By: Marieke Dohrmann
Especially if you are from – and have always lived in – Europe, Indigenous peoples may be shrouded in mystery and silence. A myriad of clichés, perpetuated by stereotypical representations in Western media and western movies, could easily make you think that all Indigenous peoples live in tipis, hunt bison, and wear feathers… or perhaps even that they are really a thing of the past.
Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. Indigenous peoples are alive today despite the violence, oppression, and genocide of colonialism worldwide, and they are speaking out against the discrimination they still face. Many Indigenous groups are organizing across nations to fight for their own rights, but also to protect the natural environments they have governed for generations1. Melting glaciers and permafrost in the Arctic, sea level rise around small islands, extreme weather events and the disappearance of biodiversity: all these consequences of climate change affect Indigenous peoples in particular. Their communities’ livelihoods are often built on agriculture and/or hunting, which are more dependent on climatic patterns, and a long history of governmental oppression and forced displacement has left them with fewer resources2. Beyond that, the unique connection that many communities have to their land means that there are intangible, but just as real impacts on mental health, culture and traditions that rely on intact ecosystems3.
As they witness some of the worst impacts of climate change firsthand, Indigenous peoples have become one of the key actors in climate mitigation and adaptation, and their knowledge plays a crucial role in improving the way us humans interact with the world around us. Should we really rule over the natural world, as Western philosophies might make you believe? Or are we a part of a much larger whole, no more or less than other creatures and the Earth itself – ‘caretakers of the land’ instead of users, as Anishinaabe conservationist Chevaun Toulouse puts it4?
Indigenous voices have a lot to say that we should listen to and learn from. Many of us are not used to having indigenous voices front-and-center, but can benefit from their well-founded criticisms, thought-provoking and eye-opening perspectives, new and old insights… but also just interesting stories and relatable tales. Here are just a few of the voices more than worth listening to.
- United Nations Environment Programme, 2023. As climate crisis alters their lands, Indigenous Peoples turn to the courts.https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/climate-crisis-alters-their-lands-indigenous-peoples-turn-courts ↩︎
- Williams, J., 2012. The impact of climate change on indigenous people–the implications for the cultural, spiritual, economic and legal rights of indigenous people. The International Journal of Human Rights, 16(4), pp.648-688. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/13642987.2011.632135 ↩︎
- Middleton, J., Cunsolo, A., Jones-Bitton, A., Wright, C.J. and Harper, S.L., 2020. Indigenous mental health in a changing climate: a systematic scoping review of the global literature. Environmental Research Letters, 15(5), p.053001. https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ab68a9/pdf ↩︎
- Tolouse