NEWS

ACKNOWLEDGING HISTORY Burnaby Mountain Festival holds Indigenous land acknowledgement workshop

The workshop hopes to build stronger relationships with the Tsleil-Waututh community

CHLOË ARNESON // NEWS WRITER

On May 7, 2022 Burnaby Mountain Festival hosted a workshop on land acknowledgements as part of their larger collaborative inaugural event. The festival was a recipient of a $3,000 grant from the Burnaby Festival of Learning Award.

The workshop featured several speakers who discussed the importance of land acknowledgement and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action. The Yellowhead Institute, an Indigenous watchhouse organization, states only 11 of the 94 action items have been completed since its introduction in 2015.

“For thousands and thousands of years Indigenous people of these lands would say their name, who is their family, and acknowledge whose land they were on,” event organizer Olivia Lohan told The Peak. She explained by hosting these events, it decolonized the process of creating a festival of Indigenous land acknowledgment.

Charlene Aleck, Tsleil-Waututh councillor and matriarch, was one of the speakers for the workshop. “It gives me warm feelings, that on Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh (MST) lands, you do as MST people do. This heals,” Aleck said. “The main thing I feel at events like this is a big sense of responsibility. Not just responsibility as an Indigenous woman carrying our sacred traditions but also the responsibility and protocol that goes with entering our community and entering into a relationship.”

Hillary Hyland (Te-awk Tenaw) led a guided walk to accompany the workshop and share her insights on the relationship between the land and its living residents. Hyland is a senior and we will facilitate a series of events designed to develop partnership in the Burnaby area,” said Lohan.

“To me this is a reflection that the use of land acknowledgements are lacking meaningful action to back them up,” she added.

“Land acknowledgements are not something new,” Lohan said. She added that two of the speakers featured, Kayah George and Rueben George, explained it is common practice for many Indigenous peoples to acknowledge the land as a peaceful way to enter territory and demonstrate a willingness to abide by their laws. Rueben George is the manager of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation Sacred Trust and his daughter, Kayah George, is the Divestment Campaign Coordinator.

environment specialist with Tsleil-Waututh Nation’s Treaty, Lands and Resource Department, and is currently working to teach both western and Indigenous science as well as traditional Indigenous knowledge. Lohan added the walk provided “a powerful description of the relationships found in nature. The rhythms of the land, the water, all living beings. We will be doing this again.

“Rather than unilaterally and pre-emptively deciding how we will shape the festival and what the festival will look like, we intend to consult with Tsleil-Waututh Elders for guidance

The main thing I feel at events like this is a big sense of responsibility. Not just responsibility as an Indigenous woman carrying our sacred traditions but also the responsibility and protocol that goes with entering our community and entering into a relationship

CHARLENE ALECK TSLEIL-WAUTUTH COUNCILLOR AND MATRIARCH This workshop is the beginning of creating the larger Burnaby Mountain Festival. IMAGE: Burnaby Mountain Festival

If you are interested in getting involved with the festival, please contact burnabymountainfestival@gmail.com for more information. You can follow them on Instagram for more updates.

BLACK FLOURISHING SFU students and staff co-host symposium to discuss Scarborough Charter

Black faculty, students, and activists spoke about their experiences in academia and ways to address anti-Black racism

CHLOË ARNESON // NEWS WRITER

On May 14, SFU and UBC co-hosted a symposium on the Scarborough Charter. The discussion was part of a two-day event to discuss the Scarborough National Charter on Anti-Black Racism and Black Inclusion in Canadian Higher Education.

The forum sought to discuss the recent signing of the Charter, a pledge signed by over 50 universities and colleges across Canada to promote Black representation in academia and fight anti-Black racism within higher education. The Charter was signed in November 2021. By signing, UBC and SFU signified “commitments to move from rhetoric to meaningful concrete action to address anti-Black racism and to promote Black inclusion.”

Dr. Malinda Smith, professor of political science at University of Calgary, said, “The Charter emerged in the aftermath of a moment of racial reckoning.” This came “after decades of Black activism and advocacy,” she added.

The Charter’s action plan hopes to facilitate new anti-racism initiatives in governance, research, teaching and learning, and community engagement at the postsecondary level. Some of these actions include “reviewing and revising dispute resolution processes,” creating accessible spaces for Black students, and reducing gaps in Black representation across academia. Some of their recommendations suggest creating accessible spaces for “Black belonging, knowledge development and sharing.” Additionally, ensuring a position exists in senior administration dedicated to addressing and combating racism. This includes offering anti-Black racism education for all students, staff, and faculty. this. We’re here not because they invited us in through the door, but we crawled in through any hole because that’s who we are,” said Francis. She believed when institutions signed the Charter, they “haven’t really thought about how much they’ll have to blow it up and transform it.”

Tiara Cash, one of the panelists at the event, said, “Institutional racism is insidious, it’s the type of racism that is meant to make you tired.” This sentiment was echoed throughout the event.

Binta Sesay is an equity and inclusion assistant at UBC who spoke on her experience as a Black student at UBC. “There’s a lot of listening, but just surface listening. Not listening to change,” said Sesay. One of the barriers Sesay noticed is “the process of implementation [ . . . ] from a foundation of white supremacy.” Universities tell students they hear them and will make changes, but according to Sesay, no action is made. During this process students get exhausted which results in students giving up.

“This is us telling the university what we need,” she continued. According to Sesay, if the decision makers at post-secondary institutions listened to what they are asking for, “it is enough to make the change we want to see. This is us expressing how fed up we are, but also expressing the unsung heroes that kept us open to these conversations and holding on.”

They discussed the responsibility universities have to create accessible spaces for Black knowledge and community. PHOTO: Chloë Arneson / The Peak

The event featured four panels made up of Black students, activists, scholars, and university administrators from both UBC and SFU. After a land acknowledgment and warm welcoming from Afro-Indigenous councillor Orene Askew, UBC president Santa Ono, and SFU president Joy Johnson joined virtually for welcoming remarks.

In her opening statement, Johnson said, “SFU signed the Charter, we made the commitment, and now we’re grateful to embark on the journey of creating real systemic change.”

Dr. June Francis, special advisor to the president on antiracism at SFU, explained there will need to be a significant amount of energy, prioritization, money, and resources dedicated to combating anti-Black racism.

We’re here not because they invited us in through the door, but we crawled in through any hole because that’s who we are

DR. JUNE FRANCIS SPECIAL ADVISOR TO SFU PRESIDENT ON ANTI-RACISM