Indigenous People & Culture
WE CAN OBSERVE AND PRACTICE TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION EVERYDAY.
FOUR WAYS THAT YOU CAN BE AN ALLY TO INDIGENOUS PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES ON ORANGE SHIRT DAY AND EVERY DAY:
- Support Indigenous artists and Indigenous-owned/led businesses and organizations.
- Amplify Indigenous voices and stand up for our Indigenous neighbours.
- Learn from Indigenous people in your community or online. Listen to their stories, hear their bravery, reflect on the truth.
- Learn about the 94 calls to action put forth by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada and ask our politicians to act on, follow, and support these necessary calls.
INDIGENOUS-OWNED BUSINESSES & ORGANIZATIONS
Some places you can find Indigenous-made orange shirts and wearable art:
Indigenous populations in Canada face systemic failures inherent in our social structure that have caused generational trauma, disadvantaged living conditions, and innumerable other difficulties. The ongoing mistreatment of our Indigenous populations across the land now called Canada, and the attempts to hide, erase and cover it up leave us all as Canadians with a responsibility to mourn with these groups, and to listen, learn, and evaluate our own involvement and actions. We hope these resources can serve as an aide for collective improvement moving forward and encourage continued learning & action.
How we are helping here at HOME?
- On National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in 2021, we closed our physical store for the day; our staff participated in reconciliation events in Millbrook First Nation. That day, all proceeds from online sales were donated to Water First, a non-government organization that is working hard to solve water challenges in Indigenous communities. With the help of our customers, we were able to donate $1,100 to Water First! Thank you for making this possible!
- We are actively committed to becoming better allies for our Indigenous neighbours by educating ourselves and listening to our local Indigenous communities.
- We partner with Indigenous artists on designs that reflect their specific relationship to this land we all call HOME, which allows us to share artwork and perspectives directly from Indigenous voices.
- We are committed to actively using our platform to increase awareness on important issues and help to inform our customers and followers how they can personally get involved.
We can be proud of the place we call HOME and still be critical of its systems. Together, we can create a future for Canada that is supportive and inclusive of all its inhabitants.
BOOKS, EBOOKS AND AUDIOBOOKS
Search for the following titles and more on your province’s Public Libraries Catalogue.
Alternatively you can search the Worldwide Library Catalogue WorldCat.org or click the “buy” link after each title to purchase a copy for your HOME Library.
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmermer [2020] | Buy
Brotherhood to Nationhood: George Manuel and the Making of the Modern Indian Movement by Peter McFarlane and Doreen Manuel [2020] | Buy
21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act: Helping Canadians Make Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples a Reality by Bob Joseph [2018]
All Our Relations: Finding the Path Forward by Tanya Talaga [2018] | Buy
Seven Fallen Feathers by Tanya Talaga [2017] | Buy
From Treaty Peoples to Treaty Nation: A Road Map for All Canadians by Ken Coates and Greg Poelzer [2016] | Buy
Indigenous Nationhood: Empowering Grassroots Citizens by Pamela Palmater [2015] | Buy
Disinherited Generations: Our Struggle to Reclaim Treaty Rights for First Nations Women and Their Descendants by Nellie Carlson [2013] | Buy
The Inconvenient Indian: a Curious Account of Native People in North America by Thomas King [2013] | Buy
The Colonization of Mi'kmaw Memory and History, 1794-1928: the King V. Gabriel Sylliboy by William C. Wicken [2012] | Buy
Mi'kmaq Landscapes, From Animism to Sacred Ecology by Anne-Christine Hornborg [2008] | Buy
Mi'kmaq & Maliseet Cultural Ancestral Material: National Collections from the Canadian Museum of Civilization by Stephen J. Augustine [2005] | Buy
Mi'kmaq Treaties on Trial: History, Land, and Donald Marshall Junior by William C. Wicken [2002] | Buy
The Marshall Decision and Native Rights : The Marshall Decision and Mi'kmaq Rights in the Maritimes by Ken Coates [2000] | Buy |
FILMS, VIDEOS AND DOCUMENTARIES
Kamloops: Stories of Survival by ATPN [2021] | Watch Systemic Racism in Canada: the Donald Marshall Jr. Story by Real Crime [2020] | Watch nîpawistamâsowin: We Will Stand Up by Tasha Hubbard [2019] | Watch We Were Children by Tim Wolochatiuk [2012] | Rent Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance by Alanis Obomsawin [1993] | Watch Sleeping Children Awake by Rhonda Kara Hanah [1991] | Watch 12 Documentaries on Indigenous Life in Canada | Watch |
WEB RESOURCES & ARTICLES
Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) L'nui'suti - Mi'kmaw language app Native Land - Indigenous Unceded/Ancestral Lands interactive map Mi'kmaq History Month - Wi'kipatmu'k Mi'kmawey Mi'kmaq Online - Stories, songs, Mi'kmaq dictionary and more Passamaquoddy-Maliseet Language Portal - Dictionary Madawaska Maliseet First Nation - History & Culture United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada Why acknowledge territory? by Allison Jones and Native-Land What are land acknowledgements and why do they matter? by Selena Mills [March 18, 2019] Words and phrases you may want to think twice about using by Priscilla Ki Sun Hwang [November 29, 2021] 88 Indigenous Businesses You Can Support in the US and Canada by Rebecca Janacek [March 1, 2023] |
ORGANIZATIONS/ACCOUNTS TO SUPPORT/FOLLOW
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