CONTENTS
DIRECTOR’S WELCOME Jonathan Hamilton-Diabo
4. HONOURARY DEGREE HOLDER:
ON THE COVER
ABOUT THE PHOTOGRAPHER:
Dr. Lillian McGregor remains a vital mentor for students, staff and faculty as well as for the community.
Before I can tell my life what I want to do with it, I must listen to my life telling me who I am. - Parker J. Palmer
Columpa C. Bobb is a Canadian photographer, actress, playwright, poet and teacher of Coastal Salish descent. She has been performing, writing plays and teaching for 20 years.
6. IDENTIFYING ON FILM:
9. GETTING CARDED:
How Aboriginal filmmakers are using new mediums to discuss old questions.
Student Samanthan Jourdain breaks down the numbers on status.
This portrait is of her mother, renowned writer and FNH Traditional Teacher, Lee Maracle.
Identity: simultaneously the most unifying and most divisive aspect of a community. The Aboriginal community, while being made of numerous nations, beliefs and cultures, can be seen as a collective due to a shared history, worldview and relationship to creation. Still, we are also not immune to the challenges that identity presents. This issue explores the concept of identity, a topic that is highly debated as a wide range of different perspectives exist.
ON THE BACK COVER
Within our community, a newcomer is generally asked, “Where are you from?” The answer being sought after is not the place where one resides, but those four words are getting right to the point: who are you? The requester is looking for an identifier, a reference point that they can attach to the individual. The one aspect that must not be overlooked, however, is that each person is unique and brings a worldview shaped by their experiences and beliefs. Everyone has their own attachment to an Aboriginal identity, however their knowledge and experiences of their ancestry vary.
Title: Mocs
There is not an agreed upon definition of “Aboriginal”. Each community uses different criteria in their determination; however it does clearly demonstrate the diversity that exists. Communities will always refer to common characteristics that will identify us as a people, yet we must respect our own individual sense of identity, and that of others.
FNH MAGAZINE Published by First Nations House, University of Toronto, 563 Spadina Avenue, Toronto ON, M5S 2J7
Printed on recycled paper FNH MAGAZINE
10. INDIGENOUS WRITERS’ GATHERING:
ABOUT THE ARTIST: Lindy Kinoshameg is originally from Wikwemikong First Nations on Manitoulin Island, and now livies in Toronto. He is currently enrolled at the University of Toronto taking Physical Health and Education.
His work has been displayed in various art shows within Ontario.
The 3rd annual Indigenous Writers’ Gathering celebrated Native success in the literary world.
Volume 1, Issue 5 ADVISORY COUNCIL: Lee Maracle Daniel Heath Justice DIRECTOR: Jonathan Hamilton-Diabo EDITOR: Cherie Dimaline
2
She has written over a dozen plays that have been produced across Canada and was nominated for both a Dora Mavor Moore Award and a James Buller Award. She is currently the Program Director and instructor for the Aboriginal Arts Training & Mentorship Program at the Manitoba Theatre for Young People in Winnipeg, Manitoba where she resides.
DESIGN & ART DIRECTION: David Shilling MAAIINGAN Productions www.maaiingan.com CONTRIBUTORS: Christine McFarlane Tyler Pennock Jonathan Van Etton Samantha Jourdain
Lindy Kinoshameg
Natalie Clark
PHOTOGRAPHY: Robin Sutherland Aaron Mason David Shilling
WEBMASTER: MAAIINGAN Productions www.maaiingan.com
EDITORIAL: Jessicka Loduca Brendan Martyn
PRINTER: LM Print Solutions, lmprintsolutions@rogers.com
Special thanks to MTCU for supporting FNH Magazine VOLUME 1, Issue 5 FNH accepts no responsibility for unsolicited materials. FNH assumes no responsibility for content or advertisements. Submissions: unsolicited manuscripts will not be re-
turned unless accompanied by a stamped return envelope. To request your copy of FNH Magazine, contact us at: www.fnhmagazine.com.
