what i’m reading: the marrow thieves, the glass beads
Cherie Dimaline’s The Marrow Thieves, winner of multiple Canadian awards, is a brilliant book — and a frightening one. Set in a future Canada after climate change has devastated the…
indigenous peoples
what i’m reading: the marrow thieves, the glass beads
Cherie Dimaline’s The Marrow Thieves, winner of multiple Canadian awards, is a brilliant book — and a frightening one. Set in a future Canada after climate change has devastated the…
"at your library" in the north island eagle: awil’gola open house: celebrate first nations communities at the library
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…
orange shirt day: because reconciliation matters
Get the story at OrangeShirtDay.org.
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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.…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…