We acknowledge that we created this handbook on the traditional and ancestral lands of Turtle Island, the land which was stolen, colonized, and called America. We recognize that Indigenous stewardship of land is how we best fight for climate justice and against colonialism.

We recognize that most modern partner dance forms are a result of the African Diaspora: African culture spreading because African people were kidnapped from their homeland and trafficked around the world. We recognize all oppressed people create liberatory art to survive systemic harm, and that whiteness appropriates that art as a tool of oppression. We work to honor the ancestors of these dances in an ongoing manner.

We recognize the power imbalances of gender present as the result of the patriarchal history of partner dance and that our society defaults to men having power over women, femmes, and Queer people. We recognize that there are many genders and enforcing binary gender roles harms us all, and erases Queer and Trans identities.

We recognize there is no such thing as a “dancer's body”. All bodies dance.

We would like to thank the elders and teachers who paved the way for these dances to exist in our lives personally, and the people who built these communities through their history, music, dancing, and community organizing. 

We also acknowledge that people caused us harm in our respective dance communities. These experiences were the catalyst for Degender Dance and showed us firsthand that change was desperately needed.