I live, work and study on Treaty 4 land. I recognize that it is the original lands of the Cree, Ojibwe(OJIB-WĒ), Saulteaux (SO-TO), Dakota, Nakota, Lakota, and on the homeland of the Métis Nation.
Below is a paper I wrote after learning about Indigenous people around the world in June of 2021.
Additionally, I have attached a treaty negotiation exercise, which would be a great way to help students understand the complexities of negotiating Treaty 4 for middle years students.
Indigenous People Around the World
The indigenous people around the world assignment exposed me to indigenous cultures outside of Canada. Previously, I’ve only learned about Canada’s First Nations people; these presentations informed me that many of the atrocities that happened to our indigenous people happened globally. Throughout this course, I’ve learned in much greater detail how the Crown did not uphold the promises that it made to our Indigenous people and the devastating effects colonization has had on the people and their culture. I did not know something similar had occurred in so many other countries around the world.
For my presentation, I researched the Greenland Inuit. I learned how Greenland’s Inuit and Canada’s Inuit are ancestors of the Thule, who were excellent hunters capable of thriving in challenging conditions. I was amazed how their ability to adapt, like the construction of the walrus skin boat, allowed them to trek across what is now Canada’s arctic (Bonnell, 2021, May 25). Their ingenuity, adaptability, and spirituality are where I focused my research. As I learned about the indigenous cultures from other parts of the world from my peers, I focused on learning about adaptability and spirituality.
In Benjamin’s (2021) project, she explained that the Saami adapted their lives to the reindeer movement and had a symbiotic relationship with the reindeer. As the reindeer migrated, the Saami migrated, and the Saami understood that the animals would fertilize the land as they followed the migratory patterns. They had a spiritual connection with the reindeer, and that connection translated into almost every aspect of the Saami life, including art, clothing, shelter, and music. Like Canada’s indigenous people, the Saami viewed themselves as land-stewards, finding that balance between environment and existence.
In Butler’s (2021) research of the Quechua people of Peru, she shared how this indigenous group were potato farmers and were able to farm in high altitude locations and used advanced irrigation and freeze-drying methods to farm under challenging locations. Their ability to adapt their subsistence methods to remote high-altitude areas underscores the indigenous adaptability of the Quechua. Like Canada’s indigenous people, the Greenland Inuit and the Saami, The Quechua believed that everything had a spirit. They appreciated biodiversity and would pass on the importance of guardianship of the land to their descendants through stories.
Appleyard (2021) shared that the Mayan people, perhaps one of the most recognized indigenous people, were hunters and proficient in agriculture. They were also very advanced with their expertise in math and astronomy. Their spirituality encompassed the natural elements surrounding them, believing in gods for the moon, sun, rain, and corn. Like the Greenland Inuit and Canada’s indigenous people, the Mayans valued the environment understanding that they needed to appreciate and honour it for the good of their people.
In Reichel’s (2021) presentation on the Taino people of the Caribbean, she shared that the Taino believed the gods controlled the universe, similar to the Maya people. She explained that their view was similar to Greek mythology, where everything had a god. One crucial point she made was that they understood the need for balance and often used festivals or priests and medicine men to direct them to balance, similar to our indigenous people. As we learned in Treaties Elders of Saskatchewan (2000), the First Nations’ ceremonies were often held for the creator, and any promises made during that ceremony were irrevocable (p. 7). It is fascinating to see how different indigenous groups from all around the globe would hold celebrations as an appreciation to a higher power despite these groups never having met.
Brandt (2021) explained that the Khoisan people of Botswana migrated with animals similar to the Saami, allowing them to adapt to and stay out of harm from the environment. They had a no-waste policy very similar to the Greenland Inuit and First Nations people, whereby everything that the hunted animal provided is used. Their belief system recognized one powerful god, but they acknowledged lesser gods, and the eland was a sacred animal to the culture.
As I watched these video presentations, I was reminded that each indigenous culture had great respect for its environment. Whether it was a belief in the spirit of the animals or the god of the sun, indigenous people worldwide realized that their environment provided them with the gifts to survive. It was up to them to respect and honour those gifts for their future survival. These learnings have caused me concern for our future due to our current trajectory. It concerns me that indigenous people have survived for thousands of years using their ingenuity and respect for the land, but our contemporary society does not share that same respect. The indigenous people have shown us what is required to continue as a people, and we refuse to listen, endangering the future of humanity.
