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I confess that I am one of those people who annoys others in conversation by correcting them if they use outdated language to describe indigenous or indigenous people or if they call someone of European descent having “discovered” America (or as the former “first” to do something or be somewhere where other people have already been for centuries or millennia).

Guilty.

But that’s why I was so excited to see the item I found last week at the Athens Nature Reserve. It combines my love of hiking with the need to raise my index finger and say: “In fact …”

There will now be new signage along Athens Conservancy trails “Visitors are invited to honor the indigenous people who once lived in the area.”

How cool is this?

They’re called land acknowledgment signs, and the design is modeled after one in Toronto. If you’ve watched hockey in recent years, you may have seen some of the efforts of Canadian teams on National Truth and Reconciliation Day and throughout the season. The one-day celebration is intended to honor the children who died and survived the residential school system between 1894 and 1947.

“The schools, funded by the Canadian government and run by Christian churches, were designed to isolate First Nations children from their culture and assimilate them,” NHL.com writer Christina Ledra reported in 2021. “The last federally funded boarding school closed in 1997. The number of Indigenous children who died in these schools is estimated to be over 30,000, mostly from tuberculosis.”

The idea of ​​coming face to face with this part of our history is gaining more and more popularity.

In Athens County, visitors can place their hands on signs that include words such as “I recognize and honor the many First Nations people who were the first to call this beautiful land home.” The captions also include the hashtag #our_ohi_yo, a reference to the Iroquoian word “ohi-yo” meaning “great river”

They are at Lindy Roosenburg Preserve, Canaan Preserve and Baker Preserve, but more are planned.

“Signs are the first step to inviting visitors to stop along the trail, notice the beautiful forest around them, and think about the people who explored these hills and forests long ago.” This was announced by Conservative Party spokeswoman Victoria Ellwood. “The intention is to recognize those who lived on these lands before us, to honor their history and culture, and to provoke reflection and dialogue.”

Christina Mayer is executive editor of The Parkersburg News and Sentinel. She can be reached at [email protected].