...is cross cultural understanding enough? Or are we required to take an active, anti-racist stand? Are we always required to bring up questions of power imbalances?
Disclaimer: this is going to be a brief one, and not that clearly thought out.
I watched the Olympic opening games tonight with my boys. I was moved to tears by the participation of the Indigenous Peoples of Canada, but they were not only the tears of inspiration. Yes, their participation and endorsement is powerful and meaningful, but in a 'food, fashion and fun' respect, a surface celebration of diversity. There was no anti-racist or anti-colonial stance. There was no reflection upon the standard Canadian economic and social power imbalances. It was tokenism, in my humble opinion.
My stepson didn't understand who they were, and why they were dressed so funny. Through my tight throat, struggling to hold back indignant tears, I tried to explain that they are the first peoples of Canada, from before Canada was even a country. I said that we aren't from here, our ancestors came here from far away and stole their land. That was all I could manage, and he wasn't really listening.
I hope I'm laying a foundation of critical thinking, of questioning the status quo.
Canadian pioneers often perpetuated vicious atrocities against the Indigenous inhabitants.
I want my boys to grow up with this knowledge, this understanding of the damage that can be inflicted when we operate from a model of scarcity rather than abundance - when we feel we need to violently steal from another to ensure our own survival, when sharing and mutual respect and ethical action is no longer deemed an option.
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