Monday, 22 December 2014

Self Esteem and Lost Generations

 
My inquiry into the relationship between Indigenous American and Eastern spirituality offers me the Medicine Wheel, a holistic symbol of peaceful interaction between all living beings on Earth.  It complements the Eastern teachings of the nature of causality, continually changing and conditioning each other in its interconnections in the web of life.  





I use these teachings to introduce our humanity, fallibility and vulnerability - the impermanence and the dance between chaos and order - into my work in modern organizations conditioned for competition and perfection in the “machine metaphor”.    

This is because we have been “educated from birth to compete, judge, demand and diagnose” according to the founder of Non-Violent Communications, Marshal Rosenberg.   Naturally, it breeds negativity and inevitable conflict.    

I weave Eastern and Indigenous American wisdom together to facilitate Conflict Resolution training programs as I invite participants to cast a reflective mirror on self first, in dealing with “difficult people”.  There is no magic-bullet or a 3 step process to deal with a difficult person, as we have no control over anyone else’s emotions, but we do have control over ours.  That is emotional intelligence.  

At the same time, we know that we do influence each other’s moods and emotions through the ether and that too requires self-awareness, mindfulness and relationship intelligence.

Emotional, relationship and social intelligence can be developed through mindfulness practices and traditional rituals. This goes to our spiritual journey, to be centered and grounded and self-aware for self-mastery - to be skillful in our daily interactions. We acknowledge and accept our differences and realize that conflict is normal and even neutral, as it is we who will energize it with our emotional response.     

A Revelation

As I was getting to know the participants of the December 2014, Conflict Resolution course in Ottawa, it was serendipitous to have a First Nations participant, Tracy Lavallee, a Plains Cree woman in the program.

She experienced a revelation as we focused on self-mastery to work through the connection between a healthy self-esteem and the way we approach conflict.  Self-esteem is one of the five fields of Emotional Intelligence[i].  She was intrigued by the origins of our foundational self-esteem through nurture of our parental and familial love.  

Nature also plays a part, through our physical and biological health and well-being, to varying degrees.  The “Atma Shakti”[ii] - the power of self - the inner strength and resilience that we bring to life from birth also complements nurture from those significant loved ones.

Self-esteem is defined as how we value ourselves, perceive our value to the world - how valuable we think we are to others through the feedback we get. Self-esteem affects the way we live, how we trust ourselves and others in our relationships. 

Self-esteem defines our self worth and confidence, develops from a foundation of unconditional love and compassion, the nurturing first, from our Mother or a loving caregiver – the touch, the voice, the nourishment from breast milk and then the care of the extended family in safe surroundings – all this is an intrinsic part of the nurture that balances with nature.

Low self-esteem - feeling unworthy, incapable and incompetent - is debilitating and can keep us from realizing our full potential.  Low self-esteem can perpetuate itself even to progeny and the cycle can continue.  So the root causes of low self-esteem can be a lack of love, nurturing and acceptance in early stages of our lives into our late teens and it continues.

Tracy and I inquired into the implications when this critical nurturing is taken away, as when the First Nation-Aboriginal children were being removed from their homes and placed in residential schools.

For Tracy, this learning was empowering as Aboriginal communities are judged and stereotyped for their waywardness.  She saw possible root causes for the disconnect, despair and the inner violence stemming from a lack of this basic human need for familial love, which, for the most part, was denied when children were plucked away to the residential schools.

Tracy's Story

Tracy related her heart wrenching story of the capture of her own mother and aunt by missionaries while walking home and taken away in a cattle truck.  Her mother never spoke of this traumatic experience and she pondered on how those scars would have affected her mother in the way she would struggle to nurture her own children. 

Tracy, as a result, spent most of her childhood with her grandparents, who were also scarred by the experience, but gave her the love and attention.

Tracy’s aunt had been open to share how she, the younger of the two, remembered vividly - clinging onto her elder sister in terror as they were driven away.

