Small (2020) describes how Indigenous women have created mixed media murals that focus on democratic participation, employment challenges and gender-based violence; these murals can be interacted with, and impart powerful lessons about colonization and its effects to the users. In essence, these murals act as ‘Calls-to-Action’ (CTA) to participate in activism and social justice initiatives.
You can listen to audio montages and witness the girls transform into various careers, such as healthcare workers, teachers, etc. (Small, 2020), inspiring other Indigenous girls to pursue their aspirations. This initiative highlights a great point of intersectionality: indigeneity and feminism, combining the adversities faced by Indigenous women (e.g., cases of missing and murdered women, police brutality) and their aspirations (e.g., careers and social justice).
Figure 1. The “Barrier Breakers” piece deals with overcoming workplace barriers. (n.d.). Prairie Rose Photography. Prairie Rose Photography. Retrieved June 10 from https://sites.google.com/ualberta.ca/sweetgrassar/home.
The initiative also features a girl with a red handprint over her mouth (Small, 2020), symbolizing how Indigenous women have had to combat with the powers-that-be attempting to silence their vocalizations to raise awareness about both the past and the present. The project demonstrates the dynamic multimedia capabilities to Indigenous female creators and their ingenuity to advocate for their rights.
References
Small, K. (2020, July 30). Indigenous women create augmented reality murals tackling inequalities, showing strength for Calgary. Global News. https://globalnews.ca/news/7224302/usay-indigenous-women-calgary-murals/