LibraryScenariosWhen institutional gestures toward indigenous recognition feel performative
Scenario

When institutional gestures toward indigenous recognition feel performative

My university wants me to give a land acknowledgment at graduation but I'm Métis and this is actually my people's territory and it feels weird to perform reconciliation theater when nothing real is changing.

Rumi
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The coach is replying

More people experience this than they realize.

What we've seen

Symbolic acknowledgments of indigenous presence can feel hollow when not accompanied by substantive change.

Ideas that help explain it
Worth thinking about

“Where Are You with Indigenous spiritualities — North America?”

If this sounds familiar, the Library can help you find the bigger picture.