Tag Archives: Canada

My Research Findings – 2

One of my concerns for my research assignment is emotion. Coming from a scientific background and being in the industry of metrology, measuring is important to understanding. For example, how does a person know how far they will have to travel if there was no measurement of distance? This same thought process is occurring when I am attempting to associate emotion among First Nation people. One website noted some valuable information to help me better understand the direction I am wanting to take my research assignment to.

http://www.tier360.com/creativecms/pages/can-emosions-measured

There is huge economical value in the measurement of emotion in the business industry. It made me consider how indigenous people would recognize and become emotionally concerned with symbols. Example is the Thunderbird and the Whale. From one tribe to another, they could mean different things.

Another note relating to Module 2 is the aspect of how media can affect the self-recognition. I noted in the social media that the actor Adam Sandler had some dispute with fellow Native actors. It appears that Adam did not intend to upset his fellow Native actors by the script. My question is, why did it affect those actors enough for them to walk off the stage during mid-production?

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/04/23/native-actors-walk-set-adam-sandler-movie-after-insults-women-elders-160110

Our class module did note that emotion could be considered to be deeply embedded into Aboriginal culture, so how can we associate that emotional aftermath from the actor and the script that was meant to be humorous. There a few releases from Adam noting that “the movie has ridiculous in the title for a reason: because it is ridiculous. It is a broad satire of Western movies and the stereotypes they popularized, featuring a diverse cast that is not only part of — but in on — the joke.” So is it ok since he makes fun of other cultures and beliefs? How does this satire affect the view of each culture represented?

http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Netflix-Defends-Adam-Sandler-Native-Americans-Walk-Off-His-Movie-71059.html

Another notice during my research is the suicide rates among first nation people. Could this be related to emotion or lack of understanding on emotion. The Globe and Mail had an article indicating that suicide is a deep concern. There is a sense of hopelessness, which struck me after watching the video for our module. So, after reading that article my question is how can we view hope then? I agree that hope is not an action plan, but what does it provide for people and more specifically, for First Nation people. Is the term hope part of the culture of First Nations in British Columbia? Now going from different sources, I am noticing a variation of statistics. My concern at that point is how do we determine which information is correct? If we are putting the community on a state of emergency, what is the guidelines to initate? Is it when 1 in 10 people are attempting suicide? If the preventative methods are not effective, according to who?

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/british-columbia/cowichan-chief-says-sense-of-hopelessness-leads-to-suicides/article4178628/

Angela Wilson is forcing readers to question the authenticity and the source of our writings. I like this resource since it is ensuring that as I write my research assignment, that I want to consider the source of information that I will be obtaining it from. All of our discussion posts are asking critical questions that cause the audience to bring about their own interpretation of the information read. What drives our interpretation? As Dr. Brown noted, that any of our thoughts are started by an emotion, we feel something before we think something. Emotion takes precedent to our thoughts and actions.

http://pages.ucsd.edu/~rfrank/class_web/ES-114A/Week%203/WilsonHistoryAIQ20-1.pdf

Unfortunately, I cannot remember the source of this information but I remember awhile back someone noted to me this:

Our being can be identified as this:

Our Input determines our actions. The repeated action will define our behaviour. A collection of behaviours will develop our character, and our character is what will bring about our legacy.

Input is affected by the surroundings, environment, educators, and community.

Input–> Action –> Behaviour –> Character –> Legacy

I try to keep this in mind whenever I am analyzing myself/life and circumstance.

Fashion and Indigenous Representation

The two links below both concern fashion, representation of Indigenous people, and the use of social media.

Got Land? Thank an Indian

A Saskatchewan school created a controversy when they disallowed teenager Tenelle Star, a member of the Star Blanket First Nation,  from wearing her sweat shirt which read “Got Land?” on the front, and “Thank an Indian” on the back to school. After discussions with the school board, and First Nations leaders, the she was permitted to wear her shirt. But, the student was harassed on  social media, and eventually her parents felt it was safer for her to close her Facebook account.

Tactless T-shirts by Big Retailers

Vans

Vans was selling a t-shirt with an image of a beer can totem pole. A  Métis man from Vancouver, Chad Girardin, created a social media campaign via a  Change.org petition.  The petition asked Vans to remove the “Wizard Totem” shirt, and requested a formal apology. The shirt was removed from the shelves.

Gap

“Manifest Destiny was the catch phrase which led to the genocide of millions of my people, millions of Indigenous people throughout this country.”

