Happy Thanksgiving
A gentle reminder that we are all on native land
Hello from California’s high desert on Thanksgiving Eve. I know I said no newsletter this week, so I will do my best to keep this short and sweet so you can get back to prepping your turkey or sharing a cocktail with friends and family you haven’t seen in a while.
This is the third Thanksgiving I will have spent in the Morongo Basin, and the first with members of my chosen family. I am so incredibly thankful for the science that made our little gathering possible this year and for all their love and kindness during a few trying years. No matter what your situation is this holiday, I am wishing you an extra dose of gratitude and peace.
I am not a Turkey Trot person, although I do enjoy running. Instead, my partner and I tend to head out on a short hike early on Thanksgiving morning. Every year, we participate in a land acknowledgment prior to setting off on the trail. It’s a relatively simple practice where we acknowledge the Indigenous people to whom the land belongs, the history of treaties or battles that stripped Indigenous people of that land, and name living members of tribes as a way to bring in the present. The first time we did this, I relied heavily on a guide from the Native Governance Center to make sure we were mindful of the practice and of the history we wanted to acknowledge. This line, in particular, stood out:
Land acknowledgments shouldn’t be grim. They should function as living celebrations of Indigenous communities. Ask yourself, “How am I leaving Indigenous people in a stronger, more empowered place because of this land acknowledgment?” Focus on the positivity of who Indigenous people are today.
Although I’ve been doing land acknowledgments more and more in my day-to-day outdoor pursuits, it feels like a particularly poignant practice on Thanksgiving. It’s a humbling reminder of what the holiday truly marks and of the struggles Indigenous communities continue to face.
If you also decide to head out on our public lands tomorrow, I ask that you try it out. Feel free to recite this out loud with a group, or just go through it in your head if it feels strange. The more intentional we are with the practice, the easier it becomes.
I am humbled by and grateful for those that taught me this practice. It has completely changed my relationship with the outdoors for the better. I hope it does the same for you.
Here is an example of land acknowledgment for the lands comprising Joshua Tree National Park:
We acknowledge that the land on which we currently occupy is the ancestral home and unceded territory of the Yuhaviatam/ Maarenga’yam people, commonly referred to by their Spanish name “Serrano”, and the Cahuilla people. This land was stolen by Spanish, Mexican, and then American profiteers through acts of forced servitude, genocide, and deceit.
As outdoor recreationists, we acknowledge that we actively benefit from the ongoing system of settler colonialism, which includes the genocide waged against the Serrano people and the theft of their land.
This acknowledgment is a necessary, however small, component of a much larger effort towards collectively building a world where a better relationship is possible.
We continually ask ourselves: “What does it mean to occupy and benefit from stolen land? How do we come into the right relationship to this land and to its people?”
We feel it is our obligation as a guest to this land to listen to Native voices, in the spirit of building an ongoing, accountable relationship.
The Serrano and Cahuilla people are still here. They continue to act as stewards to the land, as they always have. We are committed to uplifting them and their work.
That’s it for this week. I hope you have a wonderful holiday and get a chance to acknowledge the land around you while getting outside.
- Megan