Land Acknowledgement

The Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets (WFOP) acknowledges that the lands now called Wisconsin, where we live and are inspired to write our poems, are the hills, valleys, coulees, bluffs, lakes, rivers, and creeks that have been stewarded for millennia by Indigenous peoples.

We acknowledge that Native peoples and tribal nations have been subjected to domination, removal, genocide, broken treaties, cultural deprivation, forced assimilation, and racial discrimination, the legacy of which persists today.

Our land acknowledgment is a pledge and a call to encourage learning, cultural and creative appreciation, and ongoing reconciliation for societal wrongs.

We welcome Indigenous poets and those of all cultural lifeways to engage in the mission of WFOP.

The Tribal Nations in Wisconsin today include the Brothertown Indian Nation, the Forest County Potawatomi, the Ho-Chunk Nation, the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin, the Stockbridge-Munsee Community Band of Mohican Indians, the Oneida Nation, the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, the Lac Du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, the Sokaogon Chippewa Community, and the St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin. Original inhabitants also included the Kickapoo, Sauk, Meskwaki, and Dakota, who lost their lands in treatymaking before Wisconsin became a state. 

Putting Words into Action

 What actions non-Indigenous individuals can take to further cultural understanding and reconciliation:

  • Read Indigenous poets and other writers of Wisconsin.

  • Learn about the Indigenous history where you live. Visit special sites, learn Indigenous place names and what they mean. What archeological finds add to the stories of current tribal members?

  • Discover more about the Native nation that is located closest to you. Who are its leaders? Its prominent citizens? Has there been a name change? What are its issues and concerns?

  • Attend a powwow to observe, listen, and appreciate the ceremonial dress, dance, and culture that is strong and vibrant today.

  • Donate on a regular basis to (1) local Native tribal nations (for the protection of their sovereign rights and the natural resources they rely on for cultural identity, and for their decolonization efforts), (2) Indigenous cultural organizations and institutions (for the celebration and resilience of Native tribal nations artistic creativity, and/or (3) Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women (MMIW) and Murdered and Missing Indigenous Relatives (MMIR).