DECOLONIZATION & RECIPROCITY WORKING GROUP

What is the Decolonization and Reciprocity Working Group?

Hampshire College recognizes that it was founded and operates on the ancestral homelands of the Nonotuck Peoples. Over more than 400 years of colonization, this Indigenous Nation was decimated and its people were violently displaced from these lands. We acknowledge that, as an institution, we continue to benefit from and participate in ongoing settler colonialism. In response, we commit to contributing concretely to decolonization and to cultivating right and reciprocal relationships with Indigenous Nations and Peoples locally, regionally, and beyond.

The Decolonization and Reciprocity Working Group is charged with stewarding this commitment by cultivating right and reciprocal relationships with Indigenous Nations and Peoples, particularly at the local and regional levels, on behalf of the College. These relationships are grounded in a set of institutional responsibilities and commitments that are responsive to the needs, desires, and visions articulated by our Indigenous partners. We understand that this work is long-term and relational, requiring sustained commitment, accountability, and care over time.

Since 2024, we have been in relationship with the Hassanamisco Nipmuc Band, a state-recognized Tribe in Massachusetts. The Nipmuc people have lived in relationship with these lands for millennia and continue to maintain and reclaim deep kinship ties to them today. 

Our work is guided by a shared understanding of decolonization and reciprocity, as well as a set of guiding principles and vision, which you can learn more about here.

Transformational Goals 

We have articulated five transformational goals that Hampshire College can work toward over time through the implementation of concrete actions. Together, these goals lay the foundation for cultivating right and reciprocal relationships with the Indigneous Nations whose have ancestral ties to the land the College is situated on, and with Indigenous Peoples locally, regionally, and globally.

Educate Ourselves & Each Other

Provide meaningful and ongoing educational opportunities for all students and community members to learn about Indigeneity, colonization and decolonization, local Indigenous history and ongoing presence, and Indigenous perspectives on land and land stewardship. This includes creating opportunities for our campus community to reflect on and reckon with our own entitlement, positionality, power, and privilege and to examine what brings us to this work.

Create Conditions for Indigenous Students to Thrive

Ensure that Indigenous students, and all BIPOC students, have the resources, support, and community necessary to thrive at Hampshire College.

Living Land Acknowledgement

Adopt and sustain an official, living land acknowledgement grounded in concrete actions the College is taking and is prepared to take to contribute to decolonization, Indigenous sovereignty, and right relationship with the Indigenous Peoples whose lands we are on.

Cultivate Right Relations with Indigenous Partners

Cultivate right and reciprocal relationships with Nipmuc people and with other Indigenous communities locally, regionally, and globally, grounded in accountability to their articulated needs, visions, and leadership.

Rematriation & Land Stewardship

Advance pathways toward rematriation and Indigenous-led land stewardship in relationship with Nipmuc people, particularly the Hassanamisco Nipmuc Band, who have close kinship ties to these lands. This includes land return, long-term access, cultural easements, and shared stewardship models, guided by Indigenous knowledge and leadership to ensure the wellbeing of these lands for the next seven generations.