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Vice Chair Burns delivers land acknowledgement as Durham session opens
Summary
Vice Chair Burns opened the Durham County Board of Commissioners’ Aug. 26 regular session with a land acknowledgement naming local Indigenous nations and calling for humility and justice; the meeting proceeded with the Pledge of Allegiance and community announcements.
Vice Chair Burns opened the land acknowledgement at the start of the Durham County Board of Commissioners’ Aug. 26 meeting, naming Indigenous nations whose ancestral lands include the county and urging the community to "honor the ancestors and elders of these nations" and "commit ourselves to fostering understanding, healing, and justice."
"We stand on the stolen ancestral lands of the Catawba, Eno, Okaneche, Shakari, and Tuscarora peoples whose deep connection to this land predates our vow," Vice Chair Burns said during the acknowledgement, later adding a call to "walk forward together with open hearts acknowledging the past and embracing a future guided by compassion, respect, and unity."
The ceremonial section that followed included the Pledge of Allegiance and a brief recognition of Women’s Equality Day, after which the board moved into standard agenda business. The land acknowledgement was read aloud as part of the official opening and was followed by procedural announcements and community event notices.
