ioep2015-blog

[ioep2015-blog]

“Native communities need to remind themselves that substantial change happens only when those in control change and this shift can only happen when the sources of power (or access to them) shift. How do we bring this about? One way to achieve substantial change is through a legal mandate; this is the object of the negotiated decolonization processes that have been established thus far. The other way is to inject new social or political capital into the system. The first approach has failed or is failing, but the second holds great promise: effecting change through the injection of the human capital built through higher education.

The way to overcome the bonds, external and internal, that continue to hold indigenous people down is to awaken people’s minds to their situation. In mainstream society, it is the ignorance, prejudice, and fear of the general population that allows the state to maintain its colonial dominion over indigenous peoples. In Native communities, it is the people’s lack of understanding of political reality and blindness to the roots of their pain that keep them passively suffering. In both cases, there are serious inconsistencies between the current the current reality and the principles that form the basis of the people’s identity, indigenous and non-indigenous alike. And in both cases, education holds the best promise for positive change,because it creates awareness of the inconsistencies between the world as it is and as it should be.

This notion is predicated on the existence of basic values and higher principles within both cultures that are capable of promoting peaceful harmonious relationships. There is no inherent conflict between basic indigenous and non-indigenous values. Rather, it is the historical practice of politics (and the institutionalization of these patterns of governance) that contravenes the basic values of liberal-democratic and traditional indigenous philosophies alike. Manipulative mechanisms of control work against the best instincts of both Western and Aboriginal value systems. Education holds the key because, in creating a general historical sensitivity and a critical awareness of reality, it activates a basic human urge to move reality closer to the ideal - to close the gap that, until now, the state has worked to obscure by denying history, lying about it’s true intentions vis-a-vis indigenous people, and co-opting those who might challenge its power.

What is needed in countries such as Canada and the United States is the kind of education that would force the general population to engage with realities other than their own, increasing their capacity to empathize with others - to see other points of view and to understand other people’s motivations and desires. Admittedly, it is not likely that the entire North American primary and secondary education system will become so open-minded anytime soon. However, indigenous people have succeed in altering non-indigenous people’s perceptions through dialogue in institutions of higher learning. As a result, we are beginning to see empathy for indigenous experience and a political space for change on which Native leaders must capitalize.”

Taiaiake Alfred, Peace, Power, and Righteousness: An Indigenous Manifesto, pp 167-168.

[ioep2015-blog]

Welcome!

I created this Tumblr to basically keep track of videos, articles, and other digital media relevant to my Evergreen 2015-2016 independent research on “Indigenizing Our Educational Paradigms.” It’s possible as time progresses that I update with written work but that will likely be found on my personal blog madelinerider.wordpress.com. If you have suggestions on books, articles, and/or media, please feel free to submit them! xo Madeline