If you are anything like me, you consume the art that is short-form video content, AKA YouTube videos. On November 2, 2019 the Try Guys released the video “The Try Guys Become Zookeepers for a Day,” which was the first video of their 4 part mini-series Try Australia. This video is unique because it opens with a land acknowledgement. The Try Guys are an American online comedy company that produces YouTube videos among other things. The YouTube Channel that promotes these videos has 6.5 million subscribers (at the time this article is being written).
The land acknowledgement in the video reads:
As Canadians, this may not be a new experience, since we read (or are read) a version of a land acknowledgment from an approved template at meetings, the first day of school, or various celebrations. This practise of reading a land acknowledgment gained momentum after the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada released its final report. Although, it is important to understand that land acknowledgments were being done before the TRC released their report and the practise of acknowledgment started spreading on its own accord with little to no government intervention. It should be noted that there is no one single acknowledgment, but many depending on where you are in the country.
In Australia, another country with a similar dark colonial history like Canada, it isn’t called a land acknowledgment. Instead the statement that the Try Guys featured in their video is a Welcome to Country statement, which has been practised since the early 00s and incorporated into parliament opening ceremonies since 2008. The Welcome to Country statement is often performed by an elder and accompanied with traditional smoking ceremonies, dance and/or music. In the event that an elder isn’t present a simpler welcome is offered.
The practise of a land acknowledgment and Welcome to Country, both in Canada and in Australia, has attracted criticism from politicians, journalist, and historians as being a form of tokenism (Tokenism: the practice of making only a perfunctory or symbolic effort to be inclusive to members of minority groups).
Other critics, such as Stephen Marche points out that practising a land acknowledgment is the equivalent of saying sorry and not meaning it, because speech is easy and speech is free. Unless there is a true movement towards reconciliation these words are empty. This would include paying for the education of First Nation Schoolchildren, who still receive 30% less funding than their white counterparts or ending long term drinking water advisories which disproportionately affects Indigenous communities.
At the University of Toronto, the acknowledgment reads:
No matter what your feelings are towards land acknowledgments, the video that inspired this article has 2 million views (again, at the time this article is being written). If we turn to the comments section (a notoriously inhospitable place in the online community) we see that the comments that mention the Welcome to Country are positive and thankful it is present.
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| (Source) |
The land acknowledgement in the video reads:
“We acknowledge that this series was filmed on Wurundjerland, and we pay our respects to the elders past, present, and emerging.”It was brief. It was simple. But it was there.
As Canadians, this may not be a new experience, since we read (or are read) a version of a land acknowledgment from an approved template at meetings, the first day of school, or various celebrations. This practise of reading a land acknowledgment gained momentum after the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada released its final report. Although, it is important to understand that land acknowledgments were being done before the TRC released their report and the practise of acknowledgment started spreading on its own accord with little to no government intervention. It should be noted that there is no one single acknowledgment, but many depending on where you are in the country.
In Australia, another country with a similar dark colonial history like Canada, it isn’t called a land acknowledgment. Instead the statement that the Try Guys featured in their video is a Welcome to Country statement, which has been practised since the early 00s and incorporated into parliament opening ceremonies since 2008. The Welcome to Country statement is often performed by an elder and accompanied with traditional smoking ceremonies, dance and/or music. In the event that an elder isn’t present a simpler welcome is offered.
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| Another example of Welcome to Country Australia employs (Source). |
The practise of a land acknowledgment and Welcome to Country, both in Canada and in Australia, has attracted criticism from politicians, journalist, and historians as being a form of tokenism (Tokenism: the practice of making only a perfunctory or symbolic effort to be inclusive to members of minority groups).
Other critics, such as Stephen Marche points out that practising a land acknowledgment is the equivalent of saying sorry and not meaning it, because speech is easy and speech is free. Unless there is a true movement towards reconciliation these words are empty. This would include paying for the education of First Nation Schoolchildren, who still receive 30% less funding than their white counterparts or ending long term drinking water advisories which disproportionately affects Indigenous communities.
At the University of Toronto, the acknowledgment reads:
“I (we) wish to acknowledge this land on which the University of Toronto operates. For thousands of years it has been the traditional land of the Huron-Wendat, the Seneca, and most recently, the Mississaugas of the Credit River. Today, this meeting place is still the home to many Indigenous people from across Turtle Island and we are grateful to have the opportunity to work on this land.While there is no wrong way to do a land acknowledgment, when writing, giving, or hearing one, it is important that they are approached with humility and treated as a learning opportunity. The example above is a template, and only a template and the larger purpose of a land acknowledgment is to transmit knowledge to people who may not know the history of where they are standing. The example above is prescriptive, but there is plenty of room to bring your own voice and meaning to a land acknowledgment.
No matter what your feelings are towards land acknowledgments, the video that inspired this article has 2 million views (again, at the time this article is being written). If we turn to the comments section (a notoriously inhospitable place in the online community) we see that the comments that mention the Welcome to Country are positive and thankful it is present.
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| Comments reacting to the Try Guy's Land Acknowledgment on a recent video. Photo courtesy of Alexandra Forand. |
This is not to say that the Try Guys solved colonialism, but it is heartening to see them using their immense platform to set a precedence for other Youtube channels, artists, and dare I say… Museums?
As always, I encourage you to leave a comment, send me an email (allyforand@gmail.com), or if Twitter and Instagram are more your speed my handle on both is @Ally_but_online.
As always, I encourage you to leave a comment, send me an email (allyforand@gmail.com), or if Twitter and Instagram are more your speed my handle on both is @Ally_but_online.
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