Journal Entry #4: Interviews & Indian Horse
June 30, 2018
By Abbey Morris
Summer has officially begun, and I have reached the halfway point in my Sioux Lookout adventure. We have done lots of interviews with staff associated with maternal health, mothers, and Elders; each person bringing their own unique perspective to answering the questions. Many of them seem to have a desire to know more about traditional cultural practices associated with child birth, but often do not have the opportunity to learn. Also, many mothers seemed unaware of the resources, services, and supports available to them in Sioux Lookout and in their communities. In addition, they believed that some of their communities were lacking proper resources for new and expecting mothers. Hopefully this is something we can work to improve.
When asked what would motivate parents to participate in more cultural activities, such as storytelling circles that could provide them with social support and knowledge about raising their children, many of them said that food would be an incentive to come. One of the moms mentioned that fruit is very expensive to buy up North, so we decided to get some to bring to the hostel to encourage people to participate in our study. It was a success and lots of people appreciated the fruit that we had brought. It is the little things that we take for granted. Talking to people from northern communities has made me even more aware of the geographic inequities that exist in Canada.
On June 11th, the local high school did a screening event of the film Indian Horse and it was a wonderful movie with a powerful story. The movie is based on a novel with the same name. The story follows the life of a young Ojibway boy through his time in a residential school and how he finds his passion for hockey. It shows the harsh reality of living as an Indigenous person in the 1960s and brings awareness to the atrocities of residential schools. At the event, there were posters about the history of residential schools in Canada and booklets with the Calls to Action set forth by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. A traditional prayer as well as traditional drumming were incorporated into the event and occurred before and after the screening. I would encourage anyone to watch Indian Horse, but make sure to bring tissues.
Sioux Lookout has been great so far and I look forward to continuing the second part of my journey after I spend some time back home in Ottawa.