Land Acknowledgement
Today, we acknowledge that what is now known as Portland, Oregon and Multnomah County is the ancestral land and unceded territory of the Multnomah, Wasco, Cowlitz, Kathlamet, Clackamas, Bands of Chinook, Tualatin; and the now Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde.
We acknowledge that we are here as a result of systemic policies of genocide, assimilation, and relocation that was forced upon these peoples. In 1855 the Indian Treaty 282 dispossessed Indigenous peoples of their ancestral lands and it was made available to white settlers who had been promised acreage in the Oregon Donation Land Act.
Four years later Oregon founded itself as a “white only” state, the only state in the country to do so. In 1954 Congress terminated all treaty rights and agreements with Native communities under the Western Oregon Indian Termination Act, and steps were not taken to restore these communities until 1983. Together, let us reflect on the legacy of violence, displacement, migration and settlement that has brought us to where we are as Oregonians today. We commit ourselves to consider how we ‘use’ the land we work upon today and to shape a more socially equitable and ecologically sustainable future; learning from Indigenous example.
We recognize that throughout the colonial history of this region, many other people of color have been intentionally excluded, robbed, and displaced through policies and practices of racist and xenophobic aggression. This occurred in many ways including laws of direct exclusion and abuse, redlining in real estate practices, the segregated public housing projects that went on to displace residents such as Guild’s Lake Court and Vanport, internment camps, displacement of Black, Asian and Latinx communities, unjust policing, and ongoing gentrification and displacement in neighborhoods like Albina where our own office is currently located. This history has stolen the economic prosperity of these communities as made clear in the disproportionate statistics for all indicators of wealth and health by race.
“Together, let us reflect on the legacy of violence, displacement, migration and settlement that has brought us to where we are as Oregonians today.”
Still, communities of color persist
They have organized their power in incredible ways to re-establish their communities, holding ground and fighting for equal opportunities to live and thrive despite the past and ongoing systematic attempts of our society to separate and marginalize them. We recognize the necessity of widespread intentional repair as part of our quest for a just and equitable American society. As a white owned organization, we commit ourselves to follow and support their leadership in creating a restorative path forward.
FIRM HER-STORY LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITMENT EQUITY COMMITMENT FULL CANON