1
00:00:00,036 --> 00:00:01,476
>> This is the second module for
the K'am-t'em: The Impact of ACEs

2
00:00:01,476 --> 00:00:08,736
and Toxic Stress on Indigenous
Communities.

3
00:00:08,736 --> 00:00:12,096
And this module talks
about the K'am-t'em book.

4
00:00:12,096 --> 00:00:15,226
And once again, if you're
interested in receiving a free copy

5
00:00:15,226 --> 00:00:17,266
of the book, please put in the chat.

6
00:00:17,266 --> 00:00:22,616
You can private message me your
name and your address information

7
00:00:22,616 --> 00:00:23,786
so that we can send that to you.

8
00:00:23,786 --> 00:00:27,416
And we'll be sending out books
the beginning of next week.

9
00:00:27,416 --> 00:00:30,926
So you should be getting
them by the end of next week.

10
00:00:30,926 --> 00:00:33,326
And so I want to tell you a
little bit about the book.

11
00:00:33,326 --> 00:00:35,796
And so you understand
kind of its history

12
00:00:35,796 --> 00:00:38,746
and why we're utilizing it in this way.

13
00:00:38,976 --> 00:00:45,046
And so once again, these are our
objectives for the training overall.

14
00:00:45,046 --> 00:00:51,306
This particular module, we're
looking at just being exposed

15
00:00:51,306 --> 00:00:52,966
to the supplemental resource.

16
00:00:52,966 --> 00:00:57,026
One of the key things about this
book is that it addresses implicit

17
00:00:57,026 --> 00:01:02,286
and explicit bias, multi-logical
epistemology, worldview, history,

18
00:01:02,286 --> 00:01:07,846
the intergenerational transmission of
adversity, factors for toxic stress.

19
00:01:07,846 --> 00:01:11,786
And then it has testimonials of
activities to interrupt toxic stress

20
00:01:11,786 --> 00:01:14,526
in Indigenous communities
in Northwest California.

21
00:01:15,576 --> 00:01:22,136
And so I'll tell you a background of
the book, the purpose of the book,

22
00:01:22,136 --> 00:01:25,026
and then additional K'am-t'em
projects that are out there

23
00:01:25,026 --> 00:01:29,216
in case you're interested in researching
or learning more about those.

24
00:01:29,496 --> 00:01:34,156
And so I'll start off here.

25
00:01:34,316 --> 00:01:36,976
This picture with the vision of the book

26
00:01:36,976 --> 00:01:41,936
and how the K'am-t'em journey
toward healing was inspired.

27
00:01:41,936 --> 00:01:49,286
And so my father, now Dr. Walt
Lara, Sr., he's 86 years old.

28
00:01:49,416 --> 00:01:53,526
When I was in the doctoral program
at Arizona State University,

29
00:01:53,526 --> 00:01:56,326
I would practice interviewing him.

30
00:01:56,326 --> 00:02:00,976
And so I would come home, turn on
the tape recorder, ask him questions.

31
00:02:01,146 --> 00:02:05,716
And I told him that eventually I
would put all of his transcriptions

32
00:02:05,716 --> 00:02:07,856
of his interviews into a book.

33
00:02:07,856 --> 00:02:09,786
And so I did.

34
00:02:09,786 --> 00:02:12,796
And I made a bound book at
Kinko's and I gave that to him.

35
00:02:12,796 --> 00:02:16,996
But he continued to ask about this book.

36
00:02:16,996 --> 00:02:21,226
And that he wanted us to
actually publish a book

37
00:02:21,226 --> 00:02:24,426
that could be used in classrooms.

38
00:02:24,426 --> 00:02:26,826
And so when I asked him,
well, what is your hope

39
00:02:26,826 --> 00:02:29,546
of what it is that you'd like to see?

40
00:02:29,636 --> 00:02:32,246
He said, I wanted to write
a book for our young people.

41
00:02:32,366 --> 00:02:37,716
And that so often our people are
inundated with social indicators

42
00:02:37,716 --> 00:02:42,356
of Indigenous peoples and always hearing
statistics of being the highest rates

43
00:02:42,356 --> 00:02:45,476
of suicide, death due to
violence, dropout rates.

44
00:02:45,476 --> 00:02:50,806
And so he wanted for our young people
to be able to hear about and know

45
00:02:50,806 --> 00:02:54,706
about the hard work of their
great-grandparents, their struggles

46
00:02:54,706 --> 00:02:59,226
to survive this world, and how they
fought to preserve our way of life,

47
00:02:59,226 --> 00:03:02,486
and how important that
them, as young people,

48
00:03:02,486 --> 00:03:07,836
how their contributions are important
to the future of Indigenous peoples.

49
00:03:07,836 --> 00:03:11,946
And so from this vision
came about this K'am-t'em:

50
00:03:11,946 --> 00:03:13,456
A Journey Toward Healing book,

51
00:03:13,956 --> 00:03:20,086
that ended up including 27 different
California Indigenous contributors.

52
00:03:20,086 --> 00:03:24,516
And they write on different
subjects, history, advocacy,

53
00:03:24,516 --> 00:03:28,156
testimonials of resilience, and renewal.

54
00:03:28,156 --> 00:03:32,316
And so this is a picture of
most of the contributors.

55
00:03:32,316 --> 00:03:38,166
The K'am-t'em authors range from our
youngest, 16 years, old to 86 years old.

56
00:03:38,216 --> 00:03:40,676
Now they're a few years older.

57
00:03:41,146 --> 00:03:45,096
They varied in their educational
backgrounds and experiences.

58
00:03:45,276 --> 00:03:50,516
But the book was guided by this
concept of testimonial justice,

59
00:03:50,516 --> 00:03:55,086
meaning that so often
Indigenous narratives are absent.

60
00:03:55,086 --> 00:03:57,926
And you could even see this
even in the data for ACEs Aware,

61
00:03:57,926 --> 00:04:02,826
Indigenous peoples are not included in
the data of the diagrams of California.

62
00:04:03,046 --> 00:04:06,066
It's something that had to be
researched on a separate end.

63
00:04:06,066 --> 00:04:09,106
So testimonial justice
is about including,

64
00:04:09,106 --> 00:04:11,686
making Indigenous people visible,

65
00:04:11,686 --> 00:04:14,596
hearing the voices of
Indigenous peoples.

66
00:04:14,706 --> 00:04:18,986
And this book also nurtured
a space for multi-logicality.

67
00:04:18,986 --> 00:04:23,326
And what this idea of multi-logicality
is, is multiple perspectives.

68
00:04:23,326 --> 00:04:27,476
There can be many ways of looking
at things, that it doesn't have

69
00:04:27,476 --> 00:04:32,746
to be one right answer, that
there can be many perspectives.

70
00:04:32,746 --> 00:04:38,306
And so Jack Norton, who was one
of the contributing authors,

71
00:04:38,496 --> 00:04:42,426
he quoted Elie Wiesel, and
he says, in the telling

72
00:04:42,426 --> 00:04:45,216
and in the listening, humanity meets.

