DESIGN + PLANNING TOOLS FOR GROWING COMMUNITIES
PDX MAIN STREETS
PORTLAND MAIN STREETS DESIGN INITIATIVE
Indigenous Land Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that Portland rests on the traditional village sites of the Multnomah, Kathlamet, Clackamas, Tualatin, Kalapuya, Molalla, bands of the Chinook, and many other Tribes who made their homes along the Columbia River. Multnomah is a band of Chinooks that lived in this area.
We also acknowledge the systemic policies of genocide, relocation, and assimilation that still impact many Indigenous/Native American families today.
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As settlers and guests on these lands we respect the work of Native Nations, leaders and families, and make ongoing efforts to center Indigenous knowledge, creativity, and resilience.
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Portland's Native American community is the ninth largest urban population in the United States.
This land Acknowledgement is a beginning...a first step in the journey in raising awareness and understanding of People and Place, and honoring those that came before who have cared for this land.
We have much work to do to foster greater equity, diversity and inclusion in the region, and PDX Main Streets is committed to working with communities to foster restorative justice, ecological resilience, and empowered participatory decision-making.
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RECENT & ONGOING WORK
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Creating Land Acknowledgements and training materials
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Educating neighborhoods and business districts about the importance and process of creating meaningful land acknowledgements and actions they can take.
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Researching local history and creating supportive resources for communities to learn more
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Identifying local and national organizations to support (e.g. NARA, NAYA, Native Arts & Culture Foundation, etc)
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Gathering community input for PDX Main Streets advocacy and action - some ideas have included renamed street or place with Indigenous leader names or tribes, creating more native gardens
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Collecting and sharing model leadership actions that can be taken to return land, and translate values into direct action.
RESOURCES
To learn more about Portland's Native diverse and vibrant community, included are a few resources:
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Leading with Tradition, a document created by the Portland Indian Leaders Roundtable.
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Oregon History Project: A History of Portland & It's Peoples
