Getting To Know You (Zoom Circle)

In this first gathering we want to establish a climate of “mutual recognition and mutual respect” to use the words of the Truth and Reconciliation Report. No matter what your background and life experiences, we want to respect you, by listening to you and by recognizing the value of you as a person and what you have to bring to our gathering. It is important that we agree on this respect for one another at the outset. Our Circles give us a wonderful opportunity to meet one another, to get to know one another, to hear the stories of one…

Eagle feathers in law courts just small step

We're pleased to have received permission to print this insightful and informative article written by Niigaan Sinclair and published by the Winnipeg Free Press. Here is a link to the article on their website should you wish to read it in that form and appreciate the photos included. ___________________________________ Originally printed by the Winnipeg Free Press 09/27/2019 By Niigaan Sinclair Forty migizii migwanag — eagle feathers — were honoured at a sunrise ceremony Thursday and later given to Manitoba justice officials for use during court proceedings. Now, for the first official time in history, anyone in a provincial court can…

Hope

These stories of resilience, innovation and persistence offer hope for the future.  

Treaties – Our Nation to Nation Partnerships

Various First Nations communities across Turtle Island (North America) had and continue to have existing traditions and laws that govern land rights and what would be considered “human rights” in European law. Knowledge of these ceremonies and agreements are passed on through several generations, so records of these laws are used today in First Nations communities through oral histories. They date back to times before the earliest contact with Europeans.It is important to remember that Indigenous nations view land differently from European philosophies. Those beliefs of private property and land ownership did not translate well into Indigenous languages or worldviews.…

After the Circles: Practicing Solidarity and Living Reconciliation

Allyship "begins when a person of privilege seeks to support a marginalized individual or group." Allyship requires a commitment to unlearning and learning about privilege, power and oppression and involves a "life-long process of building relationships based on trust, consistency and accountability with marginalized individuals or group." Allyship is hard. Ally is a verb that requires action.  Allyship is not an identity, nor is it a performance. Allyship is a practice. Allyship requires an ongoing commitment to working in solidarity with Indigenous peoples. Allies are not self-defined but are recognized and affirmed by Indigenous peoples.  To practice solidarity, non-Indigenous people…

One girl, thousands of deaths, millions of accomplices

By: Niigaan Sinclair I have a daughter. She’s entering teen years. She’s my life. It’s hard not to think of her when reading about what happened to Tina Fontaine. The details are haunting. I can’t talk about them objectively or without emotion. Anyone who can just doesn’t feel. I especially can’t talk about the way Tina has been represented. She was not a broken person whose blood-alcohol level or choice or whatever resulted in her treatment — regardless of what media or a lawyer says. Tina Fontaine is a girl who endured a brutal child-welfare system and many who failed…

Day Schools and Day Scholars

Students did not stay overnight at the day schools, many were able to go home at the end of the school day, but often the conditions at the school and treatment of the children, by clergy and teachers was similar or identical to that at the residential schools. In other day schools, many children were billeted into homes or stayed at a hostel or residence while they attended the day school. In many large boarding-style residential schools ‘day scholars’ would go home at the end of the day as well but still faced the same treatment, day-to-day as the rest…

Métis Experience at Residential Schools

In the residential school era, Métis were not considered ‘Indians’ legally, under Canada’s Indian Act. They were considered the responsibility of the provincial governments and often education and health support for Métis fell into a jurisdictional gap between these levels of government. In large boarding-style residential schools, Métis were often considered ‘outsiders’ and their attendance at the schools depended on a number of different variables. At the end of the nineteenth century, Métis were cast as ‘rebellious’ and were often considered to be ‘the dispossessed’.   Use the controls on the grey bar below to access more viewing options and…