I can only imagine the trauma of this experience and how this would spiral into a deep sense of despair.      

Tracy found her confidence to earn a law degree and find balance in her life, yet dismayed by much of her people being stuck in a cycle of despair. Gaining this insight about self-esteem enables her to articulate some of the possible root causes for their plight. This empowers Tracy to seek more focused ways to continue her good work for transformation, even as mainstream Canada judges Aboriginal people at a very superficial level without realizing the deeper causes.    

As Canada learns this different history and builds bridges of empathy and understanding, these root causes for the current situation for many communities – the lack of confidence, the self abuse and a lack of direction for many, cannot be ignored.

Empathy for Feelings and Needs

The way to build bridges of understanding is through empathy. We accept that an entire society’s emotions have been scarred.  

Many emotional needs would have been deprived for these stolen generations – the need for affection, acceptance, belonging, closeness, community, companionship, compassion, connection, comfort, empathy, inclusion, intimacy, love, nurturing, respect, security, safety, stability, support, trust, warmth, choice, freedom, independence, privacy, physical well-being, peace of mind, harmony and more. 

Imagine the feelings that would have arisen – feelings of despair, anguish, fear, loneliness, melancholy, sorrow, exhaustion, anger and the violence that would have resulted in these young minds, leaving them perplexed and confused.  

How can we expect their self-esteem to be in tact?.  

How can we then judge them on the same scale?.

There would have been some who had the inner strength to cope in resilience.  Some may have even thrived when they had caring teachers and administrators in these schools.  We realize these are few and far between from the hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

Building Bridges with Empathy

Building bridges without prejudice, we acknowledge the past, but not to feel guilty, as it was then, with a dominant culture of the colonist, the misguided notion of Manifest Destiny, the racial superiority, led them to believe that the Natives were savage heathens that needed to be saved.   

That was then, and now in an interconnected, globalized, more enlightened world, we take positive action to build bridges, make amends to reconcile.  To do this with authenticity, we have to build trust by communicating empathy.

For a multicultural and a plural Canada, which welcomes immigrants to its circle in the same Aboriginal spirit the Europeans were welcomed in the 16th century, the Medicine Wheel symbolizes the harmony and connection, for peaceful coexistence of such diverse cultures.  It helps us to find a balance between a focus on the individual, material and hierarchical to one in community, aligned with nature in the living system of the circle. 

The power of balance then comes with amity between our rational, emotional and spiritual intelligences, as we make amends to reconcile a past that developed through domination of one over another to a new enlightened path based on mutual respect for mutual benefit.




[i] Five Fields of Emotional Intelligence – Self Esteem, Listening, Self Expressing, Coping with Anger, Self Disclosure – Sage Training Australia – Robert Vanderwall
[ii] Atma Shakti – in Sanskrit is Power of Self or our Spiritual Energy

Sunday, 14 December 2014

Getting to know the Neighbors: A Walk for Solidarity from Chelsea to Kitgan-Zibi, Quebec


I felt privileged and excited about my first visit to a First Nations reserve – Kitigan-Zibi, as we walked with my Chelsea, Quebec friends.  Trekking along the old rail track from near the town of Messine and Farley Road, it was serendipitous to see a big Golden Eagle perched atop a tree looking at us.  This was a good omen, as the visit was about building bridges between neighbors - long since broken from when the Europeans arrived in the 1600s. 

The struggle for respect, acceptance, recognizing their land claims and reconciliation continues for many 1st Nations, Inuit and Metis communities in Canada.

“We wanted to express our solidarity with them and to demonstrate in a concrete way that some people are indeed listening”, said Janet Intscher, the co-organizer of the walk.


