All Words Are Monuments

“We were trying to aim at those folks who were interested in questions of ecology and conservation but didn’t know how to deal with these questions about racism and settler colonialism, how to think about what that might mean in terms of place names and parks.”

Cultural geographer and ethnic studies professor Natchee Blu Barnd discusses “Words Are Monuments,” a quantitative analysis of 2,000 National Park place-names categorized according to various forms of settler-colonial violence.

More info: http://WordsAreMonuments.org

“The place names you see on a visitor map aren’t just meaningless. They hold power and they tell a story. What stories are they telling? Are they stories that represent justice or do they represent oppression?”

Ecologist Bonnie McGill, PhD, discusses “Words Are Monuments,” a quantitative analysis of 2,000 National Park place-names categorized according to various forms of settler-colonial violence.

More info: http://WordsAreMonuments.org

“We talk about colonial powers coming in and renaming the world around us. It’s like cutting a ribbon. It’s an attempt to destroy your relationship with that place, that power that’s there. It’s part of that genocidal policy, to destroy who we are within. Because who we are inside reflects how we relate to earth outside. And if you have a belief system where the earth deserves to be respected, it structures the way you think and you feel.”

Lummi Nation elder, organizers, and Master Carver Jewell James discusses how place-names and language serve to structure a way of relating to the world around us.

More info: http://WordsAreMonuments.org