Land Acknowledgment

What is a Land Acknowledgement

A Land Acknowledgement is a formal statement that recognizes and respects Native peoples as traditional stewards of this place. The statement highlights the enduring relationship between Native peoples and their traditional territories.

Why do we Recognize the Land

All land in the State of Connecticut is Indigenous homelands, which is why it is our duty to acknowledge that CREC is existing on Native land. It is important to understand the long-standing history that has brought you to reside here and to seek to understand our place within that history. Land acknowledgments do not exist in the past tense or historical context: settler colonialism is a current ongoing process, and we need to build our mindfulness of our present participation. It is also worth noting that acknowledging the land is Indigenous protocol .

The Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at CREC worked with the Akomawt Educational Initiative to adapt a land acknowledgment that rightfully recognizes the history of the Native peoples territories.

It is important to our office to work with members of the greater Connecticut community to continue our efforts of educating our agency on the value of diversity, equity, and inclusion. This initiative continues to fulfill the mission to continue to build a more welcoming, inclusive, and equitable community.

How to use the Land Acknowledgement

At CREC, the Land Acknowledgement Statement can be read aloud or distributed by anyone who wishes to use it – at public or private events – on any CREC property.

Pronunciations

Golden Hill Paugussett: puh-GUH-set
Hammonasset: HAMM-uhn-ass-eht
Mashantucket: MASH-uhn-tuck-it
Massacoe: MASS-uh-koe
Mohegan: moe-HEE-gihn
Pequot: pee-KWOT
Pocumtuc: POE-cuhm-tuhk
Podunk: POE-dunk
Poquonook: POE-kwah-nuhk
Quinnipiac: KWIH-nee-pee-ack
Schaghticoke: SKA-tih-kohk
Sicoag: SIH-kog
Tunxis: TUNKS-iss
Wangunk: WAYN-gunk

Term Definitions

Federally-Recognized

Student Definition

Tribal Nations that are federally recognized have a relationship with the entire United States government. This relationship means that these Tribal Nations have more control over the rules on their lands, like having their own police. There are also rules from the U.S. government that only apply to these Tribal Nations, like ones that say important cultural items have to be returned to them.

Educator Definition

Tribal Nations that are federally recognized have a relationship with the United State federal government. Most of these Tribal Nations have undergone a recognition process administered by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), though the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina gained federal recognition through an act of Congress. Tribal Nations typically have to prove that they have existed continuously as a polity for a given period of time, often from their first documented interaction with colonial powers. Federally recognized Tribal Nations have their own governments with the authority to determine citizenship and enforce many laws on their reservation. Federal recognition gives Tribal Nations access to grant programs, funding for education, the Indian Health Services, and more. It also means laws such as the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), and Indian Gaming Act apply to these tribes. These laws ensure the return of items of cultural patrimony, protect children eligible for Tribal Citizenship from being removed from their community by social services, and allow Tribal Nations to generate revenue by opening gaming facilities.

State-Recognized

Student Definition

Tribal Nations that are state recognized have a relationship with the government of the state that they are based in, but not with the entire United States government. These Tribal Nations can have rules about how their community works, and can help each other, but they don’t have the power to punish people by putting them in jail for breaking rules. Because they don’t have a relationship with the whole United States governments, the rules that help federally recognized Tribal Nations don’t apply to state recognized Tribal Nations.

Educator Definition

Tribal Nations that are state recognized have a relationship with the government of the state that they are based in, but not with the entire United States government. Different states have different criteria and processes for attaining recognition. State recognized Tribal Nations can determine their internal governance, set their own citizenship criteria, and (depending on the state) own reservation land. They can run community assistance programs, but cannot have their own law enforcement and judicial systems. They are not eligible for funds designated by the U.S. government for federally recognized Tribal Nations, and laws such as NAGPRA, ICWA, and the IGA do not apply to state recognized Tribal Nations.

Lineal Descendant Community

Student Definition

Someone who is a lineal descendant can trace their family tree back to one or more ancestors that were known to be members of a Tribal Nation. Groups of people who have ancestors from the same Tribal Nation can form a community, even if they don’t have their own government or recognition from the state or national government.

Educator Definition

Someone who is a lineal descendant can trace their family tree back to one or more ancestors that were known to be members of a Tribal Nation. Groups of people who have ancestors from the same Tribal Nation can form a community and express their Indigeneity culturally, even if they don’t have their own government or recognition from the state or national government. Lineal Descendant Communities may not be able to prove continuous existence as a political entity, but may now be attempting to reform as a polity. They may be pursuing formal recognition, or reject that framework entirely. Their identity as ethnically Native American people is separate from the legal identity of an Indian person or Tribal Citizen.

Reservation

Student Definition

A reservation is land that is reserved, or put aside, for the use of a Tribal Nation. The land can be owned by the entire Tribal Nation, or protected from sale by the state or national government, with the understanding that the Tribal Nation gets to decide what is done with the land. Tribal Nations that are federally recognized can control many of the laws on their reservation.

Educator Definition

A reservation is land that is reserved, or put aside, for the use of a Tribal Nation. The land can be owned by the entire Tribal Nation, or held in trust by the federal government for that Tribal Nation. Federally recognized Tribal Nations have greater law enforcement authority on their reservations than state recognized Tribal Nations, but there are still limits to their authority.

Sovereignty

Student Definition

The right of a Tribal Nation, or other community with a government, to control their own community. This means that they can decide how their government works, who can be a member of their community, and what rules people in their community have to follow. Sovereignty means that Tribal Nations can have a say in what happens to them, and to their land, in the future. This is sometimes called “self-determination”.

Educator Definition

Many people think of the Westphalian paradigm when they think about sovereignty, which says that each nation-state has exclusive control over its territory and internal affairs, without interference from outside forces. For Tribal Nations, sovereignty is more aligned with the concept of self-determination; it is the right of a Tribal Nation, or other community with a government, to control what happens to their own community. This means that they can determine how their government works, citizenship criteria, and laws. Sovereignty means that Tribal Nations can have a say in what happens to them, and to their land, in the future. However, Tribal Nations recognize that they exist as “domestic dependent nations” within a colonial framework, so they must manage external interference from the United States.

Additional Resources