The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco respectfully acknowledge the Ramaytush Ohlone, the original inhabitants of what is now the San Francisco Peninsula, and we further acknowledge that the greater Bay Area is the ancestral territory of the Miwok, Yokuts, and Patwin, as well as other Ohlone peoples.

Indigenous communities have lived in and moved through this land over hundreds of generations and Indigenous peoples from many nations make their home in this region today. Please join us in recognizing and honoring their ancestors, descendants, elders, and all other members of their communities.

What is a land acknowledgment?

A land acknowledgment is a statement that formally recognizes and pays respect to the Indigenous peoples of a place. “Indigenous” is a general term that refers to the first inhabitants of a region. A land acknowledgment is a public recognition that is intended to raise awareness about the enduring relationship between Indigenous peoples and their territories.

Why do we recognize the land?

It is important to understand the history of the San Francisco Peninsula and the dynamics of settler colonialism in the region to create a broader awareness of this history. Acknowledgment fosters individual and group action to eliminate racism and uplift Indigenous voices and histories in the Fine Arts Museums’ programs and collections.

What is the appropriate pronunciation of the Indigenous names?

Acknowledgments

Jonathan Cordero, chair, Association of Ramaytush Ohlone; Deana Dartt, principal, Live Oak Museum Consulting; and Yve Chavez, assistant professor, University of California, Santa Cruz.

We work in ongoing partnership with, and in gratitude to, Native communities who generously share their art and culture with our museum and its visitors.

References

• Ramaytush Ohlone
• Honor Native Land: A Guide and Call to Acknowledgement, US Department of Arts and Culture
• Guide to Indigenous Land and Territorial Acknowledgements for Cultural Institutions
• Art Institute of Chicago Land Acknowledgment
• Peabody Essex Museum Land Acknowledgment: Nature’s Nation: American Art and Environment
• Tribal Nations and the United States: An Introduction, National Congress of American Indians

Resources

• We are OF the Land
• Rematriation: Going Beyond Land Acknowledgement
• In the Land of My Ancestors \ Film Screening and Discussion with Kanyon Sayers-Roods