LAUSD adopts land acknowledgment. What comes next?

The Los Angeles Unified School District Board voted unanimously to add a statement to its website acknowledging the role of the region’s Indigenous communities.

The land acknowledgement recognizes the Gabrieleño and Fernandeño Tataviam peoples as the original and continuing stewards of the 710 square miles that make up LAUSD.

"This land acknowledgement will be an honor to our tribe because you are identifying our past, giving us a voice in the present and giving us visibility in the future," said Anthony Redblood Morales, the San Gabriel Band of Mission Indians Gabrieleno Chief. “Wa-at Guata Ta yi Honuka — in the memory of our ancestors — thank you.”

The land acknowledgement follows a November 2024 resolution that apologized for the historical mistreatment of Indigenous communities in public schools and directed district staff to explore ways to incorporate more lessons about the history and continuation of local tribes, such as:

• Including stories, literature, and instruction that center Native voice and tribes in the curricula
• Prioritizing native plants in greening efforts
• Improving teacher understanding of Native history

The district invited several local tribes to help shape the land acknowledgment's language, including the Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians.

Tribal President Rudy Ortega Jr. recounted how nearly 3,000 people were enslaved at Mission San Fernando in the late 18th century. By 1880, only a few dozen Fernandeños remained. Today, there are about 900 tribal citizens.

Though the tribe and many others in Southern California are not federally recognized, Ortega said the district’s acknowledgement makes a difference.

 ”It brings that value of honor and privilege to understand that the school district recognizes the first people of Los Angeles before it was called Los Angeles,” Ortega said.

What else the resolution does

While there is a spoken version of the acknowledgement, the resolution does not require it to be read at LAUSD events. The district created a list of resources to help educators discuss the land acknowledgement with their students and plans to offer related professional development workshops.

Junie Ponce, a 2023 LAUSD graduate who is Chicane and Diné, remembered learning about California’s tribes in the past tense.

“ When I started to be more active within the native community in L.A. I was like, wait, these people still exist and they're still thriving,” Ponce said.

Ponce said the district’s land acknowledgment is long overdue and hopes the district offers deeper lessons about the region’s Indigenous communities and more resources for Native students.

“I think with people having more knowledge, it brings curiosity,” Ponce said. “I do think it's important to have an understanding of the culture of the people whose lands we're on.”

Learn more about LA’s Indigenous communities

Los Angeles has a vast and varied Indigenous population including descendants of the region’s original inhabitants; Native Americans from other parts of the United States; and Pacific Islanders and the Indigenous diaspora of Latin America.

• Read our story: How to help children understand the Indigenous land they live on
• Learn the geography: See a map of these communities created by UCLA. 
• Take a field trip: One idea is Kuruvungna Village Springs on the campus of University High School in West LA. The cultural center is open to visitors, and sometimes volunteers, on the first Saturday of the month from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. And here are other ideas.