CulturalSurvival.org

This website is the work of a group of people who believe deeply that indigenous peoples have the right to be indigenous people – on their own lands, on their own terms. Members include preeminent indigenous leaders, anthropologists, philanthropists, entrepeneurs and the team is currently led by a human rights lawyer.

The homepage includes powerful images and statistics. There are links to important news items and a sign up for the email newsletter. Other links include publications, programs and what you can do.

This site would be very helpful for any one looking for information around language and cultural  preservation.

Creative Spirits

I came across this site linked to an actual Australian government website. I cruised through quite a bit of it before I actually worked my way back to the homepage. It was only then that I realized that this was a blog created by a non-Aboriginal. The following quote from the author really jumped out at me:

“I present Aboriginal culture in Australia from a different angle. While you can find many texts by white authors I like to involve Aboriginal authors, Aboriginal resources and even Aboriginal people themselves as much as possible.”

I’m quite confident that I would have noticed this statement in the past but after reading chapter four of the textbook and participating in the discussion threads I have to say I take issue with this. I’m curious to hear if others feel the same way.

The sites byline says it best

“Bridges to Understanding uses digital technology and the art of storytelling to empower and unite youth worldwide, enhance cross-cultural understanding and build global citizenship.”

They try to connect ‘middle and high school students in the developed world connect with their contemporaries in indigenous communities established in Peru, South Africa, India, and Guatemala.’

A great resource for a classroom teachers, this site includes student documentaries and curriculum resources.  The videocasts  create a ‘cyber-gallery’ (this one is for North America). You have to be patient the videos take a while to download

Media Awareness Network

 This is the site of a non profit organization dedicated to promoting digital and media literacy through education and awareness programs. Their goal is to have both adults and young people understand how media works. The site has information and resources for teachers as well as parents. There are over 200 lessons available for free for educators.

Specific issues covered at this site include:

Media Violence

Media Stereotyping 

Online Hate

Media and Canadian Cultural Policies

Of particular interest is the ongoing, longitudinal study started in 2000 which is tracking and investigating the behaviors, attitudes and opinions of Canadian youth with respect to their use of the

I just noticed that Al has also used this site. It obviously has much to offer and warrants some viewing by others in the class.

Off-reserve aboriginal people in Canada face “second” digital divide

The survey is done by stats Canada in the winter of 2004 :
www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-008-x/2004003/article/7732-eng.pdf

The study points to the fact that most off-reserve aboriginals live in rural areas and these areas tended to offer poorer Internet access

34 percent of urban aboriginal Internet users described their computer skills as “excellent”, but only 21 percent of rural users rated their skills at that level.

The survey suggests that aboriginal people have historically had less Internet access than other Canadians and aboriginal Internet users were “much more likely to be recent learners”, the study stated.

Conclusion: “a gap existed among Aboriginal users themselves, separating more experienced urban users from their rural counterparts”; hense creating a 2nd digital divide

Samson and Delilah an Australian film by Aboriginal director Warwick Thornton. I wanted to link this site as I have heard Thornton interviewed before. This film was nominated for an Academy Award in the Foreign Film category. Although it first appears as a basic trailer site as for any other movie I believe the links included make it worthy of a look. There is an interview where Thornton describes how the movie is based on real life experience and where he urges Australian to practice random acts of kindness.  

`Cinema is performance, that`s how us blackfellas have connected with it. It`s where we come from, with our storytelling. A lot of dreaming stories are about moral stories and news and teaching….that`s the way indigenous filmmakers are thinking.`Warwick Thornton.

As an alum of UWO, I often visit the Western NEws to see what is up. I cam e across this article that I know some of my classmates would use Online course preserves Mohawk language

David Kanatawakhon-Maracle, part of in the Department of Anthropology, teaches an online distance studies course called Introduction to the Mohawk Language. He uses MP3 recordings, combined with html to workbooks enabling students to click on the word and hear the pronunciation.

David believes “If you change a language, you change a culture and if you lose a language, you lose a culture,”

Blue Corn Comics

I stumbled upon this site when looking for some material for a class which was actually created by Native Americans. This is a jumping off point for several different publications such as Peace Party (A Multicultural graphic novel featuring Native Americans) and  Newspaper Rock ( A blog which describes itself as a place where Native American meets pop culture.

other important links:

Language preservation : Blue Comics offers a service which create comics in any tribal language. I found this particularly interesting as most students (especially boys) seem to be hooked on graphic novels.

Harmful Effects of Stereotyping

Seeking Native Writers

There is also stereotype of the month contest which includes commercials, prime time tv episodes etc. It includes links for educators. Overall I think an excellent site for using with students.

ImagineNative

I came across this site after listening to a program on CBC Radio One Saskatchewan. They were interviewing Aboriginal film makers and discussing stereotyping of Indigenous People. It was a very interesting interview to say the least and I have tried in vain to find an archive of the interview itself.

