Land Acknowledgment

We collectively acknowledge that our buildings in the Duluth Public Schools are located on the traditional, ancestral, and contemporary lands of Indigenous people. Our school buildings reside on land that was cared for and called home by the Ojibwe people, before them the Dakota and Northern Cheyenne people, and other Native peoples from time immemorial. Ceded by the Ojibwe in an 1854 treaty, this land holds great historical, spiritual, and personal significance for its original stewards, the Native nations and peoples of this region. We recognize and continually support and advocate for the sovereignty of the Native nations in this territory and beyond. 

We recognize the land we are on was forcibly taken by the U.S. government and acknowledge the deliberate actions of generations that came before us to suppress Indigenous Peoples cultural and spiritual heritage. 

We remain committed to moving in a spirit of reconciliation and accountability by offering this land acknowledgement and continuing to:

• Partner, collaborate and maintain relationships with Indigenous communities.

• Embrace Indigenous Peoples past, present and future contributions.

• Provide space for traditional and contemporary cultural activities.

• Review policies that impact Indigenous Peoples.

Did you know:

• Misaabekong Ojibwe Immersion Program at Lowell Elementary school was established in 2014 and was the first Public School Ojibwe Immersion Program to be established

• The Indigenous people here today are ancestral survivors of stolen land, forced assimilation, genocide and US government led cultural extinction.

• Native American religion and spirituality was illegal and banned by the US Government until 1978

• Minnesota is home to 11 Tribal Nations made up of 7 Anishinaabe (Chippewa, Ojibwe) and 4 Dakota (Sioux) Tribes.

• Archeologists and historians believe Indigenous people have lived in Minnesota since the glaciers receded 13,000 years ago