Land Acknowledgement
I acknowledge the land on which Horn & Feather Goods resides is the traditional homeland of the Nipmuc Tribal Nation. Nipmuc, which means the People of the Fresh Water.
The Nipmuc are of the Algonquin language group and number nearly 3,000 family clan members throughout southern New England today.
The Nipmuc have been stewards of this territory for over 12,000 years, where traditional Nipmuc practices assured connection and harmony with the Earth and all life. The Nipmuc territory of this area also borders the neighboring and closely allied Pocumtuck, and the adjacent present-day Indigenous Nations surround the region: the Massachusett and Wampanoag to the East; the Mohegan, Narragansett, Schaghticoke, and Pequot to the South; the Mohican and Mohawk to the West; and the Abenaki and Pennacooks to the North.
Further, I acknowledge that the territory of the Nipmuc was forcefully taken from the tribe starting in the early 1600s and continued into the late 1800s. The Nipmuc homeland once stretched over 2000 square miles and encompassed central Massachusetts, Northern Connecticut, Northern Rhode Island, and southern New Hampshire. Today the Nipmuc Tribal land is less than 30 acres.
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I call upon the United States to uphold their obligations under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, we must recognize that those rights were stripped and denied using centuries of laws and policies based on legal doctrines such as “terra nullius”, which declared this land empty despite the presence of Indigenous peoples.
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I encourage all who read this page to research and learn of the indigenous tribal nations of their area and to support state and local legislations set forth by the indigenous nations. In Massachusetts visit http://maindigenousagenda.org/ to learn and support the efforts our brothers, sisters, and neighbors are fighting for. Then call, write, email, or peacefully protest to urge your elected officials to vote in favor of proposed bills.
And of course, DONATE, help support local indigenous initiatives by donating to their cultural centers, organizations, and legislative efforts. Here in my area, the Ohketeau Cultural Center serves as a place of creation and growth; where ideas will be born, nurtured, and lived out for local and regional indigenous communities.
For Horn & Feather Goods, we are committed to donating 5% of every sale to the Ohketeau Cultural Center and other regional tribal organizations.