In a nutshell the film maker interviewed felt that by having films created by Aboriginals the stereotyping could be alleviated and more accurate portrayals of Aboriginal would find their way into the mainstream film industry. This site celebrates the diversity of Indigenous Peoples around the globe and serves as a place for industry insiders to network and celebrate the vitality and excellence of Indigenous art and culture in comtemporary media

http://etd.lib.montana.edu/etd/2006/miller/MillerH0506.pdf

This master’s thesis, submitted to Montana State University by Heather Miller in 2006, outlines the development of a Native American film theory. Inspired by Native American literary theory and relying on Creation Stories, Miller’s film theory attempts to address the issue of Native American identity in film.

For Miller, the four main components of her film theory are:

1. Community and Cultural Applications;
2. American Indian Thought;
3. Indian Semiotics; and
4. History and Politics

Although not technically a web-site, this thesis does contribute significantly to our understanding both of Native American film and of the ways in which Native American film is produced differently from non-Native American film.

David

Representation and Participation of First Nations Women in Online Videos

http://www.allacademic.com//meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/2/3/0/5/2/pages230529/p230529-12.php

“Online videos have the potential to contribute or create an alternative or Aboriginal public sphere if First Nations women or Indigenous women start developing or creating videos and sites for video sharing that are specific to their concerns.”

This is a paper that was presented at the International Communication Association in 2008 in Montreal, Quebec. Its topic is straightforward and it is a very interesting and topical paper because it deals with First Nations women’s representation in online video, such as Youtube. This can be very intriguing for younger students to hear about due to their interest in Youtube and other streaming video services. There is a critique of the representation of First Nations women in three online videos that is a very engaging read.

I chose to present this paper because I believe that using online videos can help present issues and beliefs in a way that is creative, and also easily created. The potential audience is very high, and without any outside influences the videos can offer an excellent cultural representation that is true to the vision of the author.

Rabbit Fall: Do You Believe?

http://communities.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/print.aspx?postid=255076

ResXtra

http://communities.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/blogs/rezxtra/default.aspx

Rabbit Falls is a new TV show created by Jennifer Podemski, who also produced the drama show Moccasin Flats. This article is a review of the show from the online magazine ResXtra. The review, although found in a CanWest newspaper offers some interesting insight about some of the issues with producing television shows that involve First Nations legends.

“When critics first came out against Moccasin Flats, saying the show didn’t properly portray Regina’s inner city and perpetuated the stereotype that it was, “Canada’s worst neighborhood” – the same could be said for Rabbit Fall.   Visit any First Nation community in Saskatchewan and you’re highly unlikely to find a community like Rabbit Fall.   Furthermore, in First Nation culture, the telling of First Nation oral stories are supposed to be kept sacred or else used only for education and not meant to be told through the mainstream.  So with that said, is Rabbit Fall stepping over the line?”

I found this critique to be interesting because of its criticism of the show using  First Nations stories in a commercial way. The writer even goes as far as to compare it to a science fiction show and then retorts with  “But on APTN, where it’s about “sharing our stories”, does Rabbit Fall really share our stories?” The article questions whether or not this show is culturally sensitive and pays respect to First Nations culture, or if it is simply entertainment, and should be taken as such.

First Nations Drum

http://www.firstnationsdrum.com/

This is another alternative news site for First Nations stories and articles from around Canada. I find the articles to be well written and representative of many different aspects of First Nations culture. Many of the articles found in this site are the type of news stories that the mainstream media may not devote the proper amount of attention to.

There is a search engine and an excellent archive links found on this site. My reason for choosing this page is because I feel that it is important to view alternative news sources when researching First Nations issues. It reflects the current module because it is important to examine media sources that are not western society based. This website offers an excellent archive that goes back 10 years and should be very useful in finding relevant information for a multitude of academic research projects.

The Tyee Aboriginal Affairs.

http://thetyee.ca/Blogs/TheHook/Aboriginal-Affairs/index1.html

The Tyee is an independent online magazine that offers a different commentary that what you will likely find in the mainstream media. http://thetyee.ca/About/Intro/ It is a locally based magazine that believes that many British Columbians “are hungry for news and comment that reflects their actual lives, their own values.”

This is a link to the Aboriginal affairs section of the magazine. It is updated fairly regularly (at least once a week) and offers news stories concerning Aboriginal issues that are often more locally based and from a more independent perspective.

I feel that this is a valuable resource to post because it offers a different, more sensitive portrayal of First Nations concerns that the mainstream media. It is certainly less sensationalist and provides a more accurate description of First Nations cultures and issues.

Xwi7xwa Library

First Nations Filmmaking

http://www.library.ubc.ca/xwi7xwa/film.htm

I thought that this page would make an excellent resource for anyone interested in First Nations filmmaking in Canada. This page offers links to a variety of different pages that involve First Nations filmmaking in Canada. There is actually little information on this web page. It is simply a link page, but has a large amount of relevant links that may be difficult to find otherwise.

I believe this to be an invaluable resource simply because of their sheer amount of relevant links provided.

Some links that I found particularly interesting are.