SUBMISSIONS: If you are interested in writing for FNH magazine, please contact us at: editor@fnhmagazine.com
MAGAZINE FNH
3
LILLIAN McGREGOR
O
ften, we find it’s the beginnings that elude us. For example, while the big bang theory is generally accepted as an explanation for the beginning of our universe, physicists are still researching, peering at stars, and testing the boundaries of the theory- never stopping the search for that elusive beginning. Likewise, if you were walking alongside other students at the University of Toronto, would you be able to detect its beginnings? Would you be able to tease out the history of this institution from the architecture and faces around you? If you could tell its history, would you be able to tell how it has changed along the way? If you examined this institution today, you might see evidence of a major shift all around you. The façade of 563 Spadina Ave, the North Borden Building, appears to rest at home within the university. High red brick walls are covered in ivy; a large foyer on the inside presents a great staircase leading up and out of sight, and curves just the way you might expect in a grand old house. But the walls are covered with Indigenous paintings, transforming the space from just another campus building to the home of Aboriginal Student Services – First Nations House (FNH). Lillian McGregor receives her honourary Doctor of Laws degree, June 19, 2002
Walking here, you would also be witness to a transformation of the student body, where the number of Aboriginal students, staff and faculty has increased steadily since 1971 -- as is true of every university across the country. One of the many faces here at FNH is that of Lillian McGregor, though perhaps not in person, as she has retired from her official position as Elder-in-Residence. Every year, Aboriginal students apply for the Lillian McGregor Award, visit in-house Elders and Traditional Teachers, and learn about their peoples and cultures through programs in a space which owes its beginnings to people like Lillian.
Lillian is from Whitefish River First Nation, and was active for many years in Toronto’s Native community after retiring from nursing. She was on the Native Canadian Centre’s Council of Elders when she was asked by FNH’s first Director, Rodney Bobiwash, to accept the newly created position of Elder-inResidence. Lillian consulted with the Elder’s Council, and her sister, who was the Elder-in-Residence at Cambrian College at the time. She agreed, and since that day has been an integral part of students’ lives. One student anonymously wrote in 2002 that Lillian has “been the heartbeat and lifeblood of First Nations House since its inception.” Anita Benedict, a former Director of First Nations House, wrote that “Lillian McGregor has served the Aboriginal community at the University of Toronto with unstinting generosity of spirit and unfailing diligence.” Of her experience during those years, Lillian said, “My desire to preserve our Aboriginal culture, tradition, and spirituality became a well-known attribute; and I was soon busier than I had ever been in the everyday workforce. I welcomed the opportunity to assist my own Native community.” Lillian McGregor received her Honourary Doctorate on June 19th, 2002, from the University of Toronto. Surrounded by Aboriginal faculty, students and staff, she was celebrated for the many years of hard work she had dedicated to them and others. In receiving this award, Lillian also fulfilled one of her own expectations of Aboriginal students: “I’m really strong on people going as high as they can.” Lillian McGregor’s name is one associated with many beginnings, as evidenced by the words and lives of her children, her former students, community members, University staff, faculty, and friends. Perhaps this is due to her presence at FNH’s own beginnings, but also to the significant role she played in changing the face, and very identity of the University of Toronto. written by Tyler Pennock
4
FNH MAGAZINE
Lillian and the award that carries her name during the 2011 FNH Graduation celebration
Robin Sutherland
HONOURARY DEGREE RECIPIENT
Identifying in Film CHRISTINE MCFARLANE TALKS TO INDIGENOUS FILMMAKERS ABOUT EXPLORING IDENTITY THROUGH THEIR WORK
Identity and the politics surrounding it can be difficult to address, but some artists, including award-winning filmmaker Shane Belcourt, have found an answer. “Film is an astounding medium for Aboriginal artists to create their works,” he said. “It allows them to challenge and reframe their questions in a medium that they feel comfortable with.”
Shane Belcourt A Metis musician, artist and filmmaker, Belcourt uses his work to initiate and contribute to the identity discussion.
Keesic Douglas Rama First Nation’s Keesic Douglas is entrenched in a multi-faceted decolonization process through his work.
The Cave, 2009 Director: Helen Haig-Brown
Belcourt injects both his Métis heritage and Canadian pride into the works that he creates, insisting on authenticity. “It is important for our stories to be told from our perspective.” A Toronto-based jack-of-all-trades, Belcourt has not only produced film, but is also a writer and a musician. His feature film “Tkaronto” played at many international film festivals and won the Best Director prize at both the 2008 Dreamspeakers Film Festival and Talking Stick Film Festival. It has also played on Air Canada flights and the Super Channel. Other short works by Shane include: “F*%K Yeah,” “Keeping Quiet,” “Boxed In,” “A Better Place,” “Hard Feelings,” “Red Car, Blue Hood” and “Pookums”.
