#seventhings October 29, 2022


Here's this week's list of seven things - one thing for each day of the week - that you can do to make learning about Truth, Reconciliation, and Decolonisation a part of your daily habits.

Watch this interview with Canadian musical icon Buffy St. Marie as she reflects on 81 amazing years on Turtle Island.

Read this article about Spencer Wells and his attempt to use a genome project to prove that Indigenous Peoples are the precursor (read: un- or at least less-evolved) humans than white (European) people. His infamous quote justifying his research "Your DNA is Our History" should raise flags. Props to National Geographic for removing all of Wells' content from its site, citing a violation of its journalistic ethics policy.

Follow some or all of these incredible Indigenous photographers. Buzzfeed is a US-based thing but read the bios (not even carefully) you will notice that several of the tribal or band names (Dene, Lakota Sioux, Squamish, etc.) are familiar. This is because nationalist colonial settler boundaries and modern conditioning to endorse jingoism do not adequately recognise let alone address the social, cultural, and familial ties that were broken when lines indicating what was then the foreign idea of "countries" were drawn across Turtle Island.

Members of the Métis Nation of Alberta will be able to vote on a new constitution from November 1 - 30, 2022. This is an example of how communities whose traditional justice, laws, and practices were removed under colonial settler rule are taking bold steps towards self-governance. To learn more, including how you can register as a voter if you are a member of Alberta's Métis Nation, visit the website or go to the YouTube Channel to watch several short informative videos.

Audrey Poitras, president of the Métis Nation of Alberta, urges members of the nation to vote on a new constitution this November. PHOTO BY ED KAISER /Postmedia Archive

Audrey Poitras, president of the Métis Nation of Alberta, urges members of the nation to vote on a new constitution this November. PHOTO BY ED KAISER /Postmedia Archive

Download the Reconciliation: A Starting Point App so that you always have Indigenous Learning at your fingertips.

Buy or Borrow Bad Cree by author Jessica Johns



Listen to this Podcast about Food Sovereignty from Toasted Sister. You can learn more about the significance of this topic here.

And last but certainly not least, there's always the 8th bonus option: share this post or any one of the other links on this page and get other people committed to doing #seventhings each week making the other 364 days of the year National Truth and Reconciliation Day, too.

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