Of course, Vans in not the first big company, to make such a faux pas. A few years ago  the Gap was selling a shirt with the catch phrase “Manifest Destiny“. That was the “term was used to justify American expansion into the west during the 19th century”. Again it was through a social media campaign that the company was forced to remove the t-shirt from their shelves.


 

References

 

Myth Busting: Aboriginal Peoples in Canada

Screen Shot 2015-11-29 at 4.43.16 PMIn 2012 the TD bank put together a report, entitled Debunking Myths Surrounding Canada’s Aboriginal Population. based on their own findings and the findings of the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business. The purpose was to set the record straight, and replace stereotypes with facts to foster an enlightened national conversation.

References

Cultural Competency – Working With Aboriginal Peoples: A non-Native Perspective

https://zone.biblio.laurentian.ca/dspace/bitstream/10219/1986/1/NSWJournalV8_article7.pdf

This article is from the perspective of a non-Native social worker working in a Native social work program.  He speaks of the harsh realities that First Nations people have endured and how working in this program has enlightened his perspective immensely.   His overall understanding of cultural competency and Aboriginal issues is beneficial is assisting and providing the level of support needed in crisis.  He speaks of his interest in working in the Native Social work program and the obstacles he faced due to being non-Native.  He understood that he required some background knowledge so enrolled in as many Aboriginal courses he could.  He came to understand that First Nations people were one of the most oppressed group, and because of this, what better group to teach people about oppression and resilience.  

Module 4 post 1

4.4: Reporting in Indigenous Communities

Website: http://www.riic.ca/

This website is a resource for journalists who work with indigenous communities. It was created by Duncan McCue, who is a CBC journalist. McCue has also been a professor at the UBC School of Journalism. I found the most useful section of the website to be a Reporter’s Checklist. While the is written with a great deal of humour, it also serves as a valuable list of cultural concerns journalists should be mindful of when working in indigenous communities (e.g., Have you requested permission to film or photograph a ceremony? What are the protocols about naming, or using the image of, a deceased person in this Aboriginal community?). In the Teachings section, reporters who have worked with indigenous communities are encouraged to leave blog posts about their experiences in an effort to build “collective wisdom”. The Resources section is a collection of links to sites that can help reporters build their understanding of indigenous issues in Canada.

First Nations Governance

Screen Shot 2015-11-11 at 9.02.23 AM

The Centre for First Nations Governance is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting First Nations groups in Canada as they return to self-governance. The website  provides news, workshop toolkits, research and educational information.

The are some PDF’s which can be used in the classroom to educate students about the First Nations history. In particular, the interactive historical timeline of First Nations Governance is something that could engage students.

 

PowWow at Duck Lake

The National Film Board of Canada has a collection of 39 films about the Aboriginal Peoples of Canada. The collection covers a wide range of topics such as the arts, government relations, spirituality, and urban life.

PowWow at Duck Lake

PowWow at Duck Lake

The short documentary film, PowWow at Duck Lakecovers a discussion at Duck Lake, Saskatchewan. Indian-Métis problems, such as education, and lack of opportunities for Native youth, are are discussed in a gathering of Native and white community members.

PowWow at Duck Lake by ONFB, National Film Board of Canada

mediaINDIGENA Podcast

This podcast by mediaINDIGENA discusses James Daspchuk’s book Clearing the Plains: Disease, Politics of Starvation, and the Loss of Aboriginal Life, and Canada’s Aboriginal policy of displacement through starvation.

“Western Canada lost a third of the population within six years.”

The mediaINDIGENA site is a a multimedia, interactive e-magizine which is a collection of works by 10 Aboriginal bloggers.

3.3: Indigenous Feature Film Production in Canada: A National and International Perspective

Study can be found at this website

This is a large study by ImagineNative Film and Media Arts Festival that examines Aboriginal film production in Canada. This study makes the case that First Nations’ stories represent a huge untapped resource in Canada. Canada’s film industry has not yet fully explored the stories of indigenous peoples. Not only are these stories important to our collective identity as Canadians, but they also enormous commercial potential.

CBC Digital Archives: Native Issues

By Canadian Broadcasting Corporation [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

The CBC Digital Archives website includes a collection of archives about native issues. Many of the archive stories include video or audio clips and summary lists of ‘Did You Knows’ which list key facts. In addition, some of the archives have lesson plans already created for teachers to use. The archives cover a range of topics including, treaty rights, land claims, native literature and key historic events.