Land Acknowledgment and Learning Resources

Ainee. Greetings, We respectfully acknowledge the Anishinabae on whose ancestral homelands we gather, the Potawatomi,  Odawa, & Ojibwe peoples of the Three Fires Confederacy of the Great Lakes region now known as Michigan. Remembering those who were forcefully removed, and recognizing the vibrant Native communities that are here today and continue their stewardship of this land and fresh waters. 

Thank you, Miigwech.

The original Curtains book, music and lyrics contain offensive stereotypes of and references to Native Americans.  We changed this language to remove the offensive material from performance.  Rather than erasing it completely and pretending that it didn’t exist, we mention it here and ask you to join us in acknowledging historical and current racism that exists in art and culture, as well as ways art and culture increasingly interrupts those patterns. We invite you to learn more about the history, ongoing presence, and stewardship of Native and Indigenous peoples especially (though not only) in this geographic region. Many resources exist in many forms. This sampling, specific to CET, tends to focus on art and culture.

• Dance for Mother Earth Powwow

• Attend the Dance for Mother Earth Powwow next week! In 2025, it is one of the biggest powwows in North America, and the entire community is welcome, whether this is your first or your fifty-first time attending! The powwow is March 22 and 23 at Skyline High School.

• For the Dance for Mother Earth Powwow’s 50th Anniversary last year, the Ann Arbor District Library hosted an easily accessible online exhibit about this powwow.

• Read a collection of short stories specific to the Dance for Mother Earth Powwow, such as this one: Ancestor Approved.

• UMMA Exhibit: Future Cache

• The University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) has a fantastic exhibit, Future Cache, that runs through December 2025. Future Cache focuses on the Cheboiganing (Burt Lake) Band of Ottawa and Chippewa, including their forced removal from their home in northern Michigan. 

• Artist Andrea Carlson spoke about the exhibit in 2022. 

• Language Learning, Stories, and Cultural Resources

• Ojibwe.net is a treasure trove of resources of Anishinaabemowin language (the language family that the Three Fires Confederacy of Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi share). The site includes lessons, songs, stories, and additional resources. 

• The Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission hosts several language, arts, and culture sites. 

• One of GLIFWC’s sites, Ojibwe Language Resources, is a language resource bank with stories, free downloadable kids’ books, coloring pages, and more. 

• Nenda-gikendamang Ningo-biboonagak (“We Seek to Learn Throughout the Year”) includes games, printables, and kid- and adult-friendly stories. 

• Ojibwe Word of the Day and other videos are posted by James Vukelich Kaagegaabaw.

• Fiction

• A collection of short stories about kids attending the Dance for Mother Earth Powwow: Ancestor Approved

• A best-selling and award-winning novel set in northern Michigan: Firekeeper’s Daughter (also access the book on CD or in an AADL book club kit)

• Nonfiction, Ancestor Stories, and Introductions to Ojibwe Culture and History

• Braiding Sweetgrass and a young adult version (also on CD)

• The Mishomis Book

• Everything You Wanted to Know about Indians But Were Afraid to Ask and a young reader version (also as an AADL Book Club Kit)

• Dibaajimowinan: Anishinaabe Stories of Culture and Respect

• An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States for Young People