This brief land acknowledgment was provided to us by the Eckerd Diversity Action Council. In the Fall of 2021, this group will be releasing an official statement to be included on Eckerd's webpage. Keep an eye out for this and the important events that follow next semester. The work below is a draft of this effort.
You might be wondering, isn't Eckerd built on fill land? And the answer is largely, yes.
This does not mean, however, that the water space where our school is was not a salient resource for indigenous communities. It is important to understand that this space was used as fishing and trapping grounds for communities that came before us. People have also lived on this land as far back as 14,000 years ago, which means there were people using and inhabiting this land during times when the coastline extended much farther out into the bay and this area was naturally dry land.
An important note: When thinking about land use we must also challenge what our own definitions of "property" are. Just because it could not be used for profit directly, does not mean this space was not valued. Many of our definitions of property are informed by our economic system, capitalism. When considering this topic we ask that you might reflect on and challenge the narrative you've likely been told in regard to land ownership. Reflect upon this damaging narrative in the context of BIPOC individuals and communities.
These are the official websites of the Seminole Tribe, Miccosukee Tribe, Muscogee Nation, and Choctaw Nation. They include rich information about the history, culture, and/or governmental structures of the Tribes:
The Seminole Tribe of Florida's website
Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida website
The Muscogee Nation of Florida website
A timeline created by Pinellas County highlighting parts of history from 14,000 years ago to 1888:
Pinellas Counties account of the early history of the area
This is a webpage that allows you to explore whose native land you are on and the history behind it throughout the U.S as well as other parts of the world:
Finally, a very abundant resource full of many links to written histories, audio clips, videos, and more: