I recognize and acknowledge Pennsylvania as the land of the Erielhonan (Erie), Haudenosaunee (Iroquois), Lenni-Lenape, Shawnee, Susquehannock, and Tuscarora nations, and the Honniasont, Saluda, Saponi, Tutelo, and Wenrohronon tribes. I pay respect to the Native peoples of Pennsylvania past, present, and future and their enduring presence in their homeland and throughout their diasporas.

Native experiences with European colonists in Pennsylvania were not peaceful. I hold myself accountable for understanding and sharing the true history of these lands. Native peoples here faced deceit, disease, and warfare, with few nations and tribes having living descendants today.

The Lenni-Lenape facilitated Pennsylvania's founding with William Penn in the 1680s. Their descendants today include tribes in Oklahoma, New Jersey, and Ontario.

The Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois, is the confederacy of the Six Nations, including the Cayuga, Mohawk, Seneca, and Tuscarora, whose home spanned western, central, and eastern Pennsylvania. Their descendants now live largely in North Carolina, New York, and Ontario.

The Erielhonan lived along Lake Erie's southern shores in northwestern Pennsylvania. The Wenrohronon tribe lived across western New York and parts of northern Pennsylvania. By the mid-17th century, the Erie, Wenrohronon, and Susquehannahock were overwhelmed by the Haudenosaunee, with only the Susquehannock surviving as an independent people.

The Susquehannock, also known as the Conestoga, lived along the Susquehanna River. They reached their height in the mid-17th century but were later decimated. By the mid-18th century, only a few hundred Susquehannock remained in the Susquehanna Valley.

The Shawnee, an Algonquian-speaking people, migrated across the mid-Atlantic, Midwest, and Deep South, including parts of Pennsylvania. Today, Shawnee people live in communities throughout the United States, notably in Oklahoma and Alabama.

Several other tribes, including the Honniasont, Saluda, Saponi, and Tutelo, have called Pennsylvania home. Their histories in Pennsylvania are less documented.

For nearly 40 years, Native children were forced to attend the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in central Pennsylvania to erase their Native identities. From 1879 to 1918, over 10,000 Native children from more than 140 tribes endured this cultural genocide. Nearly 200 children died while in custody there. The Carlisle Indian School Project continues to document this history.

Native terms are the names of many places in Pennsylvania. Opportunities to honor Native peoples should be welcomed in context and in partnership with Native communities. It is my responsibility to ensure anti-Native racism is never sanctioned or celebrated.

There are no federally or state-recognized tribes in Pennsylvania due to centuries of violence, genocide, disease, and forced removal. However, Native people live throughout the commonwealth today. The history of the Native peoples whose land is now occupied as Pennsylvania should be honored daily.

A land acknowledgment is not enough. I commit to supporting the sovereignty and self-determination of all Native peoples. Social justice means decolonization. This acknowledgment is a step toward understanding my role in supporting Native peoples now.