4
These are difficult stories. We bear witness in this chapter to the role of sport in furthering the settler colonial projects throughout Turtle Island. Here are some supports to access in the community and from a distance:
First Peoples House of Learning Cultural Support & Counselling
Niijkiwendidaa Anishnaabekwag Services Circle (Counselling & Healing Services for Indigenous Women & their Families) – 1-800-663-2696
Nogojiwanong Friendship Centre (705) 775-0387
Peterborough Community Counselling Resource Centre: (705) 742-4258
Hope for Wellness – Indigenous help line (online chat also available) – 1-855-242-3310
LGBT Youthline: askus@youthline.ca or text (647)694-4275
National Indian Residential School Crisis Line – 1-866-925-4419
Talk4Healing (a culturally-grounded helpline for Indigenous women):1-855-5544-HEAL
Section One: History
A) The Residential School System
Exercise 1: Notebook Prompt
We are asked to honour these stories with open hearts and open minds.
Which part of the chapter stood out to you? What were your feelings as you read it? (50 words)
| This paragraph in The Final report Of The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada particularly stood out to me “Scarcely a garden party is given by any of the churches in the settlement but our band is engaged to furnish music… for we feel that the more our children are brought into contact with the right kind of white people, the better it is for them, and the more sympathy is felt for them, and for the work which we are striving to do.” ( 1867-1939). This section carries emotional weight because it highlights how, despite the students’ talents and creativity, their efforts were often co-opted to reinforce colonial ideals aimed at erasing Indigenous identity. The brass bands symbolize how cultural activities, which could have been a source of joy and pride, were instead used as tools for a larger agenda of assimilation. Specifically the quote “the right kind of white people” stands out to me as incredibly stripping of identity within indigenous communities. |
B) Keywords
Exercise 2: Notebook Prompt
Briefly define (point form is fine) one of the keywords in the padlet (may be one that you added yourself).
|
Indigenous body cultures To my knowledge Indigenous body cultures refers to the ways in which Indigenous peoples convey the connection between the body, culture, and identity. This concept includes practices suhc as rituals, performance, artistic expressions and so on.. These practices can include a variety of of different expressions for example: sports, body adornment, body art, and healing rituals, all of which are often closely tied to spiritual beliefs, and a relationship with the land. While Indigenous body cultures differ greatly among various Indigenous groups, they all emphasize the body as a means of expressing cultural identity, community values, and a connection to ancestors and the natural world.
|
C) Settler Colonialism
Exercise 3: Complete the Activities
Exercise 4: Notebook Prompt
Although we have discussed in this module how the colonial project sought to suppress Indigenous cultures, it is important to note that it also appropriates and adapts Indigenous cultures and “body movement practices” (75) as part of a larger endeavour to “make settlers Indigenous” (75).
What does this look like? (write 2 or 3 sentences)
|
Activities such as sports, music, and dance, which are deeply rooted in Indigenous cultural traditions, were adopted by settler communities but stripped of their original meanings. Instead of celebrating Indigenous identity, these practices were often used to promote assimilation. This adaptation was part of a larger effort to erase the connections Indigenous peoples had with their traditions. The idea of “making settlers Indigenous” highlights the complex ways in which colonialism doesn’t just seek to dominate or erase Indigenous cultures, but also takes elements of those cultures and alters them to fit into colonial interests. In doing so, it creates an identity that serves colonialism and reinforces the power of the settler. |
D) The Colonial Archive
Exercise 5: Complete the Activities
Section Two: Reconciliation
A) Reconciliation?
Exercise 6: Activity and Notebook Prompt
Visit the story called “The Skate” for an in-depth exploration of sport in the residential school system. At the bottom of the page you will see four questions to which you may respond by tweet, facebook message, or email:
How much freedom did you have to play as a child?
What values do we learn from different sports and games?
When residential staff took photos, what impression did they try to create?
Answer one of these questions (drawing on what you have learned in section one of this module or prior reading) and record it in your Notebook.
| When I was a child I had lots of freedom to play sports and learn different values from them. I did taekwondo when i was younger, competitive gymnastics, and further skiing. Additionally I often participated in outdoor activities such as kayaking and sledding in our backyard. I had great opportunity to engage in sports. They taught me many values that I carry into my future for example: organizational skills and time management, team work, leadership, resilience, and patience. As a settler, I was fortunate to participate in these sports as a means of fun and learning and not in an environment set up for obedience and or survival as discussed in “the skate” (2022)
|
B) Redefining Sport
B) Sport as Medicine
Exercise 7: Notebook Prompt
Make note of the many ways sport is considered medicine by the people interviewed in this video.
|
C) Sport For development
Exercise 7: Notebook Prompt
What does Waneek Horn-Miller mean when she says that the government is “trying but still approaching Indigenous sport development in a very colonial way”?
| This video discusses how currently there are many colonial approaches to sport, regardless of the government ‘trying’. For example, there is hardly any movement in elite sport sector, indigenous athletes in Canada aren’t tracked or represented, there are many barriers to indigenous athletes such as racism and access, and there are No system for secluded indigenous communities to have access, and so on.
|
Exercise 8: Padlet Prompt
Add an image or brief comment reflecting some of “binding cultural symbols that constitute Canadian hockey discourse in Canada.” Record your responses in your Notebook as well.
|
This is the Havelock community ODR. The hockey rink is a symbol of community and participation in the sport |
Section Three: Decolonization
Please see the major assignment for this half of the term in the final section of this chapter.
