Title: A Collective Approach To Indigenizing Community Empowerment: Genealogical and Geographical Kinship Ties
1A Collective Approach To Indigenizing Community
Empowerment Genealogical and Geographical
Kinship Ties
- Gail Cheney, MS, PhD Student
- Tina Ngaroimata Fraser, M.Ed, PhD (c)
- Shana Hormann, MSW, PhD
2Interwoven Perspectives
- Locating the Self Indigeneity
- Cultural Preservation and Sustainability
- Kinship Ties as Catalysts for Community
Empowerment and Transformation - Collaborative Approach to Leadership
- The Collective Vision is Ours to See
3Locating the Self Indigeneity
- Durie (2004) asserts
- Neither colonization nor socio-economic
disadvantage is considered to be - the most defining element of indigeneity.
Instead, most indigenous peoples - believe that the fundamental starting point is a
strong sense of unity with - the environment. This appears to be the most
significant characteristic at least as defined by
indigenous writers. People are the land and the
land is the people. We are the river, the river
is us. (p. 1139)
4A Time Prior To Colonization
- PRIDE of our Ancestors
- CRIES of our Grandfathers
- ANGER of our Fathers
- STRENGTH of our Children
5 Ancestral Knowledge
- Knowledge Transmission
- Knowledge Translation
- Knowledge Exchange
6Linking the Past and the Present to the Future
7Cultural Preservation and Sustainability
- Language, Songs, Dances,
- Drumming
- Oral Traditions and Traditional Knowledge,
Creation Stories - Legends, Mythology
- Customs, Values, Beliefs,
- Protocols, Traditions
- Spirituality
8Translating Values
- Story Outside The Door
- Linking past and present to future
9Linking Past, Present and Future
- Translating appropriate indigenous values into
all of our contexts is vital to collective
empowerment. - Use and trust native processes of dialogue and
democracy - Translate academic learning back to the community
and reshape it with traditional frameworks and
knowledge - Practice individual leadership by asking hard
questions - Be willing to be true to the value of culture and
tradition but do not be tied to the way it has
always been done
10Collaborative Approach to Leadership and Change
- You can begin to make changes in your sphere of
influence TODAY. - Arlie Neshahi (2008)
- Spirituality
- Commitment to the work
- Community
Leading during trauma From trauma
to healing
11Theme Spirituality
- Empowerment is to decide, to know in a spiritual
way that the direction that youre going is the
right one and to be secure in that spiritually
based direction and do itfor the good of the
people, for improving the quality of life for the
people - Lorelei DeCora (2002)
- Faith in Spirit, God, Higher Power, Creator
- Spiritual practices
- Private/Community
12Theme Commitment to the Work
- Some cases are pretty heavy. It can be a
close family member so we try to be supportive
for each other. We do cultural practice like
cleansing if thats their desire. We do have
therapists here on the reservation and then we
have traditional healers who can work with them
Anonymous
- Called to work with victims and their families
- Personal history of violence and want to give
back - Making change local and global
13Theme Community
The best thing I could do was to listen.
Listening to someone does not give you permission
or the right to speak into that persons life ...
I was present, I listened, I sometimes shared my
perspective. -Anonymous
- Important for support
- Important for service delivery
- Internal and external communities
14The Collective Vision is Ours to See
15Thank you
- Gail Cheney, MS, PhD Student
gcheney_at_antiochsea.edu
(425) 417-1972
Tina Ngaroimata Fraser, M.Ed, PhD (c)
frasert_at_unbc.ca (250) 960-6721
Shana Hormann, MSW, PhD shormann_at_antiochsea.
edu (206) 268-4714