This is a Virtual Session. Instructions will be provided closer to the day of class.
Please note there is a Part 1 and 2, and it is recommended you attend part 2 to get more of a wholesome context to this session.
Culture is expressed in the worldviews of peoples from different backgrounds, lived experiences and histories. It is fostered through ones’ unique identification with ones’ values, beliefs, languages, and traditions. For Indigenous peoples this also includes a spiritual, social, physical, and emotional connection with the land.
We all hold truths to help us make sense of the world around us, shaped by the values, traditions and belief systems we acquire from family and societal influences. However, few Canadians take the time to recognize, comprehend and appreciate the values, traditions and belief systems of Indigenous peoples that may be markedly different from ones’ own. This training asks participants to shift their focus from the differences of Indigenous peoples, to how ones’ own beliefs, practices and histories have impacted the health and wellness, self-esteem, and the socio-economic wellbeing of Indigenous Peoples.
In Part 1 we look at the hidden history of Canada, a history that has been largely untold that examines the attitudes, legislation and policies of the Crown that erased Indigenous peoples’ history from Canadian landscape. We examine how powerful Indigenous nations, critical allies and trading partners were devalued and systematically stripped of their lands, resources and eventually their identities.
In Part 2 we examine how the past attitudes, policies and legislation has impacted the current situation of Indigenous peoples and how the current trajectory can be remedied. Indigenous peoples have displayed their resilience as will be shown by the many Indigenous success stories.
The feedback from these sessions have been remarkably positive with participants telling me they hunger for more. This has led me to begin work on a training session on treaty making, the impact on Indigenous populations and what it means for the average non-indigenous Canadian. While a recent poll from Reconciliation Canada shows that across Canada no more than 50% of Canadians believe that reconciliation is of any importance, my feeling is that in academia at least there is a desire to bring about reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. From reconciliation flows my optimistic vision of decolonization of our nation state.
Speaking Our Truths: The Journey Toward Reconciliation consist of 2 two-hour sessions.
Part 1 looks at the Canada’s hidden history of Indigenous-settler relations with
Part 2 examining the effects of the decisions and policies initiated by the British and Canadian state on Indigenous people up to the present day.
Facilitator: John Croutch