About 1 — CESA

The Concurrent Education Students’ Association acknowledges that we reside on the traditional territory of the Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee peoples. Katarokwi (present-day Kingston, Ontario) is the territory of Indigenous peoples both past and present. We recognize that these lands were made available for Loyalist settlement as a result of the Crawford Purchase (1783) and that acknowledging this land must be accompanied by the recognition of Canada’s long history of colonization, which continues to have adverse impacts on Indigenous peoples today.

We also acknowledge that this territory is included in the Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant: an agreement between the Haudenosaunee Confederacy and the Confederacy of the Ojibwe and Allied Nations to peaceably share and care for the resources around the Great Lakes. As a student association, we would like to express our gratitude to live, study, and build relationships on the traditional territories of the Anishinabek Nation and the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. As uninvited guests on these lands, we also acknowledge that we have benefited off of the destructiveness of colonization—both as an Association and as individuals.

It is our responsibility to extend gratitude towards the traditional lands that have given us the opportunity to learn and operate at a post-secondary institution and continue to educate ourselves. It is vital that we commit to lifelong learning and take time to reflect upon our colonial past, as our prosperity and ability to operate as a student association are owed to the colonization of Indigenous lands and peoples. As aspiring educators, it is also our responsibility to teach in a culturally relevant and responsive way that contributes to building a future of students who are culturally aware, empathetic, and knowledgeable of their roles and responsibilities as Treaty people.

To begin educating yourself in a way that is ongoing and self-motivated, native-land.ca is a helpful resource to learn about Canada’s history and the land that is now known as Kingston, Ontario.

Helen Tufts Child Outreach Program