Category Archives: Personal Growth and Identity

Aboriginal Day – Musqueam Visit

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T-shirt I bought from the event

 

On June 21, 2013, Dani and I visited the Musqueam Community Centre for Aboriginal Day. This was the first time that I have ever took part in an Aboriginal celebration, so I was super nervous the whole time I was there. Despite my nervousness, I tried to experience everything that I could – I watched a “Witness” ceremony, a couple of groups performed, the elders were acknowledged and respected, the food was so delicious, I visited the Baskets for Barter exhibit, I looked at all the arts and crafts at the stands, and much more. The people there were so amazing and friendly, I felt very welcomed there. It was definitely a different experience for me – experiencing a different culture – but it was fascination to see and learn about. Dani and I walked also around the reserve and I absolutely loved how quiet and close-knit the community was. It’s interesting that all this time, there was a reserve so close to UBC, yet I’ve never seen or heard about it before…

I am so appreciative that Dani and I were invited to attend this celebration, because I must admit, I had some pretty stereotypical ideas on what the reserve might look like before visiting there. This experience has definitely made me reflect on my lack of knowledge for the Aboriginal peoples, and how many people today still have these stereotypical ideas.

 

In case you’re wondering, yes, I ate all that crab!

 

 

Truth and Reconciliation

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Uploaded on Flickr Creative Commons by Doggie52

“Truth and Reconciliation” is what leads to healing, understanding, love, and friendship after a long and hurtful argument or fight, in any shape or form. One example of this in our history was when residential schools were put in place in 1875. This was definitely a very long and hurtful fight that Canada’s government imposed onto Aboriginal peoples.

I believe that truth comes before reconciliation – the truth needs to be heard before things get better. Similarly, in relationships, there needs to be communication and dialogue with each other about the issues, and there may be a lot of arguing and hurtful things said and done, but only then can true understanding happen and the road towards a better friendship walked upon.

At this point and time in my life, I am still on the path of truth. Just when I thought I knew everything there was to know about residential schools, I find out more. Currently, I am in the Elementary Education Program at UBC, and it was mandatory that I take the Aboriginal education class. Here, I learned for the first time what residential schools were. My teacher brought in a speaker to talk about her ancestors’ experiences, and I must admit, a lot of the teacher candidates in that class were resistant and repelled by how the speaker spoke to us – angry. I was one of these teacher candidates, resistant and unwilling to learn because I was put in a situation and a mood that I was not comfortable with. Needless to say, I completed that class knowing more knowledge about Aboriginal peoples, but my views were not always positive and I was still fearful of teaching Aboriginal education and speaking about these issues.

Now I am a practicum student at the CTLT at UBC, learning from Amy Perreault for three weeks. We had a discussion about my experiences in the program, especially the one mentioned above. What really impacted me was when Amy talked about how “anger” is an emotion that is allowed to be felt, and that it is part of the healing process. This made me reflect upon how I expected the speaker that came into my class to tell me more about the truth, but I wanted her to speak to me in a a specific way – a way that I’m used to. My definition of truth at that time was a synonym for knowledge. I disregarded the “emotion” that comes with truth, not accepting her anger or thinking that it was appropriate. I realize now that I had a great opportunity, right in front of me, to learn the truth about residential schools. I could have learned and felt so much more from the speaker if I truly understood what truth was. Now, only a couple of days after that discussion with Amy, I am learning so much more than I expected here at CTLT, partly because my eyes are now open. I am more comfortable with dialogue about these issues and about Aboriginal peoples, I am more willing to ask questions, and I now feel I am starting to understand the truth.

My journey so far at the CTLT allowed me to think about my own teaching on Aboriginal education. I went through 22 years of my life not fully understanding what was happening, and not taught the real truth. When I start teaching, my hope is that I teach about emotion and how they are natural things to feel. To fully understand the truth, a balance of emotion and knowledge is needed – if I do bring in an “angry” speaker, there must be a discussion on “why”. Only then can the road to reconciliation be closer in view in the long distance ahead.

Education for Aboriginal Students at UBC: Historical Timeline

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This historical timeline is a really great way for students to learn about Canada’s history, alongside UBC’s history. Quite often, students feel a sense of distance when learning about history, thinking that it isn’t relevant to their lives today. However, looking at the timeline (which shows Aboriginal Students at UBC, Events at UBC, and BC/Canadian Context categories side-by-side), I found that I was able to relate a lot more to my country’s history because I recognized names like First Nations Longhouse and Totem Park under the “Aboriginal Students at UBC” column.

While comparing what was happening at UBC and Canada, I found that there were some discrepancies – it was surprising to see that at times, the history did not match. For example, in 1927, Musqueam house posts were presented to UBC as a gift, but in the same year, the government added Section 141 into the Indian Act, which did not allow Indians to hire lawyers or legal counsels. It seemed that the Musqueam were trying to be welcoming to UBC, but on a bigger scale, the government passed a bill where they were not allowed to fight for their rights. This was odd to me, but interesting at the same time to see how history and intentions can be so different in two places at the same point in time.

Going back to the idea that this timeline is much more “relatable” to students, I found it really fun to place myself in the timeline. I really enjoyed reading about what was happening when I was born, when I was in grade 1, and especially when my grandmother and mother were born. Since my family is from China, they did not know what was happening on this side of the earth. Yet, what was happening made a huge impact on their lives today. Placing myself in the timeline also made me realize how oblivious I was to everything that was happening around me. For example, in 1996, I was in grade 1 at 6-years-old. This was also the year that the last residential school closed. Knowing this fact now, I do not know why I was never taught about residential schools, especially when I, myself, was in school. It’s a very weird feeling realizing that when I was attending school without any problems, there were Aboriginal children attending schools too, but in a completely opposite setting.

I definitely learned a lot through this timeline and activity. History was quite “fun” when I put myself onto the timeline to see what was happening during those years. If I were to do this activity in the classroom, I would get my students to make a timeline of their own lives first (just to get used to the idea of what a timeline is), and then try to mesh their timeline with the Historical Timeline. I would set expectations that they choose a certain number of historical events to mesh onto their timeline, and to explain and reason why they chose those specific events. I want my students to be able to relate to history, and not just memorize it. Giving them a set number to put on their timeline will allow them to really focus on those events, really relate to it, and to reason why they chose it.

Tour of UBC

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This word was put on a bench at UBC, meaning “Believe.” However, due to the lack of knowledge, the word was spelled wrong. All the e’s should have been schwa’s (ə). The bench has now been replaced with the correct spelling.

Sarah took Dani and me on a tour around UBC looking at knowledge of Musqueam presence on campus. This was an eye-opener for me in many ways. I did my undergraduate degree here at UBC (a total of 4 years), and not once did I ever notice any of the things Sarah showed us. This made me ask the question “why.”

When I was an undergraduate, I identified as a “student.” I needed to rush to get to classes, grab super quick lunches, and study study study! My mind was set on being focused – focused on tests, being on time, etc. My life was a back-and-forth relationship of going to school, then going home to sleep. There was no time to do anything else.

After taking the tour, I was amazed at how many “mistakes” there were on buildings, signs, etc. I do think it is great that UBC is starting to acknowledge that the land belongs to the Musqueam, but this acknowledgement becomes an insult when there are so many mistakes, especially when words are spelled wrong. I believe that this shows how so many people today have very little knowledge on Aboriginal culture and language. As a future educator, I hope I can help with changing this soon.