Why Land Acknowledgements Are Spreading In California Schools — And Why Some People Push Back

In many California classrooms and campus meetings, educators now start with a land acknowledgement that names the local Indigenous people and recognizes their historic and ongoing ties to the area. This practice has grown across K-12 districts, community colleges, and universities over the last few years as part of broader efforts to teach local history and promote respect. 

In many California classrooms and campus meetings, land acknowledgements now open the day by naming local Native nations and affirming that the campus sits on their ancestral territory—but critics say the ritual often functions less as education and more as signaling. They argue it can blur legal realities by implying all property is unsettled or illegitimate, and sometimes pressures students to assent to a political claim they haven’t studied. Supporters counter that it’s a simple first step toward honesty about place and history, yet skeptics note the pattern: lofty statements followed by little change, while the acknowledgements themselves are used to justify new mandates or branding without funding real partnerships. A practical middle path is doable—tie any acknowledgement to concrete actions students can see: primary-source lessons on local treaties and missions, paid talks with tribal historians, fieldwork co-led by tribes, land-access MOUs for cultural use, and scholarships or research grants funded by institutions that occupy that land. This keeps the message in the classroom from becoming a checkbox or an oath—and turns it into work that actually teaches, builds relationships, and benefits living Native communities.

California’s state Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum gives teachers examples and context, noting that some educators begin lessons by acknowledging they are on Native land and naming the specific peoples connected to that place. This is not a statewide legal mandate to recite a statement, but it is guidance many districts draw from when shaping local practice.   




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@1TheBrutalTruth1 Sept 2025 Copyright Disclaimer under Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976: Allowance is made for “fair use” for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education, and research.

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