The University of Tulsa has a strong commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. With this commitment, we strive to implement initiatives that inspire action and further our relationships with Indigenous communities. It is in this effort that TU recognizes the Tribal lands on which our main campus resides. We would like to honor and acknowledge the Indigenous tribes, and tribes who were forcibly removed, including the Ni-u-kon-ska (Osage), Kitikiti’sh (Wichita), Kadohadacho (Caddo), Mvskoke (Muscogee [Creek]), and Tsálăgĭ (Cherokee) Tribal Nations as the original inhabitants and keepers of the land and water that we now call Tulsa, Oklahoma. TU recognizes that our main campus is located on the Mvskoke (Muscogee [Creek]) Nation Reservation, whose Tribal members were forcibly removed from their homelands as a result of white supremacist and discriminatory laws, including the U.S. Indian Removal Act of 1830. We acknowledge that the university was first established as a Presbyterian School for Indian Girls with its own history and relationship to the land, Tribes, and campus. We recognize this foundation and assume the responsibility to educate ourselves and others on the Indigenous history and importance of the land and water that we occupy.
With this effort we profess the truth that is often buried. Our presence here today is a result of broken treaties, genocide, and ethnocide by colonial powers against those who have maintained and cared for the land and water since time immemorial. The effects of colonization have created historical and ongoing injustices impacting Indigenous peoples today. Truth and recognition of this reality is essential to reconciliation and building meaningful relationships and partnerships with Tribal communities, as well as creating opportunities for active community engagement and support; including, but not limited to, collaborative programming, internships, and bridge programs. By revealing this history, its continuing impacts, and correcting miseducation, we will no longer overlook how this land was occupied. We respect and recognize all Indigenous peoples as the original and contemporary stewards of this land.