Indigenous Justice

When I was 11 years old

June is National Indigenous History Month in Canada, an opportunity to learn about the unique cultures, traditions and experiences of First Nations, Inuit and Métis. It's a time to honour the stories, achievements and resilience of Indigenous Peoples, who have lived on this land since time immemorial and whose presence continues to impact the evolving Canada. 

In my first blog piece written on Deacons and Justice, I wrote about the call for Deacons to offer holistic ministries that respect the dignity of all people found in their mandate. In today’s blog, we will look at the call to change exploitative structures. 

I can’t help but lament the absence of divine justice. Thankfully God is not finished with us.  How much better will we do in the next 10 years?  Sometimes I think of the process of reconciliation as a dance. The question is, “How ready are we to make this an inclusive party. to turn up the music so that the dance can begin?

I have spent years visiting art galleries, and for a portion of my career I had the opportunity to work in an art gallery. I am the person who stands reading the labels in art galleries, curious to understand what the artist is wanting to express through their art. Art can convey visually what words simply cannot. Art can evoke a wide range of emotions from the viewer and invite people to share in an experience together through those feelings. Often, art becomes a vehicle for contemplation for me in a way that words simply cannot.

And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. - Matthew 14:19

Continuing prayers for Sudan

In violence between two rial military factions that has killed 400 people since April 15 and injured 1000’s, evacuations of non-Sudanese citizens have escalated. We pray for those trying to leave and for those who stay amidst water and power shortages.

In November 2022 I received my ancestral name Switametelót—a name gifted to my great-grandmother from her father Switamet.  When my great-grandmother married a non-Indigenous man, she was no longer considered Indigenous and her name was buried under the rubble of discrimination found in the Indian Act.  The name could not be passed to my grandmother nor my mother in their lifetime.  What an injustice to the matriarchs of my family!  Five generations later, I reclaimed our family name.  Through this reclamation, my connection to Squiala (my great grandfather’s traditonal territory)

Think of your grandma, mother, sister, daughter, granddaughter and reflect on how special these loved ones are to you.  What was the first memory that came to mind?  Was it sitting at the table enjoying a special meal, was it walking on the beach or in the forest, was it listening to stories of days gone by, or sitting quietly just enjoying each other’s company?

The first time I sat in a Cree circle I was just fifteen years old. The Cree Elder did not present a ‘woe is me’ argument against white people for his young audience, rather, he spoke of the equality of all the nations as depicted on the medicine wheel. The medicine wheel portrays four colors: red, yellow, black (sometimes depicted as blue or green depending on the beliefs of the nation), and white that represent the equality of the four nations of the global population of humankind.

Lead Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Commissioner Murray Sinclair has the wonderful ability to speak important truths in great one liners.  Two of those one-liners have stuck with me for  the 7 years since the release of the final report of the TRC:  education got us into this mess and education will get us out and reconciliation is a generational project.  Both of these short-zingers have inspired our long-term work in the CRC in Canada to advocate for the implementation of TRC Calls to Action 7-10 that focus on justice and equity in First Nation K-12 education.