73
00:04:45,216 --> 00:04:49,776
And by silencing ourselves to hear
the perspective of another person,

74
00:04:49,906 --> 00:04:55,586
we re-instill humanity, and then we
further enrich ourselves by doing so.

75
00:04:55,586 --> 00:05:00,966
And so he says, in the telling, and
in the listening, humanity meets.

76
00:05:01,136 --> 00:05:04,456
And that's part of what this
K'am-t'em book is about.

77
00:05:04,606 --> 00:05:07,286
People sharing their
personal experiences,

78
00:05:07,286 --> 00:05:13,346
testimonies from their own perspective
and others reading that and taking

79
00:05:13,346 --> 00:05:15,506
that in, and in the process,

80
00:05:15,506 --> 00:05:20,326
re-instilling humanity
and enriching themselves.

81
00:05:20,366 --> 00:05:27,736
And so on the cover of the book,
there is this K'am-t'em basket.

82
00:05:27,796 --> 00:05:33,496
And K'am-t'em is a basket
that holds treasures.

83
00:05:33,566 --> 00:05:36,936
And in the ceremony, the
Onekwilega Woneek wa leyga,

84
00:05:37,216 --> 00:05:43,726
we use it to hold the plagoks,
or the feathers basket.

85
00:05:43,726 --> 00:05:45,816
And so it holds the treasures
of our people.

86
00:05:45,996 --> 00:05:51,436
And in the story that's told
in the beginning of the book,

87
00:05:51,636 --> 00:05:56,696
that kind of guides this whole
K'am-t'em: A Journey Toward Healing,

88
00:05:56,746 --> 00:06:02,766
is that many generations
ago, there was a Yurok woman,

89
00:06:02,766 --> 00:06:08,956
and she lived up above
Weitchpus, near Bluff Creek.

90
00:06:09,256 --> 00:06:17,146
And she knew that time of struggle,
a time of difficulty was coming

91
00:06:17,146 --> 00:06:20,116
for human beings, for Yurok people.

92
00:06:20,116 --> 00:06:24,546
And so through prayer, she
began to weave a basket.

93
00:06:24,546 --> 00:06:29,166
And in that basket, every weave
taught a lesson to the people,

94
00:06:29,376 --> 00:06:35,736
a song shared a story, and all of
the treasures of Indigenous knowledge

95
00:06:36,006 --> 00:06:39,726
of Yurok people was woven
into that basket.

96
00:06:40,476 --> 00:06:43,296
And when she finished the
basket, she called it K'am-t'em,

97
00:06:43,296 --> 00:06:45,316
it held the treasures of the people.

98
00:06:45,316 --> 00:06:50,356
And she placed it in the
river and stood silently

99
00:06:50,356 --> 00:06:54,256
as it began its journey
atop of the water.

100
00:06:54,256 --> 00:06:58,066
And the basket traveled to each village.

101
00:06:58,186 --> 00:07:03,856
And each village, and in my thinking,
the river is symbolic of time.

102
00:07:03,856 --> 00:07:07,326
So in my thinking, each village
represents a different generation

103
00:07:07,326 --> 00:07:07,876
of people.

104
00:07:07,876 --> 00:07:13,396
And when the basket came to that
village, the people picked it up,

105
00:07:13,396 --> 00:07:17,496
they learned from it, and then they
too contributed weaves to the basket

106
00:07:17,496 --> 00:07:20,126
and passed it on to the next generation.

107
00:07:20,126 --> 00:07:25,976
And this continued all the way until it
reached the mouth of the river, Requa,

108
00:07:26,106 --> 00:07:31,486
where it spilled out into the ocean, and
it lasted and existed forever and ever.

109
00:07:31,646 --> 00:07:34,556
And so when I think about this basket,

110
00:07:34,556 --> 00:07:37,286
I think about it traveling
to different generations.

111
00:07:37,286 --> 00:07:41,236
And some of these generations we'll
actually be talking about tomorrow.

112
00:07:41,236 --> 00:07:46,686
And looking at the basket had
traveled through periods of genocide,

113
00:07:46,686 --> 00:07:51,996
for example, where the attempted
extermination of Indigenous peoples

114
00:07:51,996 --> 00:07:58,416
and peoples in this region, the people
learn from those before they picked

115
00:07:58,416 --> 00:08:03,646
up the basket, they learn the knowledge,
and they contributed knowledge

116
00:08:03,646 --> 00:08:07,956
so that the next generation could
use that information to survive.

117
00:08:08,146 --> 00:08:12,426
And so then the basket transitioned
into this period of relocation,

118
00:08:12,426 --> 00:08:16,496
where people were moved from their
homelands up to reservations.

119
00:08:16,636 --> 00:08:21,436
The people survived and they survived
by looking at the generation before

120
00:08:21,436 --> 00:08:24,776
and contributing their own
experience and knowledge

121
00:08:24,776 --> 00:08:28,416
and putting the basket back in
the water for the next generation.

122
00:08:28,416 --> 00:08:33,466
So when the basket then came to
the period of boarding school,

123
00:08:33,466 --> 00:08:37,516
where children were taken from their
parents, taken from their families

124
00:08:37,516 --> 00:08:41,766
and hundreds of miles away to boarding
schools, where they were stripped

125
00:08:41,766 --> 00:08:46,516
of their culture and their language
and experienced abuse and neglect

126
00:08:46,516 --> 00:08:48,336
for the first time in their lives.

127
00:08:48,336 --> 00:08:50,576
Our people survived that once again.

128
00:08:50,576 --> 00:08:55,366
And they survived it by learning
from those generations before.

129
00:08:55,766 --> 00:09:01,026
And they too contributed knowledge for
the survival of future generations.

130
00:09:01,026 --> 00:09:06,176
And so this Indigenous knowledge is
such a treasure to Indigenous peoples.

131
00:09:06,176 --> 00:09:11,556
And what we will learn through this
training is that this basket, K'am-t'em,

132
00:09:11,556 --> 00:09:16,286
is also, from an Indigenous
perspective, protective factors.

133
00:09:16,356 --> 00:09:19,206
They're tools to resilience.

134
00:09:19,206 --> 00:09:24,916
It's the tool to healing, to bringing
balance back into the community.

135
00:09:24,916 --> 00:09:32,976
And so that's why we're utilizing this
book to also supplement this training.

136
00:09:32,976 --> 00:09:39,216
Another part of the K'am-t'em book,
K'am-t'em: A Journey Toward Healing,

137
00:09:39,216 --> 00:09:43,206
was the K'am-t'em Photography
Project, Youth Photography Project.

138
00:09:43,206 --> 00:09:48,346
And so in this project, we worked
with five youth and we put a call

139
00:09:48,346 --> 00:09:51,236
out to youth and these were
the people that had responded.

140
00:09:51,236 --> 00:09:53,736
And so we included all
of them in the project.

