FNIS Reflection

I decided to sign up for First Nations and Indigenous Studies (FNIS) to learn more about this amazing culture that I belong to. As a First Nations woman, I believe I owed it to myself and to my culture to learn more about my roots and where I come from.  One of the first things we discussed was identity and what it means to you. This topic was important to me because I, along with many others, struggle with identity in a society where if you don’t meet certain societal expectations, people have trouble grasping that you are in fact Indigenous. Another topic that stood out to me were the units on land and how traditional land has been usurped from Indigenous people in BC without treaty or permission. The land that many of us live on and learn on is unceded Musqueam territory, stolen from the Musqueam people because settler-colonizers decided it was theirs. Most recently we’ve been discussing Canadian residential schools and the TRC (the Truth and Reconciliation Commission). This topic is hard and hits home because many people in my community were affected by it and continue to feel the repercussions of the institutes that stole their childhoods and their futures. Talking about the TRC was interesting because we were able to discuss what reconciliation means and how everyone can take and active role in ensuring that the promises made with the TRC are upheld. An exciting event coming up that has to do with FNIS and truth and reconciliation, is the Haida totem pole being raised on April 1^st. The pole is being dedicated to the children who survived residential school and for the ones that didn’t. To honor those who were lost, copper nails are being nailed into a carved residential school by survivors, children, and community members.

FNIS has been a course that has majorly not only benefited me as far as gaining knowledge on who I am and what it means to be Indigenous, but also giving me tools and a better understanding when it comes to my community. It has been an experience I will never regret and has reaffirmed my want to major in the subject for my undergraduate degree.