On Thursday, October 24, the Port Hardy Library will host Awil’gola Open House, a celebration of local Indigenous cultures. Awil’gola is a Kwak’wala word loosely translated as “in celebration”, “being with one another,” or “all being together”. We will be celebrating beautiful new Cultural Literacy Kits focusing on the Kwakwaka’wakw,
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wmtc: orange shirt day: because reconciliation matters
Get the story at OrangeShirtDay.org.
Continue readingwmtc: island day trip with mom: alert bay
This week’s day trip was fascinating, meaningful, and so much fun. We went to Alert Bay, toured the U’mista Cultural Centre (us for the second time, my mom for the first), and participated in a traditional salmon barbeque through Culture Shock. Know before you go: residential schools and the potlatch
Continue readingwmtc: weekend trip with mom: a few days in the comox valley
I thought it would be fun for my mom to see a different part of Vancouver Island. I didn’t want her going home thinking the whole island is a sparsely populated rain forest! Plus it’s more fun stuff to do together. I booked an Airbnb in Royston — just south
Continue readingwmtc: indigenous designs are all around us: more thoughts on accusations of cultural appropriation
Coast Salish Orca In 2017, I wrote this post: accusations of cultural appropriation are a form of bullying — and don’t reduce racism, and a follow-up: postscript: some clarifications and addenda to my recent post on cultural appropriation. For a less-lengthy refresher, scroll down to “The current climate of accusation
Continue readingwmtc: indigenous canada: online course from university of alberta
This is a detail from artwork thatwas used throughout the course. Earlier this year, I studied and completed “Indigenous Canada“, a 12-week MOOC offered by the University of Alberta. It’s a general overview of Canadian history from an Indigenous perspective. It was a mostly good experience, along with some issues
Continue readingwmtc: july 1: canada day and beyond
Happy Canada Day from the traditional and unceded territory of the Kwakiutl people, whose historical ties to this land date back from time immemorial and continue to this day. Many Kwakiutl (pronounced kwa-gi-uth) people have welcomed me to my new home and I am grateful to walk the path of
Continue readingwmtc: the north island report: alert bay, eagles, and our first ontario visitors (photos to follow)
When we moved to Port Hardy, I was sure that none of our Ontario friends would ever visit. It’s so far away, and not an easy place to travel to. I was so happy to be wrong! Two sets of close friends have reason to be in Vancouver this year,
Continue readingTHE FIFTH COLUMN: Primitive vs Civilized Societies
As someone born in 1950 and raised and educated in a Eurocentric culture I learned early that civilized societies are intellectually, socially, and technologically superior to primitive societies. This despite the fact that the indigenous peoples of this land I was born on have for centuries had their own distinct
Continue readingwmtc: rotd: frederick douglass, prophet of freedom
Revolutionary thought of the day: Douglass’s great gift, and the reason we know him of today, is that he found ways to convert the scars Covey left on his body into words that might change the world. David W. Blight, Frederick Douglass, Prophet of Freedom This is what every abuse
Continue readingwmtc: what i’m reading: solitary raven: the essential writings of bill reid
I’m supposed to be writing about the Jackie Robinson biography, which I finished weeks ago, but so far I haven’t been motivated to do so. I finished another Wallander mystery — my “in between” book — but the next bio on my list, the new one about Frederick Douglass, hasn’t
Continue readingwmtc: walking the walk: if canada is serious about reconciliation, the senate must pass bill c-262
Canadians, contact the Senate. Urge them to work together to pass Private Member’s Bill C-262, “An Act to ensure that the laws of Canada are in harmony with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples“. My own letter included at the end of this post, in the
Continue readingwmtc: things i heard at the library: an occasional series: #30
At the Port Hardy Library, we’ve been hosting visits from the local First Nations school, from the the Gwa’sala-Nakwaxda’xw Nations. (That is pronounced GWA-sala Nak-wah-da.) The children have been absolutely lovely, and although my contact with them is brief, I’m enjoying it so much. It’s especially wonderful to have the tweens
Continue readingwmtc: first nations public library week
Yesterday was Orange Shirt Day. October 1 through 7 is First Nations Public Library Week in Canada. I’ll write more about this soon. For now, a book review from a few years back: what i’m reading: indian horse by richard wagamese, a must-read, especially for canadians.
Continue readingwmtc: happy canada day: a wish for a pledge
One unfortunate result of the current ascendancy of white supremacy in the US is the increase in Canadians’ nationalism and self-love — the strengthening of Canadians’ conviction that our society is peaceful and democratic, our institutions benevolent, our kindness manifest in law. We pat ourselves on the back while Trudeau
Continue readingwmtc: thoughts on canada 150
It’s Canada Day, this year dubbed Canada 150, with its own corporate brand and a carefully worded story of that number 150. We also have Canada 150+, which acknowledges that human cultures and societies have been living in what is now Canada for thousands of years. I have mixed feelings about Canada
Continue readingwmtc: postscript: some clarifications and addenda to my recent post on cultural appropriation
Many people have been discussing my recent post about cultural appropriation on Facebook. I’m not surprised that many people disagree (that’s why I wrote it, to put my countering opinion out there), but I have been surprised by how many progressive people do agree. From the negative comments, I can see
Continue readingwmtc: accusations of cultural appropriation are a form of bullying — and don’t reduce racism
I’m increasingly dismayed by accusations of cultural appropriation that are used as weapons, rather than as a tool for raising awareness and educating. Accusations of appropriation have become a form of bullying, a weapon wielded to police and enforce a superficial obeisance to a behavioural code — while doing nothing
Continue readingwmtc: dispatches from ola 2016, part 2: libraries and prisons
I’ve had a longstanding interest in prison libraries, and was happy to meet another librarian-friend who shares this. But I was very pleasantly surprised at the large turnout for the talk Prisons and Libraries: A Relationship Worth Incubating at t…
Continue readingwmtc: dispatches from ola 2016, part 1: choosing to walk a path
I attended OLA* for only one day this year, partly because I’m already missing so much work for bargaining and other union business, and partly because one day is often enough. There’s a huge lineup of presentations, poster sessions, book signings, ven…
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