Land Statement

Welcome!

At Minnesota Fringe, everyone is welcome. Together, we are allies, neighbors, friends, artists, and theater-enthusiasts. We celebrate all we have been given and strive to honor our relationships and shared connections by paying forward all that we can ¹, and by identifying inequities in our organization and working to change policies that don’t support our mission of providing free, diverse, and inclusive artistic expression for all.

Every community owes its existence and vitality to generations from around the world who contributed their hopes, dreams, and energy to making the history that led to this moment. Some were brought here against their will, some were drawn to leave their distant homes in hope of a better life, and some have lived on this land for more generations than can be counted. Truth and acknowledgment are critical to building mutual respect and connection across all barriers of heritage and difference². In that spirit, we acknowledge what has been buried by honoring the truth of our land:

Minnesota Fringe’s offices and venues stand on the traditional, ancestral, and contemporary lands of the Anishinaabeg People. This rich, fertile, beautiful land has a complex and layered history and it holds great historical, spiritual, and personal significance for its original stewards³. We recognize that we are beneficiaries of this land, which was ceded by the Dakota and Ojibwe peoples and purchased by the US Government in the Treaties of 1837 and 1851⁴. The Dakota people only received a fraction of the money they were owed for their land.

From this place of acknowledgement and truth, we extend our hands and hearts to the Indigenous nations of the Dakota, Lakota, Ojibwe, Sioux, and all Anishinaabeg who made the Twin Cities their home long before the building of our cities -- and to all Indigenous people who continue to make this area their home¹.

Adventurous audiences are supportive audiences: we respect everyone’s personal and unique artistic journey. We invite you to consider the many legacies of violence, displacement, migration, and settlement that bring us here today².

We invite you to Fringe with kindness.

 

This statement is inspired by, and sections of it are borrowed from, the land acknowledgements of:

1. Edmonton Fringe
2. United States Department of Arts and Culture
3. University of Minnesota - Duluth
4. University of Minnesota - IAS