Tag Archives: decolonization

Mod 4, Post 2 – Ignored to death – Brian Sinclair

This is the second story (or might have been the first one, I can’t remember) that sparked my interest in learning more about discrimination and racism in health care and how this happens. While I’m not an emergency room nurse, and never have been, I still find it disheartening that this still happens in today’s world. It’s disgusting and discouraging. It wasn’t even a health care professional that discovered this man dead in the waiting room chairs, it was a visitor.

His death was so easily preventable, if only someone had actually assessed him or even spoken to him to find out why he was there, instead of just making erroneous assumptions.

It is especially discouraging to hear that this happened in an area that services a large population of Indigenous people. Is this assumption so ingrained in our system that this can happen, and continues to happen? Unfortunately, this is a story that continues to happen even today.

Geary, A. (2017, September 18). Ignored to death: Brian Sinclair’s death caused by racism, inquest inadequate, group says. CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/winnipeg-brian-sinclair-report-1.4295996

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/winnipeg-brian-sinclair-report-1.4295996

Mod 3, Post 5: In plain sight

This document, In plain sight: Addressing Indigenous-specific racism and discrimination in BC health care is an important document that all health care providers in BC should read, and should be expanded for use in the rest of Canada. There is a content warning at the beginning that the document may contain subjects that could trigger an emotional response in people, as well as some resources for people so affected.

This is a message of hope, in that this has happened and continues to happen, but there are things that can be done to educate and inform all health care professionals.

I also like the way the introduction discusses ‘willful ignorance’. This concept is prevalent through our society today. There is so much available out there to listen to, to hear, and try to understand, that there is really no excuse to not be educated about Indigenous issues and context.

This report is a right step – if only it could be more emphasized in main stream health care and with all health care professionals. Making it easier to find and more pronounced on the bc gov website would be a further step forward.

White-Hill, E., & desLibris – Documents. (2021). In plain sight: Addressing indigenous-specific racism and discrimination in B.C. health care. Camosun College

https://engage.gov.bc.ca/app/uploads/sites/613/2020/11/In-Plain-Sight-Summary-Report.pdf

Mod 3, Post 4: Nursing Education responds to the truth & reconciliation report

This article was published in the International Journal of Nursing Education Scholarship and has some insights that are directly linked to our course material. It discusses the unique needs of Indigenous nursing students. It directly links themes from pedagogy and the work of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to help identify the challenges and rewards of working with Indigenous nursing students to promote more Indigenous nurses into the profession. This is an excellent article that I used heavily in my paper.

The image above, I took from a CBC News report discussing the theme of my paper – to help heal the poor relationship between the health care system and Indigenous people, more Indigenous nurses and understanding of Indigenous health issues is required in health care.

Lane, A., & Petrovic, K. (2018). Educating aboriginal nursing students: Responding to the truth and reconciliation report. International Journal of Nursing Education Scholarship, (1) doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/ijnes-2017-0064

photo credit: Sterritt, A. (2017, May 11). More Indigenous nurses needed to change health-care system, practitioners say. CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/strength-of-indigenous-nurses-highlighted-on-national-day-1.4110129

Module 3: Post 3 – First Peoples: A guide for newcomers

The city of Vancouver has various documents that outline many of the resources and services that can be found in Vancouver. From Parks and Recreation to City Council to Housing to Businesses, there is a wide gamut of information available. This booklet was developed by the city of Vancouver for new immigrants and people new to Canada.

While I don’t know the second author, Jane Henderson, I am familiar with Kori Wilson. Kori is an Indigenous lawyer living on the Musqeum reserve in Vancouver. She has a wealth of knowledge about many things Indigenous, the colonizer history in British Columbia and Canada and has family members who are residential school survivors. She knows what she is talking about, and I am glad that she authored this booklet with the City of Vancouver, so it is imbued with her Indigenous perspective. It is informative, though I’m not sure how the information is received by newcomers to BC. It is a pdf document buried on the City of Vancouver website, and is not immediately apparent when looking at the website. It should be featured more prominently on the website and be easier to access. You have to have a certain amount of knowledge to be able to research (in English) and find the document on the website. There is also the literacy factor that requires a certain level of reading and comprehension, again in English, to understand the information presented. There is a great ‘myths vs facts’ section, but again, if it’s not accessible on the website, the information gets lost.

