OPINION: Welcome, AFN attendees. We’re glad you’re here.

As Anchorage Assembly leadership, we extend a warm welcome to the delegates, family members and others who are traveling from all over the state to attend the Alaska Federation of Natives Convention in Anchorage. We are honored that AFN has chosen to gather here on the traditional lands of the Dena’ina Athabascan people and we are excited to be the host city for the first in-person meeting in two years.

“Celebrating our Unity” is the theme of this year’s convention, which follows Indigenous People’s Day on Oct. 10, a day recognized by our federal, state and local governments to celebrate and honor Indigenous peoples and commemorate their contributions. As Alaskans, throughout the year we recognize the contributions of Alaska’s Native peoples — elders, artists, leaders, scholars, tribes and corporations, as well as the many ways in which those contributions strengthen our municipality and state.

There is much to celebrate. New murals painted by Alaska Native artists brighten up our city and share stories of Indigenous cultures that all who visit can enjoy and learn from. Last week, we saw the continuation of the growing global movement of Indigenous placenaming with a ceremony at Potter Marsh to recognize the Dena’ina name, Hkaditali, for the tidal area where the Dena’ina people once gathered driftwood. We have seen the recent renaming of Suicide Peaks to the Dena’ina name, Yuyanq’ Ch’ex, “Heaven’s Breath,” and this year, 26 places in Alaska have been renamed to remove a derogatory word for Indigenous women. The Alaska Travel Industry Association has released a culture guide designed to show visitors and tourists how to interact respectfully and thoughtfully with Alaska Native peoples.

Formal dialogue between the Native Village of Eklutna and the Assembly is ongoing through government-to-government relations that were established two years ago when the Assembly formally recognized all 229 federally recognized tribes in Alaska. And with the election of Congresswoman Mary Peltola, we have the first Alaska Native representative in Congress and the first woman to represent Alaska in the U.S. House of Representatives. Finally, after two years without an in-person convention, it is such a joy that AFN is reconvening in Anchorage and bringing such a high level of energy and excitement to our community. The AFN convention brings millions of dollars into the Anchorage economy, and we are grateful for this support of Anchorage businesses. Though there is important work to accomplish, the convention is also an opportunity to visit friends and relatives we haven’t seen in a long time.

While this is a time for celebration, we also recognize that there is more work to do to ensure that everyone in our community feels welcome, safe and valued. Recent racist statements made during an Assembly meeting made that point very clear. The fact that the statements came out in a public meeting highlight how important it is for us to address these hurtful and offensive ideas.

While we are saddened by the pain these words have caused to our friends, neighbors and community members who are Alaska Native, in the spirit of this year’s AFN Convention theme of “Celebrating our Unity,” we renew our efforts to ensure that everyone is treated respectfully. Our community is full of rich and diverse cultures that should be celebrated and acknowledged for their important contributions to our past, present, and future society, culture, government, schools, science and economy.

The AFN convention is a great opportunity for Anchorage residents to connect with the assembled diversity of hundreds of Alaska Native communities and learn more about issues facing Indigenous Alaskans. Once again, we thank AFN for gathering here in Anchorage and wish all of the participants a successful meeting and an enjoyable stay in Anchorage. As we were taught by our partners at the Native Village of Eklutna, “Chin’an gu ninyu” — thank you, you came here.

Suzanne LaFrance is the chair of the Anchorage Assembly and Christopher Constant serves as the Assembly’s vice chair.

The views expressed here are the writer’s and are not necessarily endorsed by the Anchorage Daily News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)adn.com. Send submissions shorter than 200 words to letters@adn.com or click here to submit via any web browser. Read our full guidelines for letters and commentaries here.