The COVID 19 pandemic impacted communities and groups of people in very different ways. As a teacher, I was forced into a learning curve where I worked from home and was then very quickly brought back into the classroom by June of 2020. I felt as though I was being pushed around from place to place and I was unsure of the circumstances. During this time, I tried to remain thankful that I was privileged enough to work from home when necessary, and I had a job to return to. During this time, I had access to technology and the many benefits it easily provided me including communication with loved ones, media, education sites, etc. Other than the need and hope for people and my loved ones to remain safe and healthy, I was generally alright.
This article was a nice place to pause and reflect on the impact that technology had on Indigneous communities including their culture and methods of communication. McIvor et. al. (2020) argue that the “pandemic crisis that hit in the first part of 2020 had the potential to silence and deprioritize language work, reducing it to non-critical activity” (p. 409). The article explores the impacts and challenges as well as the language opportunities that were provided in consequence of or in tandem with the pandemic. The authors argue that Indigenous communities demonstrated resilience through collective strength, rather than individual strength, which was “carried through by language”. They argue language is deeply connected to wellness, and that when the “pandemic threatened individual and community wellness, we had to consider how we sustain our languages” (McIvor et. al., 2020).
The article describes the need for “digital connection” in order to “strengthen and shift [their] movement to continue Indigneous languages into time immemorial” (McIvor et. al., 2020).
McIvor, O., Chew, K. A., & Stacey, K. I. (2020). Indigenous language learning impacts, challenges and opportunities in COVID-19 times. AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples, 16(4), 409–412.