Building bridges was what these Chelsea friends, Sue Bramley, Janet Intscher and others including Chelsea Mayor Caryl Green were doing when they planned the visit to their First Nations neighbour to their north.
Janet and Sue had put much effort to plan this walk – first as a 5 day trek from Chelsea to reciprocate the Nishiyuu Walkers - the six Cree youth and two guides who walked 1,600 kms from the remote village of Whapmagoostui, Quebec on the shores of the Hudson Bay in March 2013.   Chelsea gave the Nishiyu walkers a rousing welcome to their surprise.
Inspiration from the Documented James Bay Cree History 
The Chelsea community was inspired to build bridges after seeing a documentary series produced by Robert Chitty and the Gordon Group - an Ottawa based marketing firm - at the Meredith Centre for the first time. 

The series aired over a few weeks, educated a several hundred Chelsea and the Ottawa residents about how Eeyou Istchee ("People of the Land" in Cree), the James Bay Cree community had an epic battle for over 30 years with the Quebec government who wanted to change the direction of the rivers for hydro electric projects. 
The Warm Welcome at Kitgan-Zibi 
Due to complexity of the logistics for a 5 day trek, the Chelsea team settled on a walk for a few hours for now with a longer trek planned for later.
The anticipation and excitement of the twelve walkers was palpable at the Kitigan-Zibi Cultural Centre. The building was impressive and the gardens well kempt in contrast to the rustic images I had in mind.
We were welcomed to the circle by an elder with a traditional prayer thanking the creator and blessing the visit.

We settled into a sumptuous meal including Moose pate and Partridge pasta and taken on a historical tour of the intricate display windows by wonderful story tellers, Rene Tenasco and Brenda Odjick.  

Each pane gave an account of their rich history, the culture, traditions and many tales of creation which pointed to our oneness with nature. 



Faith Decontie, a confident and self assured young woman  of Anishinabeg and Nakota (Saskatchewan) lineage introduced a short documentary she produced asking a host of young people - what it means for them to be Anishinabeg. 

The smart, assertive and articulate young people in the documentary responded as to what it meant for them to be Anishinabeg - defies many of the stereotypes we hear in the media. 

Faith has a degree in Anthropology and plans to do her Masters at Carleton University in Ottawa in the fall of 2015.  She has a deep interest in learning about different cultures and proud of her own heritage. 

Faith has demonstrated her passion already in a previous short documentary called Pow Wow Family where she shows their heritage of dancing to feel a strong connection, to be moved by the energy, to become one with self and to be grounded.  http://www.wapikoni.ca/movies/ni-ka-toten

Faith and the young people she portrayed in her second documentary gave us a window to Canada’s future as Aboriginal population is growing by 20% as opposed to non aboriginal people (about 5%) according to Statistics Canada (Aboriginal Peoples in Canada: First Nations People, Metis and Inuit, National Household Survey, 2011).

With his quiet and confident air about him, Chief Gilbert Whiteduck introduced himself and his community to us as we sat at the edge of our seats, listening to every word he spoke.  He is passionate about his community, the land, the water, education, and his work to bring justice to his people. 

Chief Whiteduck was not a victim of residential schools. Instead he went to a provincial school so he learned the “mainstream” system and culture.  He complemented this education by learning from Elders about his own culture and traditions. He has served his community for over 40 years, mostly as an educator and he sees education as key to bringing back esteem and confidence of, especially the new generation.    

Kitigan-Zibi is one of the ten communities that make up the Algonquin Nation. The reserve was created in 1853 and has about 46,000 acres of land. About 2,900 are members with 1,600 living on the reserve.

In the late 1800s there was a strong push by settlers and lumber barons to have the members surrender about 50% of the community.

According to Chief Whiteduck, the Kitigan-Zibi Anishinabeg have endured centuries of lies and thievery by governments and individuals wanting to take the little land they hold. That is why they do not trust government. He spoke of his frustration in dealing with governments that are dismissive and disrespectful, not recognizing the rights over their ancestral lands.

He is passionate about their attachment to the land as core to their identity and birthright as he says, "the land will always look after them".

