Land & Labor Acknowledgment

The Department of Theatre & Film urges our community to pause and reflect on the lands and institutions of which we are a part. These lands are the ancestral home to the Chickasaw Nation before their removal in 1837 and it is important to recognize that our place here is a result of many historical forces. We recognize the deep history of peoples impacted by the legacies of colonialism. Land acknowledgements are a regular practice of Indigenous cultures and we honor that practice. In addition, it is important to remember that the Chickasaw Nation remains a vibrant community, though separated from their ancestral home, and you can learn more about them at Chickasaw.net. 

We also acknowledge that this country, this state, and this university would not exist without the enslaved labor of Black people. To learn what little we know of enslaved individuals who were associated with the university, see the website SlaveryResearchGroup.olemiss.edu. This Slavery and the University Working Group “was formed in 2014 out of an interest to explore new scholarship on slavery and the legacies of slavery,” and “seeks to address these historical omissions and social neglect.”* As we work and teach and learn in this institution, the Department of Theatre & Film urges us all to honor and reflect on the legacies of the African diaspora and Black life and the ways these have shaped our world. 

Please take a moment to reflect on the lands, life, and labor of Indigenous and Black communities. 

* https://slaveryresearchgroup.olemiss.edu/slavery-at-um/

Resources
University of Mississippi Office of Diversity and Community Engagement
University of Mississippi Pathways to Equity
College of Liberal Arts Equity-in-Action Plan 
Institutions of Higher Learning Plan of Diversity