Before this project, I thought that the injustice felt by Canada’s indigenous people was unique to Canada. I did not know about the widespread terror imposed on indigenous people everywhere due to colonization. In each presentation that I watched, I empathized with the shock felt by every culture with the arrival of the European explorers. The Saami, who were so in tune with the reindeer, were no longer allowed to have reindeer herds, losing their identity and way of life with the onset of colonization (Benjamin, 2021). Compounding the problem, to be considered Saami now, you have to have a reindeer herd even though the Saami were forced to give up their herds with the onset of colonization (Benjamin, 2021). In Peru, ninety-five percent of the Quechua people were killed either by massacre or disease brought on by settlers (Butler, 2021). The Mayan population decreased significantly with the Spanish arrival, and the lack of respect for the Mayan culture continues to exist. To this day, the government does not request consent from the Mayans to use their land and does not recognize the right to self-determination of the Mayan people (Appleyard, 2021). The Taino people were taken as prisoners to find gold for the explorers. When they couldn’t or didn’t, they were often fatally injured and left to die. Only 10% of the original number of Taino remained after the settlers arrived due to killings, slavery, war, and disease (Reichel, 2021). Bissonnette (2021) explained that similar to Canada’s indigenous people, the Koori people were forced into reserves, children were removed, and women sexually assaulted, resulting in a 96% decline of the Koori population. She highlighted that the effects are ongoing because the Koori still have a much shorter life expectancy than the non-indigenous. The horrific side of history continues as I learned about the Khoisan people, who were once the most populous in the world (Brandt, 2021). The colonizers took away their way of life by removing hunting privileges, destroying schools and water supplies and killing them if they resisted. This culture became dependent on government handouts because they couldn’t hunt and did not have access to the land.
The commonality from the indigenous history worldwide to the history of Canada’s indigenous people is consistent. The land was taken away for settler development, the rights removed, and assimilation forced on the people who were stewards of the land. I am amazed at how devastating the Doctrine of Discovery (Lerat, 2021) was to the world’s indigenous people. I wonder if the Papal Bulls had known the extent of the devastation that their doctrine would result in, they would have continued with that decision. It is terrifying to consider what humanity can do and why it was deemed acceptable to decimate the people, practices, and culture for further expansion.
The resounding theme that I realized is that the European explorers wanted their exploratory campaign to succeed, but to do so, they thought they must remove the rights of the indigenous people all over the world; the right to land, resources and knowledge. No matter how horrific that sounds, it is precisely what was done in their effort to achieve assimilation.
As I reflect upon what has happened globally with indigenous people, I am saddened and hopeful for our Canadian indigenous people. I don’t know if things will improve for indigenous people like the Saami, the Maya and the Khoisan, mainly because the respective governments fail to recognize them or create appropriate measures to help them. In Canada, however, I feel like we are gradually getting better about learning about indigenous history, or more appropriately, Canada’s true history. Some examples include treaties taught in the classroom, and indigenous lands being recognized during celebrations and events. Just last week, the Saskatchewan government acknowledged the horrific finding of 215 remains buried next to a residential school in BC and partnered with the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations to conduct radar searches at the residential schools in Saskatchewan (Wiens, 2021). These items aforementioned are very different from what was happening when I was a kid, and I believe we are in the midst of change. Some may see the discovery in BC as a step back, but it’s how we handle it as a Nation that determines our direction. The sympathy, empathy and desire for improvement that I’ve seen from my peers with the discovery last week have me optimistic that we, as a Nation, will prioritize the necessary change.
References
Appleyard, K. (2021, May 26). Maya Peoples. [Video]. YouTube,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io1g4n3PJd0&feature=youtu.be
Benjamin, C. (2021, May 25). Saami Peoples Lecture. [Video]. YouTube,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59tB9BLGcLs
Bissonnette, H. (2021, May 28) Koori People of Australia. [Video]. Youtube, https://youtu.be/9H35Ea-rL7M
Bonnell, I. (2021, May 25) The Greenland Inuit. [Video]. YouTube, https://youtu.be/BTSy1RayWBQ
Brandt, A. (2021, May 28). Khoisan People Group. [Video]. YouTube, https://youtu.be/Gv5iHriEmfo
Butler, S. (2021, May 26). Quechua People of Peru. [Video]. YouTube, https://youtu.be/0D5Wzhr7iDc
Lerat, W.L. (2020). A Review of “Modern” World History Part 1. [PowerPoint]. First Nations University of Canada. University of Regina. https://urcourses.uregina.ca/mod/resource/view.php?id=1389382
Reichel, E. (2021, May 27). Taino People of the Caribbean. [Video]. YouTube, https://youtu.be/k0aNohQnINw
Wiens, C. (2021, May 31). Sask. government, FSIN call on feds to conduct radar searches at residential schools. CTV News. Retrieved from https://regina.ctvnews.ca/sask-government-fsin-call-on-feds-to-conduct-radar-searches-at-residential-schools-1.5449923