Wasaga Beach adopts new, authentic & meaningful Indigenous land acknowledgement

The Town of Wasaga Beach has reworked its Indigenous land acknowledgement to be more authentic and meaningful.

The Town's first land acknowledgement was taken word-for-word from the Township of Clearview in 2022.

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Last year, town staff worked to craft a new, genuine land acknowledgement that more accurately recognizes the Town's existing and historical connection to Indigenous peoples.

"We've created this new land acknowledgement in cooperation with the Indigenous peoples, and it's very suited to Wasaga Beach," said Mayor Brian Smith.

On Friday, to mark National Indigenous Peoples' Day, the mayor read the new acknowledgement in front of the beachfront Wasaga Beach sign alongside mayors from nearby towns.

"Wasaga Beach is located on the historical lands of the Tionontati people, who were part of a larger Wyandot group until 1650," the Town noted. "The strong spiritual connection to the waterways for these First Nations groups is proudly highlighted in the Town's new land acknowledgement statements."

The new acknowledgement will be used in long and short form during specific town council meetings.

The new land acknowledgement statements showcase inclusivity and reconciliation, the Town said.

It reads:

The Town of Wasaga Beach acknowledges it is located upon the traditional territory of the Anishnaabe people of the Three Fires Confederacy.

We also acknowledge that the people of the Wyandot Nation also inhabited these lands.

We acknowledge that these nations were sovereign nations existing before the arrival of settlers.

We respect the spiritual interconnection among these nations to the land and to the water.

We also acknowledge that waterways near us have a long history predating European arrival.

Since time immemorial, waterways were the lifeblood of the Indigenous people by trade and hunting routes.

We are dedicated to inclusivity of First Nations, Inuit and Metis people in our future stewardship of the land and the longest freshwater beach in the world.

In the spirit of reconciliation, we welcome the opportunity of learning to be sustainable caretakers of the land and waterways for all future generations.