the other site back to the Chumash
[5/n]

#LandAcknowledgment STEP 1: #3 ARE YOU VOTING AGAINST INDIAN COUNTRY?
https://nativegov.org/news/a-self-assessment/

I don’t vote for politicians if I know they disrespect Indigenous rights (as indicated by language in their statements, websites, and news articles).

#ACTION: I learned there is more I can do to determine a political candidate’s position on things that are important to Native nations, including researching
“What issues are important to the Native nations near you?
Does your candidate have a platform on Indigenous issues?
Can you identify any news articles mentioning that person’s interaction with Native nations?
If you can’t find that information, ask them! And, for lawmakers already in office, check their voting record. How does their voting record align with Native nations’ priorities?”
[4/n]

#LandAcknowledgment STEP 1: #2 ARE YOU HIRING NATIVE ARTISTS AND ENTREPRENEURS?
https://nativegov.org/news/a-self-assessment/

I don’t often have occasion to hire artists, and, when I did, the designer I went with was not white and from an underrepresented country in Europe (I was based in Europe at the time).

Perhaps hiring research assistants and postdocs counts as hiring entrepreneurs? If so, I've sought out Native researchers to fill these roles by advertising the positions at Indigenous-led places (e.g., Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science) and offering positions first to my non-white undergraduate assistants. Even so, I was only able to hire 2 (out of 13 people) who were not white. I have had many discussions with people about what else I can do to reach out and make positions more attractive to people who are traditionally underrepresented in academia, and I have tried many strategies. I’m still learning and looking for ways to be more effective
[3/n]

#LandAcknowledgment STEP 1:
I did a SELF ASSESSMENT & learned lots about myself
https://nativegov.org/news/a-self-assessment

#1 ARE YOU APPROPRIATING NATIVE CULTURE?
I did some research and I don’t think I'm appropriating Native culture. I buy & wear clothing, jewelry, & more from Trickster Company, which is owned by two indigenous designers

Trickster says “We hope to provide products which act as cultural objects which modern indigenous people can represent their heritage, create products that non-native people can wear and appreciate without appropriating via cultural exchange, and to represent modern indigenous lifestyle to a broader audience” https://trickstercompany.com/pages/about-us

[2/n]

I just finished putting together my #LandAcknowledgement, which is also an action plan because of what I learned at the Native Governance Center (https://nativegov.org/news/beyond-land-acknowledgment-guide/).

A quote by the Wishtoyo Chumash Foundation gives me hope that my actions might make a difference: “Any action we take has the potential to ripple out and affect so many others, through time, without us ever even being aware of it.” https://www.wishtoyo.org/first-nations-ecological-conservation-alliance

The #LandAcknowledgment & Action Plan are at my website: http://corinalogan.com (scroll down). It will also go in my articles that use data from this population of grackles.

It took lots of learning to get to the point of having a finished statement. I share my process here in the hopes that it inspires you to do this as well!

My process...I read about #LandAcknowledgments & saw examples. I like the Native Governance Center's advice, so I followed their steps
https://nativegov.org/news/beyond-land-acknowledgment-guide
[1/n]

@universalhub closed meeting notice 1 day before rubber stamp by Town of #LincolnMA #ConCom. Note the empty #LandAcknowledgment

«Land Acknowledgments have a cynical tone. White Canadians acknowledge that it is not their land, but they refuse to give it back.» -- Indigenous Rights Lawyer Nadir André in an article by Susanna Petrin in today's NZZ: https://www.nzz.ch/feuilleton/land-acknowledgment-ist-im-trend-ld.1757408 #Canada #FirstNation #LandAcknowledgment

I live on the stolen ancestral territory of the Anishinaabeg and the Haudenosaunee. This land is being systematically destroyed by settlers who do not respect the land, the people, or the treaties. It is all of our responsibility to protect this land and water for all our relations who share it with us, as well as for future generations. When habitat is destroyed, the future is stolen from our descendants. #LandAcknowledgment #LandAcknowledgement #LandBack #Indigenous

During a land acknowledgment at a writing workshop yesterday, there was mention of Indigenous Peoples as “Canada’s original storytellers.” That irked me, as Indigenous Peoples predate Canada and are not, and never will be, owned by a colonial nation. #LandAcknowledgment #Indigenous #Storytelling #Storytellers #Storyteller #colonialism