Week 2
Land Acknowledgements
Embedded Files
Last week, you recevied a very brief overlook of how the University acquired the lands it currently resides on and how the stories from Native and Indigenous people complicates how Western thought may perceive the history and formation of the University.
The University has made several attemtps to mediate its relationship with Native and Indigenous populations in Minnesota. This week, we will touch on one of them: land acknowledgements. Read the content for this week and complete the assignment. This week, you are given two options: online or in-person.
To offer a little refresher on land-grant institutions and the Morrill Act, this MN Daily article should help think about those topics along with a brief history of what the University is doing to "honor and acknowledge American Indian people".
DISCLAIMER: Morrill Hall is not named after the Morrill Act, but rather Justin Smith Morrill.
Since you are recently admitted freshmen, an appropriate land acknowledgment to read is the one provided by the Office of Admissions. Think about what it says and the meaning of what they chose to include and exclude from this statement.
Čhaŋtémaza (Neil McKay) and Monica Siems McKay in this article discuss the University being on stolen land through the treaties discussed and offer their perspective on how the University can potentially move forward from this past.
Option #1
Write a new land acknowledgement that could be used in replacement of the current one that includes information you think is missing. This can include information learned from last week or this week.
Option #2
Write in at least 250 words if the University should continue to use land acknowledgements. Include benefits and drawbacks of land acknowledgements, and use content from the course to back your claim.
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