141
00:09:53,736 --> 00:09:59,326
And what the youth did in the project is
they met with the authors of the books,

142
00:09:59,326 --> 00:10:06,526
of the chapters, and they
attempted to capture the story

143
00:10:06,526 --> 00:10:07,966
of the author through photograph.

144
00:10:08,086 --> 00:10:13,286
And so all of the photographs that you
will see in the K'am-t'em book were done

145
00:10:13,286 --> 00:10:18,376
by youth photographers under the
mentorship of Gary Colegrove,

146
00:10:18,376 --> 00:10:23,236
Jr. So that's an important
aspect of the book.

147
00:10:23,236 --> 00:10:26,136
Also with the book is --
and I didn't know this

148
00:10:26,406 --> 00:10:30,366
until we actually finished the
book, but when you write a book,

149
00:10:30,456 --> 00:10:33,406
20% of the royalties
go back to the author.

150
00:10:33,406 --> 00:10:35,136
We didn't know that.

151
00:10:35,136 --> 00:10:40,226
And so in discussing, dad and I
and the other author contributors,

152
00:10:40,226 --> 00:10:44,006
we decided to do a scholarship
with the royalties.

153
00:10:44,006 --> 00:10:47,526
And so all of the books that
are sold, the royalties go

154
00:10:47,526 --> 00:10:49,516
to a K'am-t'em scholarship.

155
00:10:49,516 --> 00:10:55,286
And this scholarship is for California
Indigenous students that plan

156
00:10:55,286 --> 00:11:01,616
to utilize their education to preserve
and/or protect indigenous knowledge.

157
00:11:01,616 --> 00:11:06,516
And so this is the natural environment,
language, inherent rights, et cetera.

158
00:11:06,516 --> 00:11:13,166
And so last year we funded four
students through the scholarship.

159
00:11:13,166 --> 00:11:16,776
And this year we were able to fund
five students through the scholarship.

160
00:11:17,856 --> 00:11:22,396
Another piece to this is we've
done the K'am-t'em Next Steps

161
00:11:22,396 --> 00:11:24,116
for K through 12 Educators.

162
00:11:24,116 --> 00:11:26,166
And so we had K'am-t'em ambassadors.

163
00:11:26,166 --> 00:11:32,706
We had 50 teachers, K through 12
teachers from 23 different schools

164
00:11:32,706 --> 00:11:34,706
in Humboldt and Del Norte counties.

165
00:11:34,706 --> 00:11:39,446
And they participated in a K
through 12 educators course.

166
00:11:39,446 --> 00:11:41,486
They received paid tuition, once again,

167
00:11:41,486 --> 00:11:45,736
a free copy of the book,
the certification.

168
00:11:45,736 --> 00:11:49,586
And they also participated
in a K'am-t'em speaker series

169
00:11:49,586 --> 00:11:52,166
for the whole year last year.

170
00:11:52,616 --> 00:11:55,976
Also part of this book, we have
the K'am-t'em sticker campaign.

171
00:11:56,046 --> 00:12:01,686
And so we had originally
designed this book for youth.

172
00:12:01,686 --> 00:12:03,986
But we were realizing that many

173
00:12:03,986 --> 00:12:08,236
of the youth were not necessarily
reading the entire chapters,

174
00:12:08,236 --> 00:12:11,056
for example, eight-,
nine-, and 10-year-olds.

175
00:12:11,056 --> 00:12:16,936
And so we utilized quotes from the book
so that youth were still being exposed.

176
00:12:16,936 --> 00:12:20,676
And we developed these stickers
to give to youth programs

177
00:12:20,676 --> 00:12:22,616
and to distribute in classes.

178
00:12:22,616 --> 00:12:24,606
And so you can see a few examples here.

179
00:12:24,786 --> 00:12:27,986
One with the canoe,
the Oohl we.

180
00:12:28,246 --> 00:12:32,956
It has a quote from Kisdyante
Joseph, one of the authors,

181
00:12:32,956 --> 00:12:35,926
and it says, protect what is sacred.

182
00:12:35,926 --> 00:12:37,546
Another quote from Shaunna McCovey

183
00:12:37,546 --> 00:12:40,226
in the next sticker says,
"You are an eagle.

184
00:12:40,376 --> 00:12:42,936
You were born with sovereign
wings and white tail feathers

185
00:12:42,936 --> 00:12:45,176
to steer you in the four directions."

186
00:12:45,176 --> 00:12:48,056
And then the third sticker is a quote

187
00:12:48,056 --> 00:12:51,886
from Seafha Ramos, another
author chapter.

188
00:12:51,886 --> 00:12:56,626
It says, Hlkelonah ue
Megeytohl, take care of the Earth.

189
00:12:57,286 --> 00:13:02,126
And then finally, a quote
from Walt Lara,

190
00:13:02,126 --> 00:13:03,896
"You come from extraordinary people.

191
00:13:04,156 --> 00:13:05,526
You are resilient.

192
00:13:05,526 --> 00:13:06,646
You are powerful.

193
00:13:06,676 --> 00:13:07,536
You are humble.

194
00:13:07,626 --> 00:13:09,046
You are gifted.

195
00:13:09,046 --> 00:13:11,796
As such, you have responsibility
to protect the treasure,

196
00:13:11,796 --> 00:13:14,316
the sacred knowledge of our ancestors."

197
00:13:15,076 --> 00:13:18,356
And so these are just some of
the examples of the things,

198
00:13:18,356 --> 00:13:22,776
the projects that are happening
around the K'am-t'em book.

199
00:13:22,776 --> 00:13:25,906
There's also the
K'am-t'em-IndigenousKnowledge.com

200
00:13:25,976 --> 00:13:26,916
website.

201
00:13:26,916 --> 00:13:31,406
And so if you get a chance to visit
the website, you can see the projects

202
00:13:31,406 --> 00:13:35,796
that are happening, including this
ACEs Aware training is also part

203
00:13:35,796 --> 00:13:38,606
of the K'am-t'em projects.

204
00:13:38,606 --> 00:13:45,006
Finally, we've worked on a
K'am-t'em student video project.

205
00:13:45,006 --> 00:13:47,676
Because of what I was sharing
earlier about the importance

206
00:13:47,676 --> 00:13:51,686
of involving students and
projects as an act of resiliency,

207
00:13:51,686 --> 00:13:56,976
we attempt to include youth
in as many things as we can.

208
00:13:57,046 --> 00:14:02,486
And so the K'am-t'em Student
Video Project is a video of all

209
00:14:02,486 --> 00:14:07,106
of the K'am-t'em authors
that was created by students.

210
00:14:07,106 --> 00:14:11,406
And so I'm actually going to
share the video with you today.

211
00:14:11,406 --> 00:14:14,366
It included interviews
with chapter authors.

212
00:14:14,366 --> 00:14:14,946
They did the editing.

213
00:14:14,946 --> 00:14:20,346
They collected the B-roll
footage to put this together.

214
00:14:20,346 --> 00:14:23,996
And this production was created
for professionals who work

215
00:14:23,996 --> 00:14:26,556
with Indigenous children and families.

