Dissension and Chaos: Behind the Curtain of the California School Board Land Acknowledgement Craze

Yesterday I posted two videos that depicted various school boards around California making “Land Acknowledgement” statements at the beginning of their board meetings. Those posts—found here and here—provided very little explanation. Sorry about that… but what was your impression? Questions? 

I will give you mine, feel free to share yours. 

Somehow, I missed this fad of giving land acknowledgement statements at school board meetings, which are accorded the same level of reverence (sometimes more) as the Pledge of Allegiance. I first noticed yesterday when viewing the most recent board meeting of the Desert Sands Unified School District (DSUSD) on YouTube. A search through DSUSD board meetings revealed that they began giving the acknowledgement, out of the blue, in January. How odd.

A wider search of Simbli—the management system that hosts many school boards governance records—revealed that at least thirty-eight other school districts in California have at least discussed giving a statement, and twenty-five give land acknowledgement statements at every meeting. 

Yet even odder than the statements was the fact that only five districts allowed that portion of the meeting on the published meeting videos. In other words, they cut out the entire opening ceremony, as if trying to hide the fact that they are giving these statements with such reverence. Which is why so many examples had to be extracted from the actual board agendas and minutes.

You may have also noticed that a half dozen school boards issued their land acknowledgement statement, which sounds more like a creepy prayer to pagan gods, before the Pledge of Allegiance to the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. At least two school districts had eliminated the Pledge of Allegiance altogether. Some, have a statement that reads, in part, that they live on land “…in what is now known as the United States!”

What in the Sam Hill is going on? Let’s see if we can figure it out.

California: Governed and educated by a Teen Vogue Trans Activist

Sounds like hyperbole you say? Well, let’s see. On February 26, 2025, Capistrano School district had a board workshop to discuss Ethnic Studies and were given a glob of sample lessons. One of those lessons was for students to develop a land acknowledgement, complete with a template like the statements in the video. One of the resources for that lesson was titled “Indigenous Land Acknowledgement, Explained” and linked to the California Department of Education, which then links to this 2018 Teen Vogue article!

By this time, you are either enraged, or in tears, or tears of rage. Take a deep breath. Ready?

The article was written by “they/them” “Delilah” Friedler, who also wrote for the extreme leftist website Mother Jones and other outlets. Friedler opines that school districts in California should adopt land prayers because… everyone is doing it! Especially New Zealand, Australia, and Canada! Reeee! 

From the article that the State of California relies on for educational policy:

“In Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, it’s harder and harder to not be aware. That’s because school days and meetings — and even hockey games — often begin with a “land acknowledgment,” a formal statement that pays tribute to the original inhabitants of the land.” 

Friedler, then passes the buck to an organization that he pulled the quote from, one that does its darndest to appear as an official United States government agency calling itself the “U.S. Department of Arts and Culture.” Which is ironic, since they claim to be living on what land that “is now known as the United States.”

And California wonders why it is at the bottom of educational outcomes. 

But why?

What stood out, once the details were expanded from the Simbli search, is that the fad really took off in 2023, and it seems very closely tied to Ethnic Studies. Also, some districts do discuss the statement but decline the opportunity to virtue signal by rejecting it.

Jefferson Elementary School District’s board meeting (skip to 1:13:00) on February 26, 2025, is a good example of a district rejecting land prayer and provides insight into why districts are adopting land prayers. 

The district’s Superintendent introduced the measure (to recite an acknowledgement) because she had seen it a training just a few weeks prior and thought it was cool. The Superintendent stated that “San Francisco does it…this one is copied from South San Francisco…other districts do it.”

That reminds me of something my Mother used to ask me when I was kid and joined in the idiocy of my friends because “they were all doing it.” Something about a bridge and jumping.

While the Jefferson board did not approve the land prayer for board meetings, they all agreed with the sentiment. Their discussion is revealing however, as one trustee questioned how they would “affirm sovereign rights.”  Another expressed concern that they would be “creating a narrative.” And still another trustee expressed that the ultimate goal was land reparation, which was beyond their power to give.

Sovereign Rights, Narrative, and Land Reparation

Are you starting to feel where this is going? Setting a narrative to establish land reparations and sovereign rights for Native American tribes? Something along those lines?