The concept of owning land as a commodity has always felt foreign, as doing so goes against their values. That is why they oppose the privatization of reserve lands as that legitimizes the present system.

Kitigan-Zibi, does not suffer the ravages of many of the farther communities, perhaps due to its proximity to Ottawa and the lineage of the likes of the popular and effervescent former Chief William Commanda, who led the community from 1951 to 1970.  Chief Commanda avoided the residential school by hiding in the bush for long periods of time as a child and endured much poverty and hardship, perhaps attesting to his and his community’s creativity and resilience.

Chief Whiteduck welcomed the guests graciously as friends to the nation and expected this friendship will grow. He reiterated that their work is to protect their environment and nature not only for them, but for all Canadians, as we share this bounty together. 

The historic visit left us all invigorated and inspired. It prompted the Chelsea Mayor Caryl Green to commence a ceremony to lay a foundation stone for a building the next day by “acknowledging the unceded Algonquin lands they are on”. That gesture should set a new precedent for Chelsea.

Perhaps this is a beginning of a long friendship on equal ground with mutual respect, which may inspire others to do the same, as in friendship, we may find much more in common than what may divide us.

We may also become sensitive and have empathy to the plight of the many more communities that are not as fortunate as Kitigan-Zibi. Coming out of our comfort zones to find common ground, we realize there are complex root causes for the disconnect, the disparity and despair that exists in many indegenous communities.
  
The Difficult History
 
Carleigh Baker, a Métis writer from Vancouver reviewing John Ralston Saul’s book The Comeback in Globe and Mail (5th December 2014) wrote, If you focus on the behaviour of our government (and you’re not Aboriginal) you may feel guilty about how Canada was built.”

Saul recognizes our collective guilt about our colonial past and neo-colonial present is interfering with Canadians’ ability to see the future.  

Saul said at his book launch in Ottawa this fall - “We will not realize our Canadian identity until we establish an authentic national narrative. This narrative is built on the role of Aboriginal people, not the false, Eurocentric models of biological superiority defined by crap “science” like social Darwinism and Manifest Destiny”.

Getting together may enable us to collectively influence the Canadian polity to move away from the paternalistic - charity and punishment – way of dealing with Aboriginal people as one whole, when there is such diversity and difference among 1st Nations, Inuit and Metis people too.    

This visit to Kitigan-Zibi and meeting an astute leader like Chief Whiteduck and his people shows the absurdity of this old world approach.   
 
I trust the relationship between the indigenous people of Turtle Island and others will change to one that is more collaborative and sustainable.

 
Learning from Elders
 
On another occasion, Mohawk Elder Janice Longboat told me to use the word Trust rather than Hope, as hope has a hole in it.   
 
When I told Elder Longboat that I had read Saul's books "A Fair Country" and "Comeback" - she told me to read indigenous authors and recommended  university professor and traditional teacher from the Seneca Nation - Haudenosaune (Iroquois) elder John Mohawk.  
 
I read his book "Thinking in Indian" consisting of essays reflecting on indigenous issues of sovereignty, cultural roots, land and treaty rights, worldviews, globalization - impacts and mitigation, spirituality, and human wisdom from a Haudenosaunee perspective.  
 
This book opened up my mind to the lived and felt experience and perspectives of the indigenous people of this region of what is now New York, Ontario and Quebec.  

For me, as an immigrant this is a crucial education to learn and acknowledge this history as a part of the Truth and Reconciliation process.    
 
Witnessing the Chelsea walk and visit of neighbors to find common ground was special.  
 
It was a meeting of minds to raise awareness to find common ground for people who share this land.  
 
It is also important for Canada to create a new narrative which includes its rich and diverse Aboriginal people. 
 
The bountiful Canada as an indigenous nation may just find more power to influence the rest about our oneness with nature and contribute to a more sustainable world.


Meegwetch.

