Please join me in acknowledging and honoring the Indigenous communities who lived with and cared for this land. May we all remember that this land we live on was the Indigenous homelands of the Seminole, Miccosukee, and Tocobaga people as well as their ancestors going back over 10,000 years. Let us acknowledge the painful history of genocide and forced removal from their territory. Let us honor and respect the many diverse Indigenous people still connected to this land on which we live, work, and gather.

Why Indigenous Peoples Day?

From the UUA: “Indigenous Peoples Day” reimagines Columbus Day and changes a celebration of colonialism into an opportunity to reveal historical truths about the genocide and oppression of indigenous peoples in the Americas, to organize against current injustices, and to celebrate indigenous resistance.

( to read more, visit: https://www.uua.org/racial-justice/dod/indigenous-day)

As Unitarian Universalists, we affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person and the interdependent web of all existence of which we are all a part. I invite you to reflect upon what this covenant should look like as we strive to be in right relationship with all people and the land.

How can we center the voices of those whose land was stolen?

How can we be better stewards of this land?

In honor of the ancestors, the lives of the present, and those who will live after us, may we strive to create a better way.