University Writing Center Land Acknowledgment

"Texas Bluebonnets" by Counse is licensed under CC BY 2.0

While half our editorial team is representing us at the IWCA / NCPTW conference this week in Columbus, Ohio, business continues as usual at the UT Austin University Writing Center!

In honor of Indigenous People’s Day this week, one of our Assistant Program Coordinators has composed the following land acknowledgment to be posted in our writing center space. We here at Praxis wanted to share it to our virtual space, as well.

University Writing Center Land Acknowledgment

The University of Texas at Austin Writing Center would like to acknowledge that the land we meet on belongs to the traditional territory of a number of Indigenous peoples–– specifically the Apache, the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas, the Kickapoo Tribe of Texas, the Ysleta del sur Pueblo, the Lipan Apache Tribe, the Texas Band of Yaqui Indians, and the Coahuitlecan. Additionally, Texas is and has been home to the Caddo, Comanche, Kiowa, Wichita, Chickasaw, and Waco nations. We honor and thank the Indigenous peoples connected to this territory where we gather, and give gratitude to this land on which we meet. We work to decolonize our practices, and make our center an inclusive space for all. 

Importance of Land Acknowledgments 

Land Acknowledgments are formal statements that serve many purposes, the foremost being the recognition that all land we meet on is stolen land that has and will continue to belong to the indigenous peoples of the United States. Acknowledging and respecting the history of the land and its people reinforces this kinship rather than erasing it per the colonization myth. Land Acknowledgments also aim to raise awareness and disseminate knowledge about indigenous histories that are so often forgotten and silenced.