When asked what inspired him to do films, Belcourt was quick to mention his family. “I grew up around film production because my father was a Native rights leader. He produced a lot of political and public service pieces. I found it to be amazing how he was able to dedicate his life and work to a larger story. My whole family was creative, so there was always a push towards creativity, to explore it.” Belcourt also credits his inspiration to the annual imagineNATIVE film festival. “There are so many amazing Aboriginal filmmakers in it. Works by Danis Goulet, Adam Garnett Jones and Blackhorse Lowe, show a fearlessness that excites, humbles and ultimately inspires.” Keesic Douglas is an Ojibway artist from the Mnjikaning (Rama) First Nation in central Ontario who specializes in the mediums of photography and video. His work has been exhibited across Canada and the United States, and includes such works as
6
FNH MAGAZINE
“The Vanishing Trace” which won Best Short Documentary at the 2007 imagineNATIVE Film Festival in Toronto, and his video “War Pony” that showed at the Berlin International Film Festival in February 2009. His most recent work, “Ancient Trade Route to Queen Street,” details his May 2010 journey with expert paddler Kory Snache on a three-day, 130 km canoe journey. They travelled from Rama, located along the shores between Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe, to the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) department store in the heart of downtown Toronto. This journey led them directly along the pathways of their ancestors and the ancient trade routes the Anishinabek people have used since the last ice age. The intention was for Keesic to trade in the spirit of his forefathers from the late 17th century. He wanted to trade back his once sought after Hudson’s Bay Point Blanket in exchange for the beaver pelts traded to the Company by his great-greatgrandfather. For Keesic, the physical canoe journey mirrored a personal one inspired by his family and community, whose people were once rich in land, culture and tradition -- a wealth that cannot be measured by Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It was also about the collective identity, memory and relationship they hold to the land -- a relationship being silenced by the impacts of colonization. Douglas focuses on issues surrounding his Native heritage in his photo and video work and believes that he got into filmmaking based on his youth. “Ninety percent of my childhood was about watching movies, and being in conversation about them. Film and video helped me to identify with my own reality and had me, through exploration, wanting to create a legacy for Aboriginal youth to better identify with their own realities.” Douglas’s work is an ongoing decolonizing project. “In my photography and video work, I am working against the past 100 years of construction of the Indigenous identity through the lens, which Hollywood and photographers such as Edward S. Curtis created.” He hopes his own journey can have a wider impact. “In exploring my own identity through film and video, I wanted to create a legacy for Aboriginal youth to better identify with their own realities.” He sees this medium as the best way to reach out to the intended audience. “Film and video are able to be uploaded to the internet as soon as they are created and YouTube has changed the way people view and connect with the world.” Douglas feels inspired by filmmakers who are telling their own stories from their own perspectives, and lists people such as: Zacharias Kunuk, Shane Belcourt, Kevin Lee Burton, Helen Haig-Brown, and Taika Waititi as examples. Douglas believes that in rediscovering his own identity through his work, he has a duty to First Nations children to start a dialogue about identity along with other issues so that we can move forward as a nation.
MAGAZINE FNH
7
Take a Number, Please
First-year student Samantha Jourdain dishes on being identified by her Indian Status
A
Canadian Indian Status card has a name, nation, alias, physical description, picture, date of birth and a series of numbers on it. With these numbers, the government identifies you as a Native person -- specifically as being a Status Indian. Currently there are over 800,000 Status Indians in Canada, and with changing legislation it’s expected that this population will increase by an estimated 8%. With the government identifying you as Native through a card with a set of numbers on it, this can lead to other groups identifying you as Native only because of that card. This can lead some to begin to think that is all they are- a series of numbers on a plastic card. At twenty-one years old, I already have a long history of fighting for my own identity because of my status card, and then using that very same card as part of what, if not who, I am. It becomes confusing, and it’s easy to believe that I am who I am because of that card; that as a Native person, the card is my only source of identity.
David Shilling (spread)
It gets even more complex because only one of my biological parents is a Status Indian. People will say, “Oh, you’re Native? You don’t look Native.” Oh, I’m sorry. Really I am. I took the colour of my father and the eyeballs of my mom.
8
FNH MAGAZINE
What I am really apologizing for is how stereotypical and narrowminded people can be. Just because there are movies where Natives are depicted as having dark skin, long flowing black hair or two long braids that turn into werewolves or that are constantly doing one ceremony or another, doesn’t mean that’s what we look like or who we all are.