It is an interesting read, for sure!

Wilson, K., & Henderson, J. (2013, March 3). First peoples: A guide for newcomers. Vancouver.Ca. https://vancouver.ca/files/cov/First-Peoples-A-Guide-for-Newcomers.pdf

//vancouver.ca

MODULE 4-ENTRY 3: Indigenous Corporate Training Inc.

Indigenous Corporate Training Inc. provides information on this blog for free as a resource for those seeking information about Indigenous Peoples in Canada.

Also, ICT encourages everyone who reads this information to use their best judgment given their own circumstances, vulnerabilities, and needs, and to contact a consulting or legal professional

if you have more specific questions. people can join the conversation over on its Linkedin page.

This blog guides to Working Effectively with Indigenous Peoples®. There are hundreds of articles loaded with tips, suggestions, videos, and free eBooks for you.

The article elaborates the concept of decolonization in various aspects and suggests the free e-book on indigenous self-government.

https://www.ictinc.ca/blog/a-brief-definition-of-decolonization-and-indigenization

https://www.ictinc.ca/blog/what-you-need-to-know-about-indigenous-language-revitalization

M3, Entry 4: Decolonization and Indigenization resource collection

Module 3: Decolonization and Indigenous Property Rights

Entry 4: Decolonization and Indigenization resource collection

This post on UBC’s NITEP (Indigenous Teacher Education Program) page is a collection of resources created to support educators in decolonizing education and indigenizing their teaching. The resources shared are from a variety of Canadian provinces and also one from Australia (8 Ways of Knowing Framework) that I hadn’t seen before.

Diving deeper into the 8 Ways of Knowing Framework, I found the protocol page which states, “if you use something, give something back.” This is a good reminder for me as I seek out resources and begin the process of decolonizing my teaching practice: Reciprocation is part of the process. I cannot achieve this goal in isolation, but rather within a larger community.

NITEP. (2021, January 18). Indigenous education digital resources: From toolkits and reports to guides and frameworks, find resources that will help decolonize learning and indigenize teaching. UBC Faculty of Education NITEP. https://nitep.educ.ubc.ca/january-18-2021-indigenous-education-digital-resources-from-toolkits-and-reports-to-guides-and-frameworks-find-resources-that-will-help-decolonize-learning-and-indigenize-teaching/

Protocol. (July 9, 2021). 8 Ways. https://www.8ways.online/our-protocol

M3, Entry 2: Coordination Deal

Module 3: Decolonization and Indigenous Property Rights

Entry 2: Coordination Deal

These CBC and APTN news stories report on a historic moment when Cowessess First Nation became the first First Nation to take control over their child welfare system. This announcement reminds us that decolonization affects not only education, but other systems in our society.

This week’s readings about building collaborative relationships with Elders, communities, educators, and parents to design culturally responsive education systems highlighted the need for families to have control over child rearing (McGregor, 2012).

The steps taken today and in the future to ensure that children can be raised in their own communities also plays a role in building a strong, culturally responsive education system.

APTN News. (2021, July 6). Cowessess First Nation signs $39M deal to implement child welfare system. APTN National News. https://www.aptnnews.ca/national-news/cowessess-first-nation-signs-39m-deal-to-implement-child-welfare-system/

Bosivert, N. (2021, July 6). Trudeau signs agreement returning child welfare responsibilities to Cowessess First Nation. CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/pm-cowessess-child-welfare-1.6092236

McGregor, H. E. (2012). Curriculum change in Nunavut: Towards Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit. McGill Journal of Education, 47(3), 285-302.

