If your organization or group is early in the process of implementing decolonial practices, we recommend that you consider developing a statement of place. A statement of place is an expression that recognizes the Indigenous peoples whose traditional and contemporary homelands your organization is located upon. This is different than a land acknowledgement. Many Indigenous and non-Indigenous comrades argue that land acknowledgements can be harmful or performative if not accompanied by tangible action toward decolonization and relationship building with Indigenous groups. Going through the exercise of creating a statement of place will help your organization start to think critically about the land you are on and further research, assessments, and action plans needed to create meaningful change toward decolonization.
Developing a statement of place can help you and your organization research and start using Indigenous place names and names that Indigenous groups call themselves. You will notice in our statements of place, Tracy Aviary uses local Indigenous place names to refer to the land and waters of the region wherein we are located. We also choose to use the names that Indigenous peoples refer to themselves by instead of the colonial versions of these names (for example, Núuchiu instead of Ute.) This is another way that we aim to show respect for the Elder peoples of this place and the languages they use to relate to each other and the more-than-human world. Knowing the Indigenous names of the places and peoples around you can help you and your organization develop nuance around the statement(s) of place you decide to use at specific events, locations, and contexts.
You can read our Toward a Land Acknowledgement blog post to find our statement of place and why we’ve chosen to write this instead of a land acknowledgement at this current time.
Tracy Aviary’s former Director of Culture, Arcia Tecun, has developed these statement of place guidelines for personal and organizational use. These variations on statements of place can be used permanently around your organization, spoken at specific events, and used for staff to reflect on their personal relations and responsibilities to this place and its first peoples.
TRACY AVIARY STATEMENT OF PLACE
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