Photos by Lalith Gunaratne


Wednesday, 19 November 2014

First Nations and Second Class Citizens – Lessons from Australia

Having traveled, lived and worked in various parts of the world, Canada is by far one of the best countries on earth. Yet, my bubble keeps bursting the more I learn about the plight of aboriginal people and to realize that, I as an immigrant have more rights and opportunities than the First People makes me very sad. I am inspired to write this as I heard a memorable tribute by Australian Aboriginal Elder, Noel Pearson to their 21st Prime Minister, Gough Whitlam. I look forward to hearing an aboriginal tribute like this for a future Canadian leader.   His speech is accessed here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDIc45eOILE
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Noel Pearson
“One born estranged from the nation's citizenship, into a humble family of a marginal people striving in the teeth of poverty and discrimination, today it is no longer the case.  This because of the equalities of opportunities afforded by the Whitlam program”, said  Noel Pearson, Australian Aboriginal Lawyer and Activist, at Whitlam’s funeral eulogy on 5th November 2014 at Sydney Town Hall[i].

He went onto say why. “The achievements of this old man are present in the institutions we today take for granted and played no small part in the progress of modern Australia. Who can say that liberating the talents and uplifting the horizons of Australians for equality is not a worthy charter for national leadership? My chances in this nation were a result of the Whitlam program. I share this consciousness with millions of my fellow Australians whose experiences speak to the great power of distributed opportunity.” 

PM Gough Whitlam
What a prodigious tribute to Australia’s leader from 1972 to 1975 who in those tumultuous 3 years made sweeping reforms and programs that brought Australia into a new world. Among them were the Racial Discrimination Act, needs-based schools funding, the law reform commission, student financial assistance, non-discriminatory immigration rules, community health clinics, Aboriginal land rights which paved the way for  Native Title Act under Prime Minister Keating in 1993.

That was 3 years before the last residential school was closed in Canada.

Author James Daschuk at Ottawa Book Fest 
As I learn about Canada and its relationship with its first people, my “Canadian bubble” - my perception of what it means for me to be Canadian is being tested.  Another bubble burst as I sat at the Knox Presbyterian Church in Ottawa in a crowded room listening to James Daschuk about his book Clearing the Plains: Disease, Politics of Starvation, and the Loss of Aboriginal Life on 1st November 2014.
Daschuk’s emotional presentation spoke of the state-sponsored attack on indigenous communities whose effects continue to haunt us as a nation still.  

He spoke of the turning point for the plains people after the 1878 election of the John A MacDonald led Conservative government, which cut budgets and staff for Department of Indian Affairs including medical personnel. The opposition Liberals were no angels in this, as when they complained about the budget and spending, MacDonald is on record stating that the emergency rations would be refused until the “Indians” were on the verge of starvation. This was part of his plan to force the Aboriginal people off the plains onto reserves in order to settle the West and pave the way for the Canadian Pacific Railway.  
 
This chilling story of calculated callousness left me further confused about the contradictions of Canada. The divide between the First Nations people and non Natives, and the racism that drove those policies go largely unnoticed and unabated even today.  The political and social discourse perpetuated through education and the media makes us ignorant of this Canadian history.

The ultimate irony for Daschuk was receiving the Sir John A. Macdonald Prize from the Governor General a few days later.

Daschuk ended his talk by reflecting - “As we approach the 200th anniversary of Macdonald's birth, will these revelations about our first prime minister alter our perceptions of the man - and of ourselves as Canadians?”.  
 
Canadians have to face this history, not with guilt and defensiveness - as this happened long ago in another reality steeped in the settler notion of “Manifest Destiny” – a racial doctrine based on the god given right to expand land ownership, commercialism and Christianity by driving away aboriginal people off their land - but with the spirit of reconciling with the past and looking to the future to thrive in peaceful co-habitation.
The Canadian Charter for Rights and Freedoms Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau enacted in 1982 laid the groundwork for much social and political change for Aboriginal people and their rights today - including the Harper apology.  