Another organization, landacknowledgements.org, that is trying to capitalize on the statement frenzy gives the endgame away when they state (emphasis added): 

“Land acknowledgements are not land back. They are initial points of reckoning, of resistance and for activation.”

“As Indigenous Land Acknowledgements gain in popularity amongst institutions in what is now known as the United States, it has become apparent that some statements represent a genuine commitment to decolonization while others fall short – but what makes a Land Acknowledgement one that activates change?”

CaLeg and Gov. Newsom

I am reminded of another adage, and I’ll give my Dad credit for this one, something about words vs. actions. One caveat on that adage though: When words designed to “activate” people (kids), as Ethnic Studies proudly proclaims to do, spoken to children, repetitively over 12 years the end-result will be heinous and ignorant action.

Which leads me to the California Legislature and Gavin Newsom.

In 2020, then California Assemblymen James Ramos (D), Eduardo Garcia (D), and Assemblywoman Wendy Carrillo (D), introduced AB 1968 to “encourage” state and local agencies to adopt “formal statements that recognizes…Native American peoples as traditional stewards…[to] think about what it means to occupy space on Native American lands” of California. Whoa, recognizes stewards?

The bill did not pass, but its influence, including the land prayer template it provided, lives on, as we are seeing.

But the real action, and even dumber than the French Laundry dinner, comes from viral podcaster California Governor Gavin Newsom. 

On April 26, 2024, Newsom posted an explanation titled, “A Step Towards Healing and Restoration: California to Support the Return of Ancestral Tribal Lands and Lands Management Projects” to his official ca.gov page. The explanation was for an announcement made by the California Natural Resources Agency.

What we need to know, according to Newsom, is that as “…part of an ongoing truth and healing process, California is supporting the return of over 38,000 acres of ancestral land to tribal stewardship and advancing nature-based solutions projects on tribal lands.”

Which land? What land? Whose land? 

Quiet you, none of your pestering questions. According to Newsom, the important thing is:

“These awards are an acknowledgment of past sins, a promise of accountability, and a commitment to a better future – for the land and all its people, especially its original stewards. Only through partnership with California Native American tribes can we address the climate and biodiversity crisis and build a healthier California.”

For the record, I have never done anything so “sinful” to anyone, anywhere, or anytime that would justify giving people land. Has anyone?

It is all part of the “Truth and healing process” that Newsom worked so hard on, so don’t get upset. 

Indeed, such is confirmed by a Native American himself who said:

“Today marks a pivotal moment in our journey towards healing and reconciliation,” said Chairman Kevin Osuna, Iipay Nation of Santa Ysabel. “This award is not merely a financial contribution; it is a symbol of solidarity, a recognition of our inherent rights, and a commitment to stewarding our ancestral lands.

Full Circle

Putting it all together, the playbook seems obvious. The “Land Acknowledgements” are not just a benign, means-nothing saying only meant to virtue signal. They are prayers; an admission of guilt to occupying lands that do not belong to the United States and a commitment to returning those lands to Native American tribes. Any land. Any tribe. None of it has to make sense.

It is no coincidence that these prayers are showing up in school districts, on the advice of a radical trans activist. One of the stated goals of California’s Ethnic Studies is to produce activists. These land acknowledgments—these land prayers—repeated by kids, not just to them, for 12 years… we are going to see some crazy cult-like violent behavior very soon. Isn’t there enough of that now?

So, what is the endgame? Dissension and chaos. What else? The more dissension, the more chaos. The more chaos, the more the demand for control… radical leftist totalitarian control.

At least that is my overpriced $.02.

Solutions

No, do not “vote them out.” 

Well, yes, of course we want to vote out the radical left and the crime families of California, what I am saying is… that is not what I was going to say. 

Why not act now? President Trump’s Department of Education, in perhaps its last action before it Hillary Clintons itself, provided us with a DEI tipline.

The U.S. Department of Education is committed to ensuring all students have access to meaningful learning free of divisive ideologies and indoctrination. This submission form is an outlet for students, parents, teachers, and the broader community to report illegal discriminatory practices at institutions of learning. The Department of Education will utilize community submissions to identify potential areas for investigation.

It is a simple process with a 450-word limit, you could even include this article if you wanted to. Presumptuous of me as that may be. Still, I am going on the theory that President Trump wants to assist us as much as he can, but we need to help his administration by being his bird dogs.  There were twenty-five school districts on that list, what’s in your area?