Co-Creating a Land Acknowledgment at the San Bernardino County Museum

About the Program

Category: Arts, Culture and Historic Preservation (Best in Category)

Year: 2022

In 2020, the San Bernardino County Museum led a project to create a Land Acknowledgment in collaboration with indigenous tribal governments in order to more effectively and authentically connect the public to the Museum’s mission and cultural spaces. The San Bernardino County Museum, in partnership with two southern California indigenous governments, San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, and Morongo Band of Mission Indians collaborated to develop a Land Acknowledgment to engage visitors at the museum’s entry with the goals of (1) honoring and acknowledging the native presence on which the museum and its historic sites are sited, (2) creating a safe and welcome entry point for tribal members, and (3) highlighting native voices and language. In this collaboration, the County Museum and tribes conceptualized and created a Land Acknowledgement that celebrates cultural contexts, and includes graphics and audio systems to create a unique way of engaging in a way that has been traditionally silent and untouchable. This collaborative process actively engaged County officials and museum staff, tribal partners, and now museum visitors, to produce an historic, impactful, and intentional cultural experience.