Powwow
Sun, September 18th
curve lake
The day I attended the powwow was a rainy day, and no cars were allowed in the location of the event so when I along with my sister, family friend, and her son arrived at curve lake we were directed to a parking lot and once we parked walked in the rain close to a church where we waited for a bus shuttle that drove us for around 20-30 min to the entrance of the event where we paid for tickets. After we paid, we got on a golf cart that took us to the grounds of the event, it was a quick ride that took 2-5 minutes. By the time we arrived at the event grounds, the rain had stopped, but I started to feel cold, which did not stop me from enjoying the event. May dances, songs, and performances were demonstrated and the opportunity to join was also given. It was a long event, but I attended it for 2-3 hours. I was still able to learn some valuable lessons. Some lessons were things that will better prepare me for future similar events, not going to the first food place I see as there are a variety of options I can choose from, or that there are many vendors that sell things, and many of these things are going to be expensive so bringing extra money to both support and get a little something from the event could not hurt. Other things I learned apply more to the indigenous community, for instance, I learned that it is particularly important for indigenous people to share what is special to them openly, for this reason they were able to freely invite people to join or take special requests. This course introduces students to Indigenous ways of knowing through engagement with Indigenous philosophies and worldviews and this powwow does a great a job of demonstrating how that looks like.
Distant Voices – Return to Old Crow (1)
Distant Voices – Return to Old Crow
Sun, February 12th
Online Video (YouTube)
Return to Old Crow begins with three teachers and a custodian from School District 23 who in late August 2019 traveled to the remote Vuntut Gwich’in outpost of Old Crow, the northernmost community in the Yukon, 120 kilometers (about 74.56 mi) north of the Arctic Circle. The video begins with the teachers and custodians sharing their excitement about what they will experience, the schools they will encounter, the history they will learn, the wildlife they will see, the land, the culture, and getting to see their families, the elders, and the youths again. They also shared some of the things that make them nervous like some of the differences that they may encounter. This video shows the importance of culture and community, in addition to how everything tells a story, including something as simple as an antler. In this program, we explore how to engage with Indigenous communities through the lenses of their own societies and cultural traditions and how to articulate the connections of Indigenous people to their lands and territories. This video directly demonstrates what that looks like. While observing, I saw different people and a different culture and I learned how indigenous philosophies and mindsets can be beneficial to the world, for instance when it comes to topics like climate change. One of the topics that I learned through the Indigenous Perspectives courses which were needed to be an active and engaged participant in this event was their value for the earth and all the things in it. Some themes that were emphasized in this event are that we are all dynamic and different in our respects and that although not every indigenous culture is the same there is a core belief system that makes a person indigenous for instance the connection to the land and animals.
Virtual Tour of Potawatomi Prairie
Virtual Tour of Potawatomi Prairie
Sun, February 12h
Online (YouTube)
This event began with the introduction of the Youth Circle for Mother Earth project, it explained how it aims to create and support a cross-cultural network of young indigenous and non-indigenous environmental leaders, so they become lifelong ambassadors for nature and conversation. It followed with a few polls to get to know more about the people joining the virtual tour. After all the polls were done, Montana, our tour guide introduced herself letting everyone know she would be the one giving us a quick virtual tour of one of the tall grass prairie habitats found on Walpole Island First Nation. After her introduction, she gave us a bit of a background on the Bkejwanong territory. I learned Bkejwanong means where the waters divide and is an unceded territory, home to Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Odawa people who also make up the three-fires confederacy. Another fact about this territory that I did not know before was that they are the largest freshwater delta in the world made up of six islands. That concluded the quick background and began the tour of the prairie. It is said that when one enters, they are most likely stepping on provincially or nationally rare species. Furthermore, a topic that has been brought up multiple times during the course as well as past events is the immense value indigenous people place in the land. Once again, at this event I was able to see that. One of the first things that are done when visitors are brought in is to have them connect with the land. Even though this was a virtual event, they still had us stop, look around, and appreciate the land using sight and sound. Then we were taught some of the threats that the prairie have faced like not enough water or invasive plants brought from the outside. One of the solutions that Indigenous people have come up with are the periodic burns to keep away woody and weedy plants. I learned the importance of the land, and the tactics that Indigenous people use to maintain it for our present and future generations.
In Our Words Full video
Sun, February 12h
Online (YouTube)
This video explored how the dispossession of land from indigenous people occurred throughout Canada. As it has been emphasized in previous events as well as this course, Indigenous people’s ways of knowing are strongly connected to their history, land, and animals. This event began by exploring what a treaty is supposed to mean. It explained that a treaty is not supposed to take away but give on top of what one already has. It went further to talk about some of the indigenous treaties their and their importance such as the wampum belt, the dish with one spoon and the two-row wampum. When listening to the meaning behind these treaties I learned the immense value indigenous people placed in making sure everyone could work together in peace and harmony. Just the thought of that I found amazing, which made me realize it is not something that can easily be witnessed in a western society that emphasizes individual rights. After hearing about the beautiful treaties from the indigenous community, the video began explaining their history from the moment the religious community, specifically, the pope gave those who followed the catholic way permission to conquer, kill and destroy indigenous peoples and get their lands theirs. I learned how, the Spanish, French, and British fought over the land and although in the end the British “won”. The indigenous people did not like what was going on which cause a fight between Indigenous people and the British. After hearing this part of history, I initially felt saddened and disappointed being a Christian myself, and hearing about the wars, the stolen land, and the innocent lives that were taken away over a land that was already owned without care of the people in it, just saddened me. This video gave me a better understanding on why some indigenous people may feel anger towards people or churches. I believe that in my future career as a nurse, I may not be able to heal the pain or trauma that is being experienced by Indigenous People but with this knowledge, I can be better equipped to help, better attend to and empathize with them.