By Kim Phillips and J. Arnold
Canada’s National Indigenous Peoples Day is celebrated on June 21 annually and we wanted to learn more. First, here is the City of Burlington’s land acknowledgement:
“Burlington as we know it today is rich in history and modern traditions of many First Nations and the Métis. From the Anishinaabeg to the Haudenosaunee, and the Métis – our lands spanning from Lake Ontario to the Niagara Escarpment are steeped in Indigenous history.
The territory is mutually covered by the Dish with One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant, an agreement between the Iroquois Confederacy, the Ojibway and other allied Nations to peaceably share and care for the resources around the Great Lakes.
We would like to acknowledge that the land on which we gather is part of the Treaty Lands and Territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit.”
Learning more from the Aboriginal Multi-Media Society
The head office for the Aboriginal Multi-Media Society of Alberta is in Edmonton. Bert Crowfoot is the publisher and founder. You can search various topics on their website and find interesting and informative articles, photos, and news archives for a number of publications. For instance, the first item after a search for “wampum belt” on their website is a 2014 article by Barb Nahwegahbow from the Windspeaker publication, reporting on an event held at Toronto’s OCAD University called “Wampum: Language and Symbol.”
Nahwegahbow quoted the following from Rick Hill, Tuscarora from Six Nations of the Grand River Territory:
“Wampum is just a visual device by which memory is kept alive. Our ancestors were very skilled in how to make these abstract symbols that have great meaning, great power. We also believe that wampum has its own power.”
The Dish with One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant, which is also a treaty with nature, “is probably the most significant in terms of the Native people in this land. The old people say this represents the first treaty made in North America. It was made between all the Native nations before the Europeans arrived… The three basic rules are: only take what you need, always leave something in the dish for everybody else, and keep the dish clean…”
Surely, these are rules that we can all agree on.
Learning more about treaties and colonialism from nandogikendan.com
Nandogikendan, which means “seek to learn” in Anishinaabemowin, was founded by educator Janet Csontos, and is a great place to begin learning more about treaties and colonialism. You can also find links to other resources and projects, with questions designed to make you think about the lasting effects of colonialism on Indigenous people.
The site also features the Ogimaa Mikana Project. This project puts Anishinaabemowin words on Toronto signs and billboards to bring awareness to this original local language and culture, which has not been erased despite colonial Canada’s best efforts. Check out nandogikendan.com for more.
There are many other resources available online through which you can learn more about Indigenous culture, history, and languages. Here are just a few:
- Learn about the story of Chanie Wenjack, find suggestions on how to support reconciliation efforts, donate at the Gord Downie and Chanie Wenjack Fund website.
- FourDirectionsTeachings.com offers a narrated resource with interactive content and transcripts: explore to learn more about Indigenous knowledge and philosophy
- Indigenous Languages in Canada webpage, from The Canadian Encyclopedia
- First Nation Profiles Interactive Map, on the Government of Canada’s website, with data on reserves, bands, and governance.
- Assembly of Seven Generations, a non-profit organization aiming to empower Indigenous youth; other resources include an Indigenous film and webinars
- CBC Kids has a “Where can I learn more about Indigenous people in Canada?” webpage, with links to lists of books and comics by Indigenous authors and more
- Take a free Coursera course on Indigenous Canada, taught by Dr. Tracy Bear and Dr. Paul L. Gareau, from the University of Alberta
Sources:
Aboriginal Multi-Media Society. Url: https://ammsa.com (accessed May 2, 2021).
Assembly of Seven Generations. n.d. Url: https://www.a7g.ca/ (accessed June 20, 2021).
City of Burlington. 2018. City of Burlington Recognizes Indigenous History with a Land Acknowledgement. Url: https://www.burlington.ca/en/Modules/News/index.aspx?newsId=27b297d3-2351-48f2-9c6e-a29eb96ddbcb (accessed June 21, 2021).
Four Directions Teachings. Url: http://fourdirectionsteachings.com/index.html (accessed June 20, 2021).
Government of Canada. n.d. Welcome to the First Nation Profiles Interactive Map. Url: https://geo.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/cippn-fnpim/index-eng.html (accessed June 20, 2021).
Nahwegahbow, B. 2014. Wampum Holds Power of Earliest Agreements. Windspeaker. News archives, Aboriginal Multi-Media Society. Url: https://ammsa.com/publications/windspeaker/wampum-holds-power-earliest-agreements (accessed June 21, 2021).
Nandogikendan. n.d. Dish with One Spoon. Url: https://nandogikendan.com/dish-with-one-spoon/ (accessed May 2, 2021).
The Canadian Encyclopedia. 2020. Indigenous Languages in Canada. Url: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/aboriginal-people-languages (accessed June 20, 2021).
The Gord Downie and Chanie Wenjack Fund. n.d. Url: https://downiewenjack.ca/ (accessed June 20, 2021).
University of Alberta. n.d. Indigenous Canada. Coursera online course. Url: https://www.coursera.org/learn/indigenous-canada (accessed June 20, 2021).