Colby Tootoosis;
The reasons why we have Land (not in an in ownership sense but in a Sovereign Nation sense), Treaties, and that we are even alive is because our ancestors refused to "get with the times". What does "get with the times" really mean, anyway? Does it mean to ignore the Consciousness of our bloodlines that is connected to our land and to identify ourselves with modern day colonial borders? Does it mean to participate with the abuse of the land by the extraction of resources and adopt same values as the colonist? Does it simply mean ignoring our indigenous values all together? Quite honestly, "getting with the times" never made sense to me when it's used in a counter argument against those who are defending the land and following through in the inherit qualities and values of indigenous consciousness.
The reality is it is time to become the best we can possibly be and follow through with the certainty that we are Nations within a Nation. Part of that is denouncing the imposed identity that we are Canadian. My friend Jodi Kechego articulated it well when he stated "My bloodline is inherently separate from Canada in that my ancestors have been here for literally thousands and thousands of years- as apposed three or four generations".
Dude, ten thousand years ago our ancestors were stone age peoples, too. We decided we didn't like it. But if that's what you want, that's cool. You can drop by on the weekend to return our wheel, metallurgy, electricity, antibiotics, and the internal combustion engine.
You can keep the horse.
We Are All Treaty People - Small Dead Animals
The reasons why we have Land (not in an in ownership sense but in a Sovereign Nation sense), Treaties, and that we are even alive is because our ancestors refused to "get with the times". What does "get with the times" really mean, anyway? Does it mean to ignore the Consciousness of our bloodlines that is connected to our land and to identify ourselves with modern day colonial borders? Does it mean to participate with the abuse of the land by the extraction of resources and adopt same values as the colonist? Does it simply mean ignoring our indigenous values all together? Quite honestly, "getting with the times" never made sense to me when it's used in a counter argument against those who are defending the land and following through in the inherit qualities and values of indigenous consciousness.
The reality is it is time to become the best we can possibly be and follow through with the certainty that we are Nations within a Nation. Part of that is denouncing the imposed identity that we are Canadian. My friend Jodi Kechego articulated it well when he stated "My bloodline is inherently separate from Canada in that my ancestors have been here for literally thousands and thousands of years- as apposed three or four generations".
You can keep the horse.
We Are All Treaty People - Small Dead Animals