Macon raises Muscogee (Creek) Nation’s flag
The community came together to raise the Muscogee (Creek) Nation’s flag at Macon City Hall on January 20, 2023. The flag will remain permanently remain raised.
Principal Chief of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, David Hill, and Second Chief Del Beaver were both in attendance and spoke at the event, in addition to other government officials, people involved with Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park, and citizens of Macon.
A land acknowledgement was also read at Macon City Hall for the first time, read by New Town Macon’s Chief of Staff, Erin Keller.
The land acknowledgement recognized the original inhabitants and stewards of the land of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and how they were forcibly removed from what is now Macon-Bibb County in the 1830s on the Trail of Tears.
“We seek to honor the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and other Indigenous caretakers of this land by humbly seeking knowledge of their histories and committing to respectful stewardship of this land,” Keller read from the ending of the land acknowledgement.
Though the Muscogee (Creek) Nation is a federally recognized tribe, this was the first time their flag was raised in the state of Georgia. This came after a unanimous vote to pass Macon Mayor Lester Miller’s ordinance to permanently raise the flag, as reported by Macon-Bibb County.
There also was a symbolic gift exchange, with Lester Miller and David Hill and Del Beaver exchanging a painted guitar in honor of Macon’s music history and a Muscogee Creek Nation blanket.
This ceremony recognized the history and significance of the land Macon is on as the ancestral homeland to the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. This is coming alongside Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park’s efforts to become Georgia’s first National Park, which will be co-managed with the tribe.
Ocmulgee Mounds would also be the fifth park with tribal co-management, and the first National Park to be co-managed by a forcibly removed tribe, as the Department of the Interior names the current park designations.
A full recording of the event can be found here.
