On whose land do I/we learn? Rethinking ownership and land acknowledgment

Abstract

In our semester original teaching idea, we detail possibilities of resistance to the neoliberal university by considering tribal critical race theory and postsocialist feminism as frames for decolonization. The semester takes shape by focusing on foundational readings to bridge decolonial and postsocialist thought as the basis for dialogue about neoliberalism as it manifests imperialist white supremacist capitalist patriarchy in our universities. Focusing on property ownership as a discursive link between neoliberalism, decolonization, and postsocialism, we ask students to theorize/analyze how ownership of property and communication of that ownership maintains, extends, and resists colonial, liberal, and capital forms of power in the institution. We anchor our theoretical application by presenting students with a case study about the indigenous lands upon which our universities are built/occupy accompanied by a discussion about university "ownership" of ancestral remains and sacred objects. In our final assignment/assessment, students use decolonial and postsocialist feminist theory in assignments and discussion to reimagine the neoliberal university's relationship to property. Applying their critical understanding of history and alternative approaches to knowledge and property, students construct statements of commitment to actions that the university should take as a result of land acknowledgment. Courses: Communication Theory or Methods and Intercultural Communication.Learning Outcomes: By the end of this activity, students will be able to: (1) identify discourses of institutional ownership as it relates to property, bodies, and knowledge and apply what they learn to a public document; (2) engage in communication inquiry about property, equity, justice, and ownership; (3) apply ethical communication principles and practices;(4) utilize communication to embrace difference; and (5) practice democratic deliberation focused on public ownership.

Decolonizing Organizational Communication

“…Communication scholars have an obligation to address settler colonialism, particularly as our discipline is itself linked to land-grant universities tasked with public service (Cohen, 1994). We echo ongoing calls for communication scholars (Cooks & Zenovich, 2021;Na'puti & Dionne, 2020) to build on the analytic and activist work already being done that moves beyond metaphors. la paperson (2017) invites us to consider tools already at our disposal to dismantle colonizing logics and practices from within.…”

“…We build on Tuck & Yang (2012a, 2012b) critique and la paperson’s (2017) framing of the university as settler colonial to underscore university land, labor, and community relations. Joining ongoing efforts by communication scholars (Cooks & Zenovich, 2021; Na’puti & Dionne, 2020), we raise urgent questions about the particularities of how (y)our universities are complicit with enduring settler colonialism. The framework of land, labor, and community relations also brings into focus the multiple, already existing attempts to challenge and refuse these relations.…”