What angers me the most is when I get this stereotyping from people in my own community. It truly saddens me that it has to boil down to me showing my status card to prove that I am in fact Native. Of course, being a Status Indian is a whole situation in itself. According to Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada (www.ainc-inac.gc.ca), a Status Indian is “a person who is registered as an Indian under the Indian Act. The act sets out the requirements for determining who is an Indian for the purposes of the Indian Act.” It’s all pretty vague and lacks meaning. It’s odd then that we as a community determine among ourselves who is and who is not a “real Native” based on this definition. Due to Bill-C31, the 60s scoop and the Indian Act in general, some people don’t have Indian status. I’ve gotten into heated discussions with other Native people regarding how they should have status. Again, this leaves me feeling like I’m being attacked for things that I alone cannot change. When will people start to understand that a card doesn’t make me who I am, and that only I as a person can make me? Since when does being of a certain race or culture have to constantly be a political stance? Being an Aboriginal person means so much more than a series of numbers scanned into an ID card. It’s even more than my mom, or my blood. It’s the traditional knowledge given to me from my Elders and passed on through generations. It’s every single footstep that I make dancing at a pow wow with my ancestors. It’s the sense of family within my community and it’s a part of my life that has shaped who I’ve become. There aren’t enough numbers in the world to replace that! MAGAZINE FNH
9
left-to-right: Sheena Kitchemokmon, Tiffany Henry, Susan Blight, Jennifer Hammett, Buck Nishkwe, Brian Parisee, Jacinta Shawanda, James Bird
A Beautiful Record FNH CELEBRATES 10 FNH MAGAZINE
Robin Sutherland (spread)
spread: Robin Sutherland
below: Out-going Elder in Residence, Grafton Antone above: The graduates from the Transitional Year Programme and the Undergrad Program (clockwise): James Bird, Buck Nishkwe, Sheena Kitchemokmon, Jennifer Hammett, Raigelee Alorut, Christine McFarlane, Nicole Tanguay, and Sylvia Plain right: Celebrating graduate Nicole Tanguay
2011
ABORIGINAL GRADS
“Today is the day we flick the switch and say, ‘okay, enough; on you go’” said outgoing Elder-in-Residence Grafton Antone, who opened the 2011 First Nations House graduation celebration with a laugh. Grafton spoke to a crowd which included his wife Eileen Antone, who will also be retiring after this year from her post as Director of Aboriginal Studies, as well as distinguished guest, Elder Lillian McGregor. “When it is run at its best, First Nations House holds the students down so they can sweat, because if you can’t sweat first, you can’t learn. When people struggle, that’s when they learn,” Graf-
ton said, speaking about the role of FNH staff in ensuring the students are working hard. “We have some exquisite stories of struggle.” Native Students Association Crane Clan Leader, Brian Parisse offered his gratitude for the ongoing services available at First Nations House. “Thank you for providing a stable platform for the students as we pursue higher education. It can be a roller coaster sometimes!” Transitional Year Program graduates accepting their certificate included: James Bird, Jennifer Hammett, Sheena Kitchemokmon, Buck Nishkwe, Tiffany
Henry, and Sylvia Plain. The 2011 Graduates included Raigelee Alorut, Jeannine Cross, John Croutch, Christine McFarlane, Nicole Tanguay, and Jacinta Shawanda. “Meeting people is an art, and appreciating people is miraculous. When you tell someone that they are beautiful, they become beautiful because you ignite something in them.” Grafton said, before announcing his retirement plans to motorcycle around Turtle Island. “That is what we bring to this University, beauty. We are a people of beauty.”
MAGAZINE FNH 11
H
aving a degree behind my name means a lot to me; although it does not define who I am, I know that when I hold it in my hand after crossing the floor at Convocation Hall, it will represent the struggles, the tears and the triumphs it took to get me to where I am today.
from First Nations House at the University of Toronto, and the professors I met along the way, this very well may have been true. Though it is scary to finally be graduating, it is also exciting. I am the first in my biological family to obtain a University education and I know that many doors will open for me now that I have this degree behind me. In addition, it will allow me to do the things I have always wanted
Raigelee Alorut, a fellow classmate, friend, and 2011 graduate from Nunavut is also proud of her accomplishments. “I am the first Inuk woman to be a part of University College, and as a grandmother, mother, wife and student this degree means a lot to me. I didn’t know that I would complete this goal because there were a lot of things that went on throughout my path of obtaining my education.”
