Land Acknowledgement Statement

We want to acknowledge that this Touchstone Mental Health program exists on the traditional land of the Dakota people and honor with gratitude the land itself and the people who have stewarded it throughout the generations, including the Ojibwe and other indigenous nations. We acknowledge that this land, which is named for the Dakota Tribe, is the traditional and ancestral homeland of the Dakota, Ojibwe, Ho-Chunk, Cheyenne, Oto, Iowa, and Sauk and Meskwaki people.  

Touchstone Mental Health recognizes and respects the enduring relationship that exists between many Indigenous peoples and their traditional homelands. We respect the sovereign relationship between tribes, states, and the federal government.  

Both the State of Minnesota and the United States Government carried out genocide, ethnic cleansing, and forced removal against the Dakota to acquire this land. Yet, despite centuries of colonial theft and violence, this is still and always will be Indigenous land. Indigenous people are still here, demonstrating innumerable talents and gifts amid continued oppression and colonialism. Indigenous people must be celebrated and uplifted.