Indigenous ancestral lands and Elders epistemologies in a time of pandemic

Introduction

There are more than 476 million Indigenous Peoples in the world, which is more than 6% of the world’s population (United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Covid-19 Response, 2020, p. 1), The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic in March 2020. Indigenous People in Canada acted to secure, protect and ensure the well-being and safety of their communities and nations. For Indigenous peoples in Canada, disease, sickness, famine and death are not unprecedented (Starblanket & Hunt, 2020). Since initial contact with colonizers, these afflictions overwhelmed and devastated Indigenous nations at various times. European colonialism exposed Indigenous people to waves of trauma, viruses, diseases, displacement, starvation, economic and social disorganization, and residential schools, with “no time to stop and deal with what was happening to them” (Wesley-Esquimaux & Smoleski, 2004, p. 74). Indigenous people endured considerable hardship over the centuries (Smith, 2020), including suppression, dominance and control through legislation, and systemic injustices such as its Indian Act. Indigenous Peoples within Canada used their knowledges to inform their response. Today they continue to be self-determining peoples. In responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, many communities closed except for essential services. This report shows that Indigenous communities have well-established strategies and responses to COVID-19. The report focuses on ways in which Indigenous peoples are engaging with Elders and moving onto their ancestral lands which inform and are integral to their cultures, languages and life.

Indigenous peoples have a wealth of knowledge, practices, languages and culture, which includes time-tested responses to crises (United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Covid-19 Response, 2020, p. 1). Elders and Knowledge Holders are critically important as knowledge producers and cultural transmitters (Marker, 2004). In this time of pandemic, communities are turning to Elders for learning and guidance. They are also turning to their ancestral lands to draw on their knowledge systems.

While communities look to Elders, there is a need to protect and care for Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Holders. This is because COVID-19 disproportionately impacts people who are older in age (although not all Elders and Knowledge holders are older.) There is a growing concern to protect Knowledge Holders, symbols and stories which have been central to the continuing existence of their communities (Nandram et al., 2020). Elders are few and far between, which makes any loss significant (Smith, 2020). Since they serve as holders of collective memory, any impact of COVID-19 has cultural implications for Indigenous communities (Nandram et al., 2020). As Moya-Smith (2020) observes, “when we lose an Elder, we’ve truly been robbed of more than just a person” (para. 4). In fact, recent research indicates that the inclusion of Elders in the treatment of Indigenous patients in the Canadian health care system results in a “therapeutic mechanism to improve health outcomes” (Hadjipavlou et al., 2018, p. 614). Similarly, the inclusion of, and interactions with, Elders in schools has resulted in positive and meaningful experiences and outcomes for Indigenous students (see Neeganagwedgin, 2019).

Many Elders have drawn on innovative methods to build community connections, nurture relationships and sustain a sense of online community during this pandemic. This was done in one university in Canada when Elders could no longer meet students face-to-face. Elders also provide one-on-one counselling through text and host virtual circles to share their knowledge with students (Cook, 2020; Rideout, 2020). Indigenous communities connect online “in the spirit of wellness and many Indigenous peoples are connecting over social media to showcase culture through song and dance” (Brant, 2020, para. 1). Begay (2020) refers to this as decolonial work. Mark Macdonald, cited in Kidd (2020), tells us “Elders have memories, or can give oral recollections, of when pandemics decimated their populations not too long ago. So, they have been good . . . in advising caution” (para. 2).

Ancestral lands and Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Holders are deeply connected to, and are essential to the survival of, Indigenous communities. Many Indigenous people are going out on their lands for guidance, healing and learning. The pandemic has resulted in the closing of schools across Canada which has created the opportunity for many Indigenous communities to engage with land-based pedagogy. Before the arrival of Europeans, Indigenous people lived and learned from their lands. The Europeans created colonial systems to gain access to Indigenous Lands and to assimilate Indigenous peoples (The Cultural Safety Attribute Working Group, 2019, p. 4). Indigenous peoples were displaced, and their rights were infringed on and denied. Indigenous peoples’ presence became rooted in a history of violence, including biological warfare (Brant, 2020, para. 2). These colonial violence continue today.

Indigenous peoples’ relationships with the environment and with each other contribute to their well-being. These intersections aid in “remembering what has come before us, realising well-being today, and creating sustainable conditions for future generations” (Watene, 2020, para. 6). Smith (2020) commented that “The Land is found not only outside our borders and away from our communities, but rather it is within them and it is within us” (p. 17). This describes well the interconnections between Indigenous Peoples and their lands. Kaluraq (2020) speaks to the importance of the Land to the Inuit in the statement that

Inuit as Indigenous people have a rich history with land that is sophisticated, innovative, ingenious, and sustainable. Although we do not live as our ancestors did a century ago, the foundations of life on the land still hold true to living a hopeful, enriching, independent and sustainable life. (p. 6)

Malone (2020, para. 1) highlights the ways in which Indigenous people draw on the land to inform youth education and spirituality. These activities call on important generational learning.

Accordingly, Dene national chief Norman Yakeleya’s observation, “The land loves the Dene people and we in turn love the land”.

Elder and land-based Knowledge systems guide Indigenous people in times of pandemic. Spiritual traditions and community connections remain integral to Indigenous survival (Brant, 2020, para. 2). Three calls to action are provided below for governments and school systems to show commitment and honour Indigenous peoples as emphasized through the report of Royal Commission on Aboriginal People (1998) and Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission report (Truth and Reconciliation Canada, 2015).

Taking action

Conclusion

This report emphasizes ways in which Indigenous people have relied on their own wellness systems and innovative models to survive in a pandemic. It underlines the significance of land and the relationship that Indigenous people have with their land. This relationship is infused in all aspects of their lives. Elders and Knowledge Holders are foundational to Indigenous Peoples. Many Indigenous peoples sought guidance from Elders and protect Knowledge Holders during this pandemic. The land and Knowledge Holders are intertwined. Both carry knowledges which are reflected in Indigenous ways of living.