Completing my undergraduate degree was not my first attempt at a post-secondary education. When I was seventeen She is excited to see years old I enrolled in a college-level what the future will bring Journalism-Print program. At the now that she’s had a time I was unable to hand in creating it. “This complete my diploma degree will change my requirements due to life because it will open health concerns. Even more doors and give cFarlane M e n though the reasons me a lot more opporti is r uate Ch d a r G behind my departure tunities. Getting my T f ve by U o ti a r r were out of my control degree will not only allow me to a n l a A person and very real, dropping to do. pass on the knowledge I have gained to out still made me feel lost; It will help me find a job, other students, but also to my own family I didn’t understand what or increase my autonomy, and most imporbecause they are a part of my future too.” where my role was within society. Return- tantly, it will allow me to show my teening to school for me meant defining my age niece that if you work hard enough Alorut dedicates her success to her father. own path -- one that would keep me from at something you believe in, you can “My father once told me that we are the becoming another statistic. achieve it. I hope that my success will future, and part of the change that will show others who have faced adversity take place. At first I didn’t understand My degree represents the hard work I and those who currently struggle, that what he meant. Now that I have obtained put into completing it, as there were so they can succeed as well. my degree, I realize what he meant and many times when I believed that now I can show him my dream has I would not make it! If come true -- I have done it!” it was not for the support I received
e M d n egree a
My D
A Welcoming Community for All STUDENT JONATHAN VAN ETTEN DISCUSSES LGBT CHALLENGES AND SERVICES AT U OF T TWO-SPIRITED ACCEPTANCE There is one particular North American subculture – the Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual and Transgender (LGBT) community -- that is generally very much aware of Indigenous tradition, particularly as it pertains to two-spirited peoples. This is because traditional Indigenous attitudes towards the gay community stand in such marked difference to mainstream North American attitudes. In places like Russia, openly gay people are still beaten and killed on the streets. In other countries such as Iran, gay people are still imprisoned and executed. On a comparative level, traditional First Nations attitudes of respect for their members who are different are really quite surprising and refreshingly light years ahead of many other societies. First Nations people should be justifiably proud that their communities are known in many circles for inclusiveness and tolerance. BEING LGBT in a supportive U of T
Robin Sutherland
Graduating students: Raigelee Alorut and Christine McFarlane
The university environment has also generally been a place where gay people are able to live openly and honestly without harassment. The University of Toronto is no exception, and has many excellent and progressive clubs and groups that cater to the LGBT community. While most young (or perhaps not so young) Aboriginal students who are considering a post-secondary education might very well have many reasons for considering U of T, gay Aboriginal students have even more reason to dream of spending time studying at this institution, as U of T has so many resources and opportunities for queer students to meet in activist, social, or educational settings that specifically include and celebrate the LGBT community.
• LGBTout is U of T’s main social and activist group for gay students. They organize a series of dances and other social events throughout the year, and they also run a drop in centre where gay students can discreetly (or flamboyantly) meet other gay students, get information on upcoming events and functions, or ask for advice and support as needed. Visit the Dropin Centre at 73 St George Street, or come to the Sussex Club House office (on the 5th floor) at 21 Sussex Avenue. Website: www.lgbtout.com •
The U of T’s Mark S. Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity hosts the school’s undergraduate and graduate programs in sexual diversity studiesan interdisciplinary program that looks at many fascinating topics relating to sexual diversity. Website: www. utoronto.ca/sexualdiversity, Phone: (416) 978-6276, Address: 15 King’s College Circle Rm. 251, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3H7
• Que(e)rying Religion is a fascinating discussion group that meets weekly and is hosted by the Ecumenical Chaplain, currently Ralph Wushke of St. Michael’s college. With the support of the Student Christian Movement, Campus Ministry at St. Michael’s University, LGBTout, and the Phillip N. Knutson Endowment, the group, which is open to gay students of all religious backgrounds or interests, discusses religious topics of relevance to queer people after sharing a meal together. Given the homophobic attitude of some mainstream churches, it is especially surprising and encouraging to see a group such as Que(e)rying Religion thriving at the University of Toronto. Email: ecumenical.chaplain@utoronto.ca, Office: Knox College Location, 59 St. George St., Toronto, ON. This group also has a page on Facebook.