There are links to education programs for First Nations students on the Gulf Islands and in Vancouver.

Aboriginal Program (Gulf Islands Film and Television School) http://www.giftsfilms.com/index.cfm?page_name=courses_calendar&view=COURSES_PROGRAM&gen_id=4

Indigenous Independent Digital Filmmaking (Capilano College) http://www.capilanou.ca/future/calendar/current/fine/indigenousfilm.html

The associations section had some intriguing links as well, although they are not necessarily Canadian based.

American Indian Film Institute Media arts centre that encourages using media to express Native voices http://www.aifisf.com/

Native Networks (Smithsonian) Listing of Aboriginal Film/Video Organizations from North and South America http://www.nativenetworks.si.edu/Eng/yellow/fv_orgs.htm

Media Awareness Network – The Impact of Stereotyping on Young People (focus on Aboriginal people)

Description & Relevancy

This article on the Media Awareness Network examines the negative impact of stereotypes in media on aboriginal people, as the Harding study in this module did. It also highlights positive changes in some avenues of Canadian media to show new sensitivities and support for cultural diversity.

The broader Media Awareness Network website promotes critical thinking in young people about the media and compliments the information Sandra has recently posted on critical thinking and media.

Links

• Article
• Media Awareness Network (about)

The Center for Media Literacy is dedicating to promoting media literacy education as a framework for incorporating the following skills into media studies:  accessing, analyzing, evaluating, creating and participating with media content.

Critical Viewing and Critical Thinking Skills article found on this site is applicable to Indigenous media.

As Indigenous people use media more and more to revitalize and document their history and culture, it is important that when viewing these media products that are about or are produced by Indigenous  people, that they are viewed with a critical eye.   “Critical Viewing and Critical Thinking Skills” written by David Considine’s, is posted on the Center for Media Literacy site.  Considine states that deconstructing media representations means that one has to let go of “seeing is believing” or “what you see is what you get”.   He also stressed the need to understand what we see. In his article, he outlines 5 elements for reading media which can help people view media products  more critically.

Other links on this website that are of interest:

What is Critical Viewing?

Where Media Literacy Fits in the World of Education

Teaching Media Literacy: Yo! Are you Hip to This?

Center for Media logo [Online Image]. (n.d.). Retrieved November 17, 2009, from CML website. http://www.medialit.org/default.html

The Roundtable discussion of the pros and cons of the Internet for Indigenous peoples is located on the Earthwatch Institute’s website.   The discussion features Dr. Sharon Bohn Gmelch and Reuel Daniels from Union College, Robyn Kamira from the Maori tribal groups of Te Rarawa and Te Aupouri,  John Afele, originally from Ghana, is the director of the International Program for Africa at the University of Guelph, Ontario, and Rodney Bobiwash, who was a member of the Anishnabek Nation, on the north shore of Lake Huron, Canada.

The Earthwatch Institute’s mission statement is “To find solutions to sustainability and open minds through the practice of scientific field research.”  Other interesting articles found on this site include:

A Loss for Words By Michael Krauss – “Over half of the world’s 6,000 languages will not survive our children’s generation. Can we protect our cultural diversity?”

The Accidental Empire by Nini Bloch – “Globalization may not be intended to create an empire based on Western culture, but it is having that effect all the same. A look at the past gives us insight on how cultural diversity weathers hegemony.”

Earthwatch logo [Online Image]. (n.d.). Retrieved November 17, 2009, from Earthwatch website. http://www.wadsworth.com/anthropology_d/special_features/ext/earthwatch/rt.html

Vanishing Voices

Description and Relevancy

This is a link to the digital version of the Calgary Herald which is currently featuring a 3 part series on the struggle to protect vanishing and extinct First Nations languages in Southern Alberta.  I thought it quite timely for a couple of reasons. Firstly, the first article examines the perspective of technology and language for these endangered languages at several points. Secondly considering the Robert Harding article in our current module, that examines constructed stereotypes of Aboriginal people in newsprint media, I examined the article closely to detect any of the stereotypes that Harding and previous studies identified.

Links

Part 1

• Article and Video
• Related Story on Language Classes @ Siksika High School
• Image Gallery

Part 2

• Saving Tsuu T’ina: Band hopes new program can revive language, tradition

Part 3 (Will Update)

The more information I came across the more I am forced to realise that I will end up proving the opposite of what I set out to prove in my investigation. I planned to see what educational policies have been implemented and by means of a literature search make some recommendations for indigenous education in my state. Now I am aware of how little knowledge I have and I am ashamed of how paternalistic my ideas were. This site that I visited and the previous articles I have read have shown me how I must give up my pre-conceived ideas and learn to listen to what each indigenous group has to say. I have learned that each group has its own identity and it is not possible to make blanket judgments.  This site is in English and French, but not in any of the aboriginal languages. A month ago I would have been impressed, but now I am more critical of sites that are written about, but not for First Nation people.  

http://www.ccl-cca.ca/CCL/AboutCCL/KnowledgeCentres/AboriginalLearning/index.htm