Tansi Nîtôtemtik,
Writing my last post for this year is bittersweet. Writing a blog almost every week for the past eight months ended up being a lot more work than I expected. That work, however, was meaningful, challenging, and rewarding. Some days, I feel like I have a lot more questions than answers and feel more hopeless than I do hopeful. There was a lot of senseless injustice in the last few months. It disappoints me to hear my peers discuss this so flippantly and dismiss learning activities such as the KAIROS blanket exercise without even having tried it. It disappoints me that people can get into a heated debate about this without any Indigenous input in the conversation but fail to attend Indigenous Voices where all were invited to attend as part of a peaceful discussion where all perspectives can be heard, even if not agreed with. It disappoints me that there are no plans to implement Call to Action 28 here in the law school. It makes me uncomfortable to discuss this all the time and I sometimes feel like I am being too abrasive. However, being Indigenous is not a hat I get to take off when I exit the law school doors each day. I have had to remind myself constantly that making people uncomfortable for fifteen minutes while they read my blog post is what I have experienced my entire life. I have had to hide my own identity, then learned how to embrace it, and now have to defend it.
I am not here to tell you what reconciliation looks like because I am Indigenous. Again, this burden should not fall to Indigenous people alone. If we all want reconciliation to happen, we need to all be a part of reconciliation, which starts with truth. We need to go beyond our bar debates and become involved in the meaningful discussions, ESPECIALLY if we have opposing opinions. It is okay to have opposing opinions. It is not okay to oppress others because of our opinions. We have a duty as law students and as human beings to respond meaningfully to the Calls to Action. If you read this blog only a couple of times, thank you. If you have read it faithfully everyday and call yourself our #1 blog fan, thank you. If this is your first read, thank you. Opening your mind to these conversations and engaging with the topic is a huge step that we all must take.
With my frustration comes a great amount of gratitude for those who have allied with us and have become a part of this journey. The Faculty of Law has a number of professors who have continually offered their support to Indigenous students and worked hard to incorporate content that addresses Indigenous issues, either throughout their class material or through specific courses. I am also grateful for the number of friends and allies I have in this faculty. It never fails to put a smile on my face when a friend steps out of their own comfort zone attends an ILSA event or stand up for others when they see injustices happening. I am also thankful to have been part of this team and to have three peers in my life who have worked just as tirelessly to bring awareness to these issues. I am so excited that the Faculty of Law is welcoming two Indigenous professors next year, Josh Nichols and Darcy Lindberg. I am hopeful for the future and am excited to see what next year brings.
Until next time,
Katelynn Cave
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