We Acknowledge that We Reside On…: Canadian Land Acknowledgments and South African Land Reform

Abstract

The chapter explores Canadian Land Acknowledgments, the motivation behind them and argues that a similar practice could aid South African land reform. A land acknowledgement is a written or spoken declaration, acknowledging the land and its previous inhabitants, as well as their removal therefrom. According to Stephen Marche (Canada’s Impossible Acknowledgment, 2017), “[t]he acknowledgment forces individuals and institutions to ask a basic, nightmarish question: Whose land are we on?” The acknowledgement is further meant to “give thanks, consider our individual and collective role in the stewardship of Mother Earth and in building relationships with Indigenous people and communities” (University of Guelph, Territorial Acknowledgement, n.d.). The concept and practice of Land Acknowledgements is largely unknown and therefore unexplored from within the African, and specifically South African, context. As such, this chapter adds to the literature in two important ways. Firstly, it adds to the ongoing debate on land reform in South Africa. Secondly, it contributes to the discussion on Land Acknowledgements that are already taking place in Canada, North America, and Australia.