DOVER The City Council postponed discussion of a resolution calling for a statement to be read before all of its meetings, acknowledging the city stands on unceded land that was once the home of Indigenous tribes.
One councilor, who objected, said he was disappointed with the proposal, raising concerns it could cause divisions in the community.
The proposed statement, known as a land acknowledgment, was proposed by the City Council s Ad Hoc Committee on Racial Equity and Inclusion as a way to acknowledge the history of Dover’s settlement and how it displaced Indigenous populations.
City Councilor Dennis Shanahan on Wednesday night requested the item be removed from the agenda and postponed until a future meeting, after concerns from city councilors were brought to his attention and the attention of the Racial Equity and Inclusion Committee and City Council. The postponement was unanimously approved by the council without discussion.
DOVER Resident Natalie Strickland stepped up to the microphone Wednesday night, saying if the City Council would not read and discuss a statement acknowledging the city stands on unceded land that was once the home of Indigenous tribes, she would.
“The land acknowledgment is not a threat to Dover,” Strickland said before reading the statement in a public hearing. “It recognizes Indigenous people as the traditional stewards of the land and honors the relationship that exists currently. It isn t just about something that happened 400 years ago.”
The City Council postponed discussion of a resolution calling for a statement to be read before all of its meetings that acknowledges how Dover’s settlement displaced Indigenous populations. The recommendation is one of the first from the city s new Racial Equity and Inclusion Committee, and the council s action sent it back to the committee.