M3-P5 Decolonizing Water EC-GPS

“Learning is connected to place. Epistemologies, ontologies and indeed, cosmologies are generated from and connected to the land and water. For us, land and water are not only sites of learning, but are also actively involved in the process of education” http://decolonizingwater.ca/our-approach/#two-eyed-seeing

McGregor (2012) article, “Traditional Knowledge: Considerations for Protecting Water in Ontario” looks at the water crisis impacting Indigenous communities in Ontario and around the world. She determines that “Western science and technologies have prevented full and equal participation of Indigenous peoples in water management and is contributing to the loss and degradation of water” (p.2). However, she acknowledges that a holistic approach needs to be taken and recognizes that the “tools of science, applied appropriately, can aid us, we must turn to the traditions and knowledge that did not fail us for thousands of years to find a real solution”(McGregor, 2012, p.24).

The Decolonizing Water project is a great example of minds and perspectives coming together. The venture was developed within the Geography Department at the University of British Columbia and the goal of the project “is to create a self-sustaining water and ecological monitoring program that will enhance protection of water resources and fulfill the promise of Indigenous water governance” (Decolonizing Water).

This project brings together non-indigenous and Indigenous students, artists, lawyers, Elders, and professors to find solutions for water issues that meld Indigenous law and modern scientific knowledge. The team is “committed to reciprocally enabling respectful Community-Based Research and observing OCAP (Ownership, Control, Access and Possession) protocols” (Decolonizing Water). In other words, the research and data is owned by the Indigenous communities and they then preserve the right over who can access and use the data.

One such innovation, The EC-GPS Water Logger which is a low-cost, easy to assemble device that tests water quality. This technology enables communities to conduct fresh water monitoring with simple instructions and parts that can be easily accessed even in remote communities. This invention originated at a “Water Bush Camp organized by Caleb Behn (then-Executive Director of Keepers of the Water), in the traditional territory of Halfway River, Saulteau, and West Moberly First Nations at Carbon Lake in 2015. The logger is an adaptation of a device built by Dr. Mark Johnson (UBC) to log and monitor water in remote and humid environments in the tropics” (Decolonizing Water).

Please watch the video below to see the Water Bush Came meet up.

The Invention:

I started the think of the SS9 key skill: “What perspectives do different groups (environmental groups, First Peoples) have on the use of natural resources” and the Spiritual dimension Howe (1998) discusses in his tribalism framework. This source suggests that technology, relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples can assist in preservation of water, which is a sacred entity (McGregor, 2012).

Module 3 Post 4: Emotions about Colonialism and Decolonization

I invite you to take a moment to watch this webinar series – “Alliance Building in the Academy and in the Community: The Role of Decolonizing and Indigenizing” (Simon Fraser University, 2020). Although my initial intentions were to find Indigenous voices, I am starting to realize that as a non-Indigenous educator I also need to hear the experiences of other non-Indigenous people. One of the main concepts I take away from this resource is about feelings/emotions. Emotions about colonialism and decolonization are tricky to deal with. We may feel anger, denial, fear, guilt, and so on. We also carry emotions from other aspects of our lives and these can have an impact on how we respond to colonialism and decolonization. These feelings play an important role in how we relate or don’t relate to each other.

I found this webinar very engaging and I hope you do too.

https://www.sfu.ca/cee/events/decolonization-indigenization.html

Reference:

Simon Fraser University. (2020 November, 10). Alliance building in the academy and in the community: The role of decolonizing and Indigenizing. In Decolonizing and Indigenization webinar series. https://www.sfu.ca/cee/events/decolonization-indigenization.html

Module 3, Post 1 – Decolonization cannot be done alone

Decolonization is a process. Decolonization means collaboration. Collaboration means listening, building trust, creating mutual relationships. Non-Indigenous educators often feel fear, fear of appropriation or misrepresentation. This fear may be caused by lack of trust and lack of relationships that we have with Indigenous colleagues and communities.

Reference

Sloan, W. (2018, January). Decolonizing the classroom is more than just a checklist. Ryerson Today, Ryerson University. https://www.ryerson.ca/news-events/news/2018/01/decolonizing-the-classroom-is-more-than-just-a-checklist/