The person disparaging Durango’s land acknowledgment because it “focuses on the distant past and the despair and hurt that have occurred” comically misses the entire point of such acknowledgments, while ironically laying out their purpose very clearly.
By this person’s logic we should abandon Memorial Day because reminding ourselves of the lives lost to past wars is too painful. Perhaps all future 9/11 remembrances should be scrapped so as not to focus on any pain from the past.
Land acknowledgments are by no means the solution to this long-standing injustice, but they are an important first step toward righting the wrong. If we’re too cowardly to confront the reality of these past injustices in a verbal manner, what chance do we have of enacting any sort of substantive change or reconciliation?
Acknowledging a problem and its root causes is step one in resolving any conflict, the issue of stolen land and its generational effects is no different.
Jeff Dunn
Durango