Yet there continues to be political and bureaucratic inertia in settling land claims and other areas including funding inequalities in education and healthcare for Aboriginal communities for instance.  Many aboriginal leaders are fatigued and frustrated from legal battles and what a waste of people and resources for Canada.

Noel Pearson born in an Aboriginal reserve liberated his talents to have a fighting chance at equality only after the Australian government outlawed the institutionalized discrimination and the bureaucratic apparatus that controlled the reserves. Now they can hold their head up high in dignity and self esteem, as the laws of the land protects them, like every other citizen.  However, conditioning, attitudes and prejudices of the European Australians are slow to change.

There is an awareness of all this and a momentum mounting with the "Mainstream" who see Canada’s future clearly as a plural and multicultural nation. This includes honouring the First People’s historical significance on this land in the complex balance between inclusion and assimilation, and enabling the distinct nations to govern their own lands and people to flourish for mutual benefit. 
Acknowledging and Reaching Out

Tears welled up in me as I sat at the Carleton University’s 145th Convocation on 15th November 2014, as Master of Ceremonies and Vice Provost John Sheppard opened the ceremony acknowledging the Algonquin land we are occupying. Then he invited Metis elder Lois McCallum to recite the opening prayer who thanked the creator in gratitude for all we have and blessed the graduates for abundance of good things to come.  My emotions tugged at me as this gesture to acknowledge set an amazing example to those young graduates and their loved ones.

Most Canadians have an open and an inviting heart and according to John Ralston Saul, this is because everyone has some of the original Aboriginal Culture of welcoming to the circle. I know this from all my experiences here, even after coming through a traumatic introduction to Canada in the racially fraught 1970s.
                                                                                                                
Chelsea Mayor Caryl Green and friends walking to

Kitigan-Zibi
I celebrated this openness as I walked with my friends from Chelsea, Quebec to the Kitigan-Zibi Anishinabeg Reserve on 2nd November 2014. The walk was organized by Janet Intscher and Sue Bramley and with Chelsea Mayor Caryl Green on a beautiful autumn Saturday.
Eight months ago on 23rd March 2013, Chelsea residents, gave the Nishiyuu Walkers - the six Cree youth and two guides who walked 1,600 kms from the remote village of Whapmagoostui, Quebec on the shores of the Hudson Bay and their 200 plus supporters, among them from Kitigan-Zibi north of Chelsea - a rousing welcome at the Meredith Centre.  
Chelsea elder David Maitland recited a welcome poem at the well organized event coordinated by Helen Patterson, Robert Vandenberg and other community leaders. The centre was a hive of activity with entertainment and abundant sumptuous food served by Les Fougeres restaurant. That day, I heard many a visitor voice their surprise and delight at the warm welcome, which they said was the best they had on their long journey.
There was a perfect “aboriginal” storm brewing for Chelsea as it was around the same time that the Meredith Centre
Billy Diamond
Robert Chitty - Gordon Group
featured the documentaries produced by Robert Chitty of the Gordon Group, on the James Bay Cree’s, Billy Diamond and the band
(Eeyou Istchee) https://www.cngov.ca/press-november-10/   fight to protect the land from Quebec Hydro’s development.  

Chelsea was smitten by all this and decided to make a reciprocal gesture of reaching out, of listening and consulting their nearest First Nations community, which happens to be Kitigan-Zibi.  “We wanted to express our solidarity with them and to demonstrate in a concrete way that some people are indeed listening”, said Janet Intscher, as inspiration for the walk. 

Kitigan-Zibi Community Center Display
As Chelsea moves forward with with this journey with no grand plan to let things unfold, they are beginning to form friendships with the Anishinabeg people.  As an outsider and insider – I am intrigued and excited about the possibilities. It just may lead to bigger things - to succor and support the new friends in their struggle for respect, equality and balance by influencing the powers that be.


My reflections on the walk and the welcome to the Kitigan-Zibi reserve will be next.   



Stay tuned.

Meegwetch.