Land acknowledgments in North America are tools for governments to recognize the contributions of Indigenous peoples and the historical impacts of colonialism, but they require thoughtful finesse and sensitivity to read with sincerity.
The city of Durango is forming a focus group to ensure its land acknowledgment hits the mark, and it’s asking for applicants from the Four Corners to step up.
When former Mayor Barbara Noseworthy was on Durango City Council, she read her own land acknowledgment ahead of city meetings, noting it was her statement and wasn’t a statement by City Council as a whole.
The new land acknowledgment, once implemented, would be deployed across city departments and displayed at parks, trails and other open spaces around the city, according to a city news release published Wednesday.
The city’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion cross-functional team has been hard at work behind the scenes this year contacting nearly 30 regional Indigenous tribes for consultation about what a land acknowledgment should include and how it should be presented.
Now, the city seeks the feedback of draft acknowledgments from community members via a focus group. The DEI team will evaluate applicants, the release says.
Klancy Nixon, Durango Community Engagement specialist, said she is excited to hear from community members with various lived experience and expertise to guide the focus group.
“Focus groups are a great option in our community engagement tool kit to have a more in-depth, honest and objective conversation, especially with topics that may evoke an emotional response,” she said in the release.
DEI team member Kyle Dellamora said the team’s work this year has “sparked conversations” and made connections with several regional tribes.
“We look forward to learning more as the process continues,” she said.
Applicants to the focus group will be evaluated based on several criteria:
- Is the applicant a current Native American tribal member?
- Does the applicant possess professional knowledge of historical land use?
- Is the applicant a full-time resident of the Four Corners?
- Does the applicant have a background in social justice or diversity, equity and inclusion training or work?
- Does the applicant currently work in the tourism industry or otherwise serve visitors?
- Is the applicant currently enrolled at a local college or high school?
Two focus group meetings are scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Feb. 21 and Feb. 28, with a third meeting tentatively scheduled for 5:30 p.m. March 6, the release says.
Those interested can apply online at https://bit.ly/3GVN49q.
cburney@durangoherald.com
A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the city of Durango interviewed nearly 30 tribes. The city contacted nearly 30 tribes for consultation about forming an official Indigenous land acknowledgement for the city.