Get Your Orientation! By Tyler Pennock The University of Toronto has many resources available for LGBTQ students across campus, of all ages and backgrounds. The Sexual and Gender Diversity office is a great place to start. They provide resources and information for students of all levels, as well as faculty and staff. They also organize the queer orientation at U of T, which runs during the third week of September. See http://www.sgdo.utoronto.ca/ for more details. 12 FNH MAGAZINE
MAGAZINE FNH 13
Literary Festival Grows Again The 3rd Annual Indigenous Writers’ Gathering at First Nations House packs them in Hundreds of students, staff, faculty, and community members took in readings and workshops at First Nations House (FNH) over the two, day Indigenous Writers’ Gathering on February 10 and 11. Funded in part by the 11 am- 12 10 am 11:30 the Toronto Arts Council, and the Ministry of AborigiOntario Arts- Council, BREAKFAST WITH WRITERS by for coffee, nal, the 2011 festival was THE a success story Stop in partnerships astea, well asWRITING literary FOR COMEDY Ryan McMahon, creator of the beloved pastries and fruit with the full roster of writers and guests. excellence. Comedian Ryan McMahon journeyed from Winnipeg to bring hischaracter Clarence Two- Toes, will teach you how to develop your comedy through writing. insights into writing comedy; filmmaker Amanda Strong taught a workshop on 12 noon - 1:30 writing for film; and Operations Manager at Theytus Books, Sarah Dickie gave 1 pm - 2:30 POETRY AS ACTIVISM Join award winning poets Lee emerging and aspiring writers the goods on getting published. Joining them Maracle and Sharron Proulx-Turner in discussion about how WHAT IS ABORIGINAL LITERATURE? Do we need to was professor author Daniel Heath Justice; award poet, write Aboriginal characters and Indigenous themes for our poetry canand save language, secure place and fight forwinning change.Alberta Sharron Proulx-Turner; Traditional Teacher and renowned writer Leework Maracle; to be considered ‘Aboriginal Literature’? Join writers and Kitamaat British Columbia’s bestselling novelist, Eden Robinson. FNH Eden Robinson, Lee Maracle and Daniel Justice in this 2 pm - 3:30 lively discussion. GETTING PUBLISHED Hear three perspectives how Dimaline Writer in Residence and coordinator for the gathering,onCherie was to get your published with Sarah Dickie, Operations pleased with thework outcome. “Each year we continue to attract more authors, 3 pm -4 at renowned Aboriginal publishingcommunity house, Theytus moreManager publishers and, best yet, more interested members.” Authors HOW TO GET A GRANT Literary Officers from the Toronto Books, prolific author Lee Maracle and New York Times discussed how poetry can be a viable and effective means of activism and Arts Council and the Ontario Arts Council will share links, bestselling author Eden Robinson. what exactly constitutes Aboriginal literature through panel discussions and tips, material and best practices for accessing the dollars question and answer periods with festival participants. Community partnernecessary for completing your masterpiece. 4 pm - 5 shipsWRITING formed with the Native Candain Centre of Toronto Native Women’s FOR FILM Filmmaker and artist Amandaand Strong Resource Centre were paramount to words the festival’s conducts a workshop on turning into success. Native Canadian “It’s a great opportunity for the authors to connect with their readers and moving imagery. Centre of Toronto 16 Spadina Road to really get into the nuts and bolts of both the craft of writing and the business of writing, which are two very different but equally important subjects in the literary world,” remarked Dimaline. “It’s fascinating to watch the interac6:30 - 8:30 pm tions that happen in such an open and welcoming atmosphere where people With readings from: Sharron Proulx-Turner, Eden Robinson can sit with their favourite writers like this.” “The success of the gathering is a testament to the interest andDaniel vitalityJustice and Lee Maracle of the Toronto Aboriginal artistic community,” observed First Nations House A screening of Amanda Strong’s work and The comedic Director Jonathan Hamilton-Diabo at the closing Gala Reading event hostedof Ryan McMahon stylings by Duke Redbird. “It is exciting to watch this festival grow.” “This is a great festival to be a partner with,” said June Taylor from Ontario’s Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs. “It demonstrates quite clearlyRefreshments the skill and a book table will also be available and passion for storytelling that this community is so rich with. I amthroughout looking the evening forward to seeing what next year will bring.” “As long as there’s interest we’ll continue to put on this festival,” says Dimaline. And with the overwhelming success of this year’s event, it is sure to be a fixture at the University of Toronto for many years to come.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 10
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 11
14 FNH MAGAZINE
Come join us to build knowledge,
Aaron Mason (spread)
this page: Eden Robinson, Tannis Nielsen, Jonathan Hamilton-Diabo and Heather Howard, Jackie Hamlin-Esquimaux and her grandson Jaden, Ryan McMahon and Cherie Dimaline opposite page: Eden Robinson and Lee Maracle
Daniel Justice
Lee Maracle
Sharron Proulx-Turner
Amanda Strong
NGAN Productions
Ryan McMahon
GALA READING NIGHT hosted by DUKE REDBIRD
MAGAZINE FNH 15
Mocs Lindy Kinoshameg