Inuit Youth in a Changing World 

Condon Richard G.

CSQ Issue: 12.2 (Summer 1988) Hydroelectric Dams and Indigenous Peoples

In his article, “Inuit Youth in a Changing World”, Condon Richard G. examines the social, cultural and economic changes that have faced Inuit youth, namely the Copper Inuit of the Holman region in the Canadian Arctic over the past generation, especially pertaining to the shift from a nomadic to a more sedentary lifestyle. The author’s opening sentence emphasizes the “host of challenges and dilemmas” that face Inuit youth in a rapidly changing world, however, the body of his article gives almost equal weight to the possible advantages that said change has entailed. Of these advantages, the author particularly sheds light on the economic and educational. On the other hand, the author indicates that “many young people lack sufficient employment opportunities, are inadequately prepared for advanced high schooling and are unwilling or unable to relocate to larger northern communities where jobs are more available.” The author then carries on to trace said adjustment dilemmas, at least in part, to high rates of alcohol and drug abuse, suicide and juvenile delinquency, which, according to the author, “are characteristics of Inuit teenagers and young adults throughout the North.” I dare to say, the author has misread the misfortune of Inuit youth, and has placed the proverbial carriage before the horse. What the author nonchalantly describes as “characteristics of Inuit teenagers” in a matter-of-fact kind of way is, in my opinion, the elephant in the room. Such behavioral problems are not, as the author implies, the reason why Inuit youth find trouble adjusting in a rapidly changing world, but the effect of it. The author totally understates the potentially debilitating effect of a waning family and indigenous community ethos, and the endangerment of a rich and vibrant indigenous culture. The scholar’s disregard for the sense of alienation and socio-cultural disorientation cannot simply be redeemed by his subsequent overview of the Inuit’s social history, recent demographic, economic and cultural changes. At the end, the author concludes that more research is needed to better understand the implications of change on Inuit youth. However, I feel that no amount of research, data-collection and statistics can make up for a lack of a deep understanding and appreciation of Inuit culture and the extent of loss associated with its endangerment.

Source: http://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/canada/inuit-youth-changing-world