Overview
#LandBack is an Indigenous-led movement demanding the return of stolen lands to Indigenous peoples, restoration of sovereignty, and reparations for centuries of colonization, genocide, and cultural erasure. The movement calls for Indigenous stewardship of ancestral territories and dismantling colonial systems.
Origins & Philosophy
While Indigenous land reclamation efforts span centuries, the modern #LandBack hashtag gained prominence around 2018-2019 as Indigenous activists pushed beyond symbolic acknowledgments of stolen land toward concrete restitution. The movement asserts that true decolonization requires returning land, not just recognition.
Core principles:
- Land return to Indigenous governance
- Restoration of treaty rights
- Environmental protection through Indigenous stewardship
- Cultural preservation and language revitalization
- Reparations for stolen resources
Key Campaigns & Victories
Bears Ears & Grand Staircase-Escalante (Utah): Indigenous coalitions fought to protect sacred sites. President Biden restored protections Trump had slashed, though full #LandBack control remains contested.
Mount Rushmore protests (July 2020): NDN Collective activists protested Trump’s July 4th event at Mount Rushmore, carved into the sacred Black Hills (Paha Sapa) illegally seized from the Lakota Nation. The movement highlighted that the monument sits on stolen land.
Sogorea Te’ Land Trust (California): Urban Indigenous-led land trust facilitating land return in the San Francisco Bay Area, offering a model for rematriation (return of land to Indigenous women).
Landback Network: A coalition of Indigenous groups facilitating land transfers and conservation partnerships. As of 2023, the network has helped return thousands of acres to tribal control.
MMIW & Violence Against Indigenous Women
#LandBack intersects with #MMIW (Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women), addressing epidemic levels of violence against Indigenous women and girls. Activists argue that land dispossession and violence are interconnected - colonization enables exploitation of Indigenous bodies and territories.
Environmental Justice Connection
Indigenous peoples steward 80% of Earth’s biodiversity on 22% of land. #LandBack activists position Indigenous land management as critical to combating climate change, protecting watersheds, and preserving ecosystems. Examples include:
- Tribal-led bison restoration on Great Plains
- Salmon habitat protection in Pacific Northwest
- Forest management reducing wildfire risks
Criticism & Debates
“How would it work?” Critics question logistics of returning land in urban/developed areas. Advocates propose varied models: full sovereignty, co-management, conservation easements, and land trusts.
“What about private property?” Some see #LandBack as threatening property rights. Activists emphasize targeting public lands, national parks on stolen Indigenous territory, and corporate holdings - not individual homes.
Cultural Shift: Beyond Land Acknowledgments
#LandBack challenges performative “land acknowledgments” (verbal recognition of Indigenous land theft at events). Activists argue: acknowledge, then act - support land return, tribal sovereignty, and Indigenous-led conservation.
Legislative & Policy Efforts
30x30 Initiative: The U.S. goal to conserve 30% of lands and waters by 2030 includes provisions for Indigenous co-management, driven by #LandBack advocacy.
Tribal co-management agreements: National Parks Service increasingly partners with tribes for park management (e.g., Bears Ears, Blackfeet Nation co-manages Badger-Two Medicine).