216
00:14:26,746 --> 00:14:30,886
And so I'm going to go and
share this video with you.

217
00:14:30,886 --> 00:14:34,636
It also will give you a little
background of the book as well.

218
00:14:35,016 --> 00:14:39,836
I'm going to make sure I can
get the sound shared too.

219
00:14:48,046 --> 00:14:50,736
>> We're beginning to phase out --

220
00:14:52,516 --> 00:14:59,056
[ Music ]

221
00:14:59,556 --> 00:15:00,926
>> Oops. Stop share.

222
00:15:00,996 --> 00:15:02,476
Just one second.

223
00:15:14,046 --> 00:15:15,826
Jennifer,
if you could give me a thumbs

224
00:15:15,826 --> 00:15:19,986
up if you can hear the
video once I start it here.

225
00:15:19,986 --> 00:15:24,796
>> Generations ago, along the Klamath
River, there lived a wise woman

226
00:15:24,796 --> 00:15:28,196
who wove the most beautiful
baskets known to humankind.

227
00:15:28,196 --> 00:15:34,036
Her baskets were woven so tightly
that water could not penetrate them.

228
00:15:34,686 --> 00:15:37,966
She was aging and had
many experiences to share.

229
00:15:38,866 --> 00:15:41,966
Through prayer, she began to
weave a basket for the people.

230
00:15:42,796 --> 00:15:47,546
The wise woman worked day after
day, weaving, praying, and singing.

231
00:15:48,416 --> 00:15:53,386
As her strong hands moved gracefully
over the materials, she shared a story

232
00:15:53,816 --> 00:15:58,596
to be retold, a song to be sung
again, and a lesson to be learned.

233
00:16:00,306 --> 00:16:04,806
When she finished, she had created
a large, beautiful basket bowl.

234
00:16:06,806 --> 00:16:09,376
She called this basket K'am-t'em,

235
00:16:09,846 --> 00:16:12,096
because it held the treasures
of the people.

236
00:16:13,516 --> 00:16:23,546
[ Water Splashing ]

237
00:16:24,046 --> 00:16:27,226
>> I think that's one of the most
important lessons I learned is

238
00:16:27,226 --> 00:16:38,156
that to honor, to meet the energy,
to meet the history, to meet all life

239
00:16:38,306 --> 00:16:42,116
in the place in which you find yourself.

240
00:16:42,936 --> 00:16:50,736
Now, we have to -- we don't have
to, but our life is enriched

241
00:16:50,856 --> 00:16:52,846
if we understand from where we came.

242
00:16:53,866 --> 00:16:55,256
The past is our future.

243
00:16:56,736 --> 00:17:01,086
>> Professionals and other service
providers to Native people need

244
00:17:01,476 --> 00:17:08,806
to understand the epistemology, where
we came from, and who we are as peoples.

245
00:17:09,126 --> 00:17:15,196
Each tribe has its own
distinction, its own origin story,

246
00:17:15,196 --> 00:17:19,696
its own epistemology that's
quite different from each other

247
00:17:19,696 --> 00:17:25,666
and definitely different than the
American or the settler colonialists

248
00:17:25,666 --> 00:17:29,646
that came to the United States
and Northern California.

249
00:17:30,436 --> 00:17:33,966
>> We understand ourselves through
our relationships with land.

250
00:17:34,806 --> 00:17:39,366
And if that relationship isn't strong,
then there's a lot of other things

251
00:17:39,596 --> 00:17:43,836
at the foundation of who we are that
isn't going to be that strong either.

252
00:17:43,836 --> 00:17:49,736
And I think some of the classes that we
teach in NAS, for example, talk about,

253
00:17:50,156 --> 00:17:54,506
no matter what the topic is, you know,
how foundational our relationships

254
00:17:54,596 --> 00:18:01,096
to land and other beings, more
than just humans, is to our place

255
00:18:01,096 --> 00:18:02,636
in the world as Native people.

256
00:18:03,246 --> 00:18:05,926
We're thinking about reciprocal
relationships constantly.

257
00:18:06,726 --> 00:18:12,366
And I think that when policies
targeted our identities,

258
00:18:12,926 --> 00:18:16,256
they targeted those relationships,
and so it's hard to differentiate,

259
00:18:16,256 --> 00:18:20,646
for example, what happened
to us as genocide.

260
00:18:21,666 --> 00:18:27,996
How those same mechanisms that create
that don't also affect the land

261
00:18:27,996 --> 00:18:31,606
and the plants and the
animals and create an ecocide

262
00:18:31,606 --> 00:18:33,636
that we're all now experiencing as well.

263
00:18:33,636 --> 00:18:37,566
>> I think when you're talking about
Native history, I like to start

264
00:18:37,566 --> 00:18:42,826
with knowing the land and really
understanding the relationship to land

265
00:18:43,126 --> 00:18:46,876
and knowing the land's
history in a way that honors

266
00:18:47,036 --> 00:18:50,886
like what the land has always
been and the relationship

267
00:18:50,886 --> 00:18:52,196
that Native people had with it.

268
00:18:52,266 --> 00:18:57,596
So I always start with language,
learning the terms and the ways

269
00:18:57,596 --> 00:19:00,416
in which Native peoples refer
to places in which you live in,

270
00:19:00,716 --> 00:19:03,506
giving people the idea that
like our history is much older

271
00:19:03,506 --> 00:19:07,016
than just contact forward,
that it is way before that.

272
00:19:07,016 --> 00:19:12,096
And then I think if you're
talking specifically about contact,

273
00:19:13,216 --> 00:19:16,556
I always want to reframe it as you
need to remember that that's not --

274
00:19:16,696 --> 00:19:19,546
that contact makes it
sound like a benign term,

275
00:19:19,846 --> 00:19:22,996
as if people were meeting each
other and exchanging ideas.

276
00:19:22,996 --> 00:19:25,536
What we're really talking
about is settler colonialism.

277
00:19:25,536 --> 00:19:28,616
What we're really talking about is
like invasion and empire building.

278
00:19:28,976 --> 00:19:32,546
>> As a college professor, I
have students in my classes

279
00:19:32,546 --> 00:19:36,866
that at times are surprised
that I use the term genocide

280
00:19:36,866 --> 00:19:39,036
to describe what happened in California.

281
00:19:39,036 --> 00:19:44,526
And if you are unsure of the definition
of genocide, I encourage everyone to go

282
00:19:44,526 --> 00:19:51,976
and visit the United Nations' definition
of genocide, which was codified in 1948.

283
00:19:51,976 --> 00:19:56,876
And to be really clear and to understand
that when you examine and sort

284
00:19:56,876 --> 00:20:02,486
of have a more fuller understanding of
the history of California Native people,

285
00:20:02,486 --> 00:20:05,556
specifically with the
state of California,

286
00:20:05,556 --> 00:20:11,156
actually there is no other word that
you could responsibly use to describe

287
00:20:11,156 --> 00:20:13,876
that relationship other than genocide.

288
00:20:14,046 --> 00:20:17,946
To actually attempt to use any other
word is really sort of misinformed

289
00:20:17,946 --> 00:20:23,166
and sort of perpetuating this
misinformation to students.

290
00:20:23,166 --> 00:20:26,456
And so certainly, if you're talking
about elementary school students,

291
00:20:26,456 --> 00:20:31,176
I don't know that you need to get into
the very graphic specifics when it comes

292
00:20:31,176 --> 00:20:34,146
to sort of this idea of the
definition of genocide and some

293
00:20:34,146 --> 00:20:39,876
of the extreme violence and pain
and suffering that occurred.

294
00:20:39,876 --> 00:20:44,616
But I do think that you could, for
example, let students know that everyone

295
00:20:44,616 --> 00:20:49,286
that came to California did
not respect California Natives,

296
00:20:49,286 --> 00:20:53,786
did not recognize their humanity,
and did not treat them well.

297
00:20:54,066 --> 00:20:57,506
These are things that then
can serve as building blocks.

298
00:20:57,506 --> 00:21:01,496
So when these students go on to
junior high and to high school,

299
00:21:01,496 --> 00:21:05,176
and when they sort of become perhaps
introduced to the term genocide,

300
00:21:05,336 --> 00:21:08,136
they are better set up because
they are better informed

301
00:21:08,136 --> 00:21:13,276
about what actually occurred, you
know, sort of accurate information.

302
00:21:14,516 --> 00:21:19,546
[ Water Splashing ]

303
00:21:20,046 --> 00:21:24,336
>> In a Yurok village at Bluff Creek,
the woman placed the basket in the water

304
00:21:24,336 --> 00:21:27,796
where two rivers joined
together and stood silent

305
00:21:28,246 --> 00:21:30,076
as the basket began its journey.

306
00:21:31,146 --> 00:21:34,796
The basket seemed to tiptoe
across the gentle breakers.

307
00:21:35,356 --> 00:21:40,716
It moved along more quickly as it hit
the swift currents and swirled ever

308
00:21:40,716 --> 00:21:42,706
so purposeful into the eddies.

309
00:21:43,846 --> 00:21:47,686
Round and round the basket turned
through the trials and tribulations

310
00:21:47,686 --> 00:21:53,046
of the water and then burst free into
the swift shallow flow of the river.

311
00:21:54,196 --> 00:21:57,516
All life that swam below
watched with great interest.

312
00:21:58,516 --> 00:22:01,626
[ Water Splashing ]

313
00:22:02,126 --> 00:22:10,326
>> Recent research in brain science and
neurobiology is that it is revealing

314
00:22:10,326 --> 00:22:18,956
that it's so much about relationships,
about interconnection with everybody,

315
00:22:18,956 --> 00:22:23,886
including the environment, including
our culture, our teachings, our stories.

316
00:22:24,836 --> 00:22:26,176
And guess what?

317
00:22:26,416 --> 00:22:28,426
That's what we come from.

318
00:22:29,146 --> 00:22:33,826
That it's teachings that
have allowed us to survive.

319
00:22:34,676 --> 00:22:37,936
And those teachings are
everything's interconnected.

320
00:22:37,936 --> 00:22:43,316
The power of relationships, the power of
family, the power of secure attachments.

321
00:22:44,016 --> 00:22:48,526
And brain science is just now catching
up with the teachings that come

322
00:22:48,526 --> 00:22:52,906
from our people and our indigenous
traditions, our indigenous practices.

323
00:22:53,646 --> 00:22:57,586
And you can look at any
of the recent fields

324
00:22:57,586 --> 00:23:01,396
such as interpersonal
neurobiology and you'll see

325
00:23:01,596 --> 00:23:06,466
that what brain science is showing
is that it's all about relationships.

326
00:23:07,706 --> 00:23:09,096
And that's what we come from.

327
00:23:09,566 --> 00:23:13,156
Relationships to each other,
relationship to the spiritual world,

328
00:23:13,366 --> 00:23:16,646
relationships to the past,
relationships to the environment.

329
00:23:17,166 --> 00:23:21,606
That is an indigenous
mental health as I see it

330
00:23:21,606 --> 00:23:24,956
and what would help us in this area.

331
00:23:25,566 --> 00:23:28,156
And it's always been there, right?

332
00:23:28,426 --> 00:23:32,816
>> I feel very culturally
rich in the sense that we live

333
00:23:32,816 --> 00:23:41,806
in our ancestral lands, that the culture
that we have has been thriving for,

334
00:23:42,346 --> 00:23:47,066
you know, hundreds and thousands of
years, that we still have all the energy

335
00:23:47,066 --> 00:23:49,096
of all those who were here before us.

336
00:23:49,306 --> 00:23:56,736
And I think, I strongly believe that
our culture is part of our genetics

337
00:23:57,396 --> 00:24:02,936
and that we are part of all of
the information of our ancestors.

338
00:24:03,326 --> 00:24:04,866
Our culture just soothes us.

339
00:24:04,866 --> 00:24:07,366
You know, all the value
systems, all the knowledge,

340
00:24:07,366 --> 00:24:09,806
all the information is so very soothing.

341
00:24:10,226 --> 00:24:14,386
And so when we have tragedy in our
life or when things aren't going well,

342
00:24:14,926 --> 00:24:17,126
our culture is just so ingrained in us

343
00:24:17,196 --> 00:24:20,226
that I think that's what
I love about it the most.

344
00:24:20,716 --> 00:24:23,426
And it's just all parts of our life.

345
00:24:23,426 --> 00:24:27,426
So it's every aspect of our
life, not just in ceremony

346
00:24:27,426 --> 00:24:30,616
and prayer, but also just every day.

347
00:24:30,616 --> 00:24:33,656
If you take time to reflect
on it, it's just so soothing.

348
00:24:34,026 --> 00:24:35,666
And that's what I love
about our culture.

349
00:24:37,026 --> 00:24:46,206
>> In my chapter, I wrote about regalia
making and how I grew spiritually

350
00:24:46,446 --> 00:24:50,846
in that process of regalia making
since I was a very young girl.

351
00:24:51,316 --> 00:24:55,296
And the beauty of our culture
and the way that we do things is

352
00:24:55,296 --> 00:24:59,126
that we are connected to everything.

353
00:24:59,126 --> 00:25:01,816
We are connected to the universe.

354
00:25:01,816 --> 00:25:04,926
We are connected to the
dimensions of the world.

355
00:25:04,926 --> 00:25:10,346
We're connected to the spirit
people, the people of the forest,

356
00:25:10,426 --> 00:25:12,686
those that reside in the waters.

357
00:25:13,146 --> 00:25:16,046
We are connected to all things.

358
00:25:16,136 --> 00:25:22,176
And all those things
contribute into today's prayers.

359
00:25:22,796 --> 00:25:27,696
And what we can say as Hoopa people, we
say wichwo a ya den whichwing a ya den

360
00:25:27,696 --> 00:25:37,206
and basically translates that my
grandmothers walked here before me

361
00:25:37,266 --> 00:25:42,496
and it's in their footsteps that
I become a better human being

362
00:25:43,286 --> 00:25:45,346
and learn from these things.

363
00:25:47,806 --> 00:25:51,396
>> Culture is such an important
part of who we are and our identity

364
00:25:51,396 --> 00:25:55,256
and it has potential
for a lot of healing

365
00:25:55,256 --> 00:25:59,876
which our communities are still
going through and will continue to go

366
00:25:59,966 --> 00:26:02,846
through from healing
from our past history.

367
00:26:03,196 --> 00:26:10,996
And I really believe in my heart that,
you know, our culture and our ceremonies

368
00:26:11,326 --> 00:26:16,366
and our languages have -- are
-- that is part of our healing.

369
00:26:16,366 --> 00:26:21,516
That is a core part of our healing
as we continue on in the future

370
00:26:21,516 --> 00:26:27,426
and will help guide us into the future
for making decisions about our lives,

371
00:26:27,426 --> 00:26:29,646
about our communities
for the better, you know.

372
00:26:30,016 --> 00:26:34,866
And so I think it's important to
pass on this knowledge that we learn,

373
00:26:34,866 --> 00:26:36,656
that we have the privilege
to learn that.

374
00:26:36,766 --> 00:26:40,656
>> The elders watched as the
young people were taken away

375
00:26:40,906 --> 00:26:44,316
and when they returned they
couldn't speak their language

376
00:26:44,406 --> 00:26:47,356
or they would no longer
speak their language.

377
00:26:47,536 --> 00:26:52,866
You know, in some cases, some people
spoke their languages continued,

378
00:26:53,176 --> 00:26:58,296
like in defiance, and it was an act
of bravery as far as I'm concerned

379
00:26:58,296 --> 00:27:03,556
that they were able to, you know,
persist speaking their languages

380
00:27:03,556 --> 00:27:08,356
and being part of the
Indigenous mind, I guess,

381
00:27:08,436 --> 00:27:11,036
that is represented by our languages.

382
00:27:11,036 --> 00:27:15,106
>> It helps you connect back
to, not just our ancestors,

383
00:27:15,106 --> 00:27:17,106
but the ways of our ancestors.

384
00:27:17,796 --> 00:27:23,926
So I'd like the youth to appreciate
that and see that it's fragile

385
00:27:24,176 --> 00:27:27,116
and see that it can just escape.

386
00:27:27,316 --> 00:27:29,636
It can just become more
of a vapor and disappear.

387
00:27:30,306 --> 00:27:35,606
And without their input, without
their buy-in, without their desire

388
00:27:35,886 --> 00:27:39,906
to understand a deeper self,
then it will disappear.

389
00:27:40,326 --> 00:27:42,436
And that's not good for
all of any of us.

390
00:27:42,486 --> 00:27:46,006
It's not good for them, it's not good
for me, it's not good for anybody

391
00:27:46,006 --> 00:27:47,856
that we know and love and work with.

392
00:27:48,516 --> 00:27:52,606
[ Water Splashing ]

393
00:27:53,106 --> 00:27:54,096
>> Although the villagers lived

394
00:27:54,186 --> 00:27:59,046
within their own unique environment
each village anticipated the basket's

395
00:27:59,046 --> 00:28:03,346
presence, for they knew the old
woman understood the human need

396
00:28:03,346 --> 00:28:04,926
for knowledge and contribution.

397
00:28:06,026 --> 00:28:10,326
As such the people picked up the
basket rejoiced in the lessons

398
00:28:10,696 --> 00:28:12,806
and then they too added prayers

399
00:28:13,016 --> 00:28:15,256
and allowed the basket
to continue its journey.

400
00:28:16,516 --> 00:28:21,546
[ Water Splashing ]

401
00:28:22,046 --> 00:28:26,166
>> It's really important to uplift and
recognize the resilience of our peoples

402
00:28:26,166 --> 00:28:27,446
and resilience of the land.

403
00:28:28,416 --> 00:28:32,146
It was messy and difficult,
painful and triggering,

404
00:28:32,146 --> 00:28:38,806
but today we have an entire generation,
maybe two generations now that were born

405
00:28:38,806 --> 00:28:42,616
into a world where ceremony
is normal for them.

406
00:28:43,086 --> 00:28:46,306
And where the ceremony
cycle and what they know

407
00:28:46,716 --> 00:28:52,706
and how they measure time is based
off of generations of and decades

408
00:28:52,706 --> 00:28:56,816
of hard work amidst a
world that was kind

409
00:28:56,816 --> 00:29:00,346
of in an overall cultural
renaissance whether it be Indigenous

410
00:29:00,486 --> 00:29:03,796
or not during the 50s, 60s, and 70s.

411
00:29:04,616 --> 00:29:07,866
Thirty years ago, the
reality that we have now

412
00:29:08,166 --> 00:29:11,626
of an entire generation knowing
nothing but ceremonial cycles

413
00:29:11,626 --> 00:29:15,596
and having Indigenous cosmology
woven into how they're brought up

414
00:29:15,596 --> 00:29:19,786
and how they're bringing up their
babies was only a dream or a goal.

415
00:29:19,786 --> 00:29:21,606
There were snippets of
it here and there.

416
00:29:21,606 --> 00:29:24,326
People had knowledge, people
shared, and people spoke.

417
00:29:24,326 --> 00:29:31,096
But what we have today is a reflection
of hundreds of people's hard work

418
00:29:31,096 --> 00:29:34,386
and that was really the driving
force in sharing these stories

419
00:29:34,386 --> 00:29:36,496
and sharing them from
my dad's perspective.

420
00:29:37,246 --> 00:29:39,246
>> The young people are the future.

421
00:29:39,246 --> 00:29:44,856
You know, you are our future
leaders, our future ceremonial people.

422
00:29:44,856 --> 00:29:46,926
You are the carriers of our tradition.

423
00:29:47,286 --> 00:29:51,676
And so if you are armed with knowledge
at a much younger age than, say,

424
00:29:51,676 --> 00:29:55,846
I was armed with knowledge, then
we are all the better for that.

425
00:29:56,516 --> 00:30:10,546
[ Singing ]

426
00:30:11,046 --> 00:30:13,356
>> Years later down the road,
now that I go back and read it

427
00:30:13,356 --> 00:30:18,516
and reread the things that I, my own
voice that I had to say these things,

428
00:30:18,516 --> 00:30:22,376
my own story that I had to tell I
relearn these things from that chapter.

429
00:30:22,376 --> 00:30:25,946
And as I go back and see the different
aspects throughout the whole book,

430
00:30:26,106 --> 00:30:29,326
throughout my whole life, no matter
what age, and I know it's going

431
00:30:29,326 --> 00:30:33,826
to affect ages throughout everywhere,
their lives, their perspectives

432
00:30:33,826 --> 00:30:37,096
of Indigenous people and the
importance of using your voice

433
00:30:37,096 --> 00:30:39,656
and showing your religion
and appreciating yourself.

434
00:30:39,656 --> 00:30:45,666
And so that's why it means a lot to me
is because it's basically a guideline

435
00:30:45,666 --> 00:30:49,836
to Indigenous people in who we are.

436
00:30:49,836 --> 00:30:53,426
No matter where you go, you don't
only represent yourself as a person,

437
00:30:53,426 --> 00:30:58,776
you represent your family, your people,
your community, and your culture

438
00:30:58,776 --> 00:31:02,786
because we walk within the footsteps
of our ancestors and those that come

439
00:31:02,986 --> 00:31:04,546
after us are going to walk in ours.

440
00:31:04,656 --> 00:31:06,626
And so we pass those teachings down.

441
00:31:06,966 --> 00:31:11,436
And so that lesson of using your voice,
appreciating yourself, loving yourself

442
00:31:11,436 --> 00:31:15,286
and knowing where you come from would
probably be the most important lesson.

443
00:31:15,286 --> 00:31:19,776
>> I'd say the most important teaching
that I got from my grandparents,

444
00:31:19,776 --> 00:31:26,036
ancestors is like the just taking care
of the land and ceremonies itself,

445
00:31:26,716 --> 00:31:30,416
carrying that on in a good way
and teaching, to keep on teaching

446
00:31:30,566 --> 00:31:33,886
because they taught me a lot,
they taught my dad a lot,

447
00:31:33,886 --> 00:31:34,926
and my dad's taught me a lot.

448
00:31:34,926 --> 00:31:37,806
And so I think definitely one
thing I take away from them is just

449
00:31:37,806 --> 00:31:42,266
like continuing the culture and
tradition and doing it in the right way

450
00:31:42,266 --> 00:31:46,126
and just taking care of yourself
and as well as your family

451
00:31:46,126 --> 00:31:47,916
and just like your culture.

452
00:31:48,046 --> 00:31:50,876
So that ties into like whether
taking care of the regalia,

453
00:31:50,906 --> 00:31:54,646
taking care of the river, taking
care of your songs and stuff,

454
00:31:54,646 --> 00:31:57,916
because it all intertwines
and it's all connected.

455
00:31:58,206 --> 00:32:01,926
>> So my book chapter is
about an experience that I had

456
00:32:01,926 --> 00:32:05,076
at what was called the
Jump Dance in Hoopa.

457
00:32:05,676 --> 00:32:11,526
And just being there and seeing all the
valuable contributions that everyone has

458
00:32:11,556 --> 00:32:15,686
to make and in their own ways, whether
it's to come and to dance or to sing

459
00:32:16,106 --> 00:32:20,536
or to cook or to just help out
around the camps or in the kitchen.

460
00:32:21,326 --> 00:32:23,716
Or even if it's just being there
and bringing their good energies.

461
00:32:23,716 --> 00:32:27,266
Even the kids can come and
they have a contribution.

462
00:32:27,266 --> 00:32:29,596
They're there to help
or they're there to help

463
00:32:29,596 --> 00:32:33,126
with other children there
to keep an eye on things.

464
00:32:33,126 --> 00:32:37,136
And just really about seeing
everybody's contribution

465
00:32:37,136 --> 00:32:38,886
that they have and the value in it.

466
00:32:39,496 --> 00:32:44,266
I think it's also really important
to find those contributions

467
00:32:44,266 --> 00:32:50,156
and values outside of ceremonies in the
classrooms or at work or wherever it is,

468
00:32:50,156 --> 00:32:52,796
just finding what it is
that you can contribute

469
00:32:52,796 --> 00:32:55,616
and what others have,
that's really valuable.

470
00:32:56,516 --> 00:33:00,546
[ Water Splashing ]

471
00:33:01,046 --> 00:33:05,766
>> After many stops, the basket reached
Requa, the mouth of the Klamath River.

472
00:33:06,586 --> 00:33:13,286
It made three final spins, reflecting a
ceremonial journey and drifted its way

473
00:33:13,286 --> 00:33:15,646
over the rough water
of the river's mouth

474
00:33:16,066 --> 00:33:18,356
and into the belly of the Pacific Ocean.

475
00:33:19,456 --> 00:33:22,986
All that the basket had to
offer made its final journey

476
00:33:23,346 --> 00:33:25,936
into the sunset where
it exists eternally.

477
00:33:26,516 --> 00:33:30,556
[ Water Splashing ]

478
00:33:31,056 --> 00:33:35,966
>> What would your message be
to professionals like educators,

479
00:33:35,966 --> 00:33:42,166
social workers, medical providers,
what would your message be to them

480
00:33:42,166 --> 00:33:46,786
about working with Indigenous
children, families, communities?

481
00:33:47,536 --> 00:33:49,036
>> Quit trying to change them.

482
00:33:49,076 --> 00:33:52,746
I think that's number
one is that, you know,

483
00:33:52,746 --> 00:33:57,646
we grew up in that era
where the money shifts.

484
00:33:57,646 --> 00:34:00,946
There's this whole distribution system
in federal government that focuses

485
00:34:00,946 --> 00:34:02,976
on an Indian problem and
then they dump money in it.

486
00:34:03,046 --> 00:34:04,956
When I was growing up it was

487
00:34:04,956 --> 00:34:07,286
that all Indian people
suffered from low self-esteem.

488
00:34:07,956 --> 00:34:12,906
So they developed projects for trying to
improve the self-esteem of Indian people

489
00:34:12,906 --> 00:34:14,296
but money never went to Indian people.

490
00:34:14,296 --> 00:34:17,286
It went to all the contractors
who were going

491
00:34:17,286 --> 00:34:18,916
to help Indians raise their self-esteem

492
00:34:18,916 --> 00:34:21,086
but the Indians never
saw any of that money.

493
00:34:21,716 --> 00:34:24,046
But the whole process was we're
going to change the Indians.

494
00:34:24,046 --> 00:34:27,466
And trying to come out of that
cycle where all of our parents,

495
00:34:27,466 --> 00:34:30,186
grandparents were forced
to go to Indian schools

496
00:34:30,186 --> 00:34:32,216
for the whole purpose of
changing who they were.

497
00:34:32,606 --> 00:34:38,606
>> We have always been here and
that we will continue to be here.

498
00:34:38,606 --> 00:34:43,106
That every attempt to exterminate
us failed and that's part of our --

499
00:34:43,106 --> 00:34:45,526
part of our resilience
is we're still here.

500
00:34:45,526 --> 00:34:46,146
We're thriving.

501
00:34:46,146 --> 00:34:48,816
You know, we're strong culturally.

502
00:34:48,816 --> 00:34:55,866
We are revitalizing our communities,
our languages, our people.

503
00:34:55,866 --> 00:34:59,626
>> I would challenge all the
professionals to read the book and go

504
00:34:59,626 --> 00:35:00,736
out and do some interviews.

505
00:35:00,736 --> 00:35:03,936
Go out and visit the
tribal office in your area.

506
00:35:03,936 --> 00:35:07,006
Interview some council people.

507
00:35:07,006 --> 00:35:08,306
Interview some elders.

508
00:35:08,956 --> 00:35:10,486
Interview community members.

509
00:35:10,486 --> 00:35:11,946
Interview young people.

510
00:35:12,816 --> 00:35:14,126
Find out what's happening.

511
00:35:14,126 --> 00:35:18,206
How can you improve your
lessons in your classroom

512
00:35:18,206 --> 00:35:20,996
or improve the quality of your services?

513
00:35:20,996 --> 00:35:26,466
You know, how can you challenge
yourself to bring your classroom to life

514
00:35:26,466 --> 00:35:31,336
and make it more culturally appropriate?

515
00:35:31,396 --> 00:35:34,846
>> I encourage all of the
educators really to be curious,

516
00:35:34,846 --> 00:35:42,416
to be very specific, and to not fall
back onto really sort of outdated tropes

517
00:35:42,526 --> 00:35:47,926
and assignments and exercises that
really create a disservice for all

518
00:35:47,926 --> 00:35:51,016
of your students, native and non-native.

519
00:35:51,016 --> 00:35:55,186
>> If you're in this area, in this
land that were inhabited for thousands

520
00:35:55,186 --> 00:36:00,386
of years, you should have some respect
and understanding of how and what shaped

521
00:36:00,436 --> 00:36:01,716
that people that's still there.

522
00:36:01,716 --> 00:36:03,976
I think that's important
for people to understand.

523
00:36:04,046 --> 00:36:07,356
>> We are not Abrahamic people.

524
00:36:07,886 --> 00:36:12,936
We don't believe in a single god.

525
00:36:12,936 --> 00:36:16,456
We don't believe in Christian
understandings.

526
00:36:16,946 --> 00:36:21,736
Our belief system is quite different
and it needs to be expressed that way

527
00:36:22,126 --> 00:36:23,546
in almost everything we do.

528
00:36:23,996 --> 00:36:31,306
>> The K'am-t'em book was written to
our youth, to the generations to come.

529
00:36:31,346 --> 00:36:36,216
And so as an educator reading this book
or using the book in the classroom,

530
00:36:36,526 --> 00:36:42,576
what we would like to see you do
is to support and recognize all

531
00:36:42,576 --> 00:36:46,746
of these traditional,
cultural, Indigenous knowledge

532
00:36:47,056 --> 00:36:51,476
that is being passed on,
and to support the families,

533
00:36:51,476 --> 00:36:52,866
and to support the students.

534
00:36:52,866 --> 00:36:56,786
And a lot of times they'll
share that information with you.

535
00:36:57,386 --> 00:37:02,326
>> You know, the book itself, the
information that's in that book comes

536
00:37:02,326 --> 00:37:04,496
from our grandfathers
and our grandmothers.

537
00:37:04,876 --> 00:37:07,866
Not just mine, but other families too.

538
00:37:08,236 --> 00:37:14,666
And so what the book does, if it's used
in the schools, it puts our families

539
00:37:15,436 --> 00:37:18,396
in a school room in the
teaching of our children.

540
00:37:18,576 --> 00:37:22,566
And when our children realize it's
a part of their ancestors' lives

541
00:37:22,566 --> 00:37:26,266
that they're trying to learn and
learn, they'll pay a better attention.

542
00:37:26,436 --> 00:37:29,756
And as they grow up, they'll
understand better the systems.

543
00:37:30,176 --> 00:37:35,546
>> So when we think about how these
institutions can now benefit Indigenous

544
00:37:35,546 --> 00:37:39,856
peoples and can now play a role in
the healing of Indigenous peoples,

545
00:37:40,186 --> 00:37:44,676
we really have to think about how
these institutions have changed,

546
00:37:45,306 --> 00:37:50,806
how the purpose has changed, how
the mindset, the conditioning

547
00:37:50,806 --> 00:37:54,816
that has happened within these
institutions, what shifts have been made

548
00:37:55,066 --> 00:37:58,976
to transition into supporting
Indigenous peoples.

549
00:37:59,316 --> 00:38:04,076
So for example, when you think about the
educational system which was designed

550
00:38:04,076 --> 00:38:08,386
to assimilate Indigenous peoples,
to kill the Indian, to save the man,

551
00:38:08,596 --> 00:38:12,916
to shed away everything that made
them who they are and their identity,

552
00:38:13,556 --> 00:38:16,326
they actually had policy that
talked about the importance

553
00:38:16,326 --> 00:38:20,356
of removing children as far as
you can away from their families

554
00:38:20,406 --> 00:38:22,576
because their parents were
considered detrimental

555
00:38:22,576 --> 00:38:24,156
to their civilization process.

556
00:38:24,746 --> 00:38:28,766
We now have to think about what
has changed within the system

557
00:38:29,226 --> 00:38:33,176
to actually create spaces where
families and parents are now welcome.

558
00:38:33,656 --> 00:38:38,996
What has changed within the system to
now acknowledge K'am-t'em, a person's,

559
00:38:39,086 --> 00:38:43,296
a child's self-concept, their values,
their beliefs, the experiences

560
00:38:43,296 --> 00:38:45,096
that they bring into the classroom.

561
00:38:45,716 --> 00:38:50,126
And so as professionals in these fields,
we have to understand that this exists

562
00:38:50,456 --> 00:38:54,156
within all of the institutions
that we have in society today

563
00:38:54,436 --> 00:38:59,256
and how can we deconstruct that and
reframe it so that it can benefit people

564
00:38:59,336 --> 00:39:00,766
from different backgrounds.

565
00:39:01,966 --> 00:39:04,246
>> We are responsible for who we are.

566
00:39:04,756 --> 00:39:07,616
And the first thing in life
or one of the things in life,

567
00:39:07,786 --> 00:39:10,596
is to find out who we
are as human beings.

568
00:39:11,586 --> 00:39:15,646
And if we carry prejudices,
if we carry misconceptions,

569
00:39:15,646 --> 00:39:20,946
if we carry ignorance about, oh those
people, or that group, or that group,

570
00:39:20,946 --> 00:39:24,716
and so forth, that's where so much of
the damage of the world comes from.

571
00:39:25,116 --> 00:39:29,466
But first of all, we have to
learn about ourselves, who we are.

572
00:39:31,296 --> 00:39:33,986
The real journey of life
is to find out who we are.

573
00:39:35,046 --> 00:39:43,686
And when we find out who we are and
we can honor all other people then.

574
00:39:44,756 --> 00:39:45,606
Because we do.

575
00:39:45,706 --> 00:39:47,406
We as human beings don't
want to be hurt.

576
00:39:48,266 --> 00:39:50,006
We as human beings don't
want to be laughed at.

577
00:39:50,006 --> 00:39:56,976
We as human beings don't want to
be ridiculed for being ourselves.

578
00:39:57,186 --> 00:40:10,676
So if we can find out who we are
ourselves, we can honor other people.

579
00:40:11,516 --> 00:40:51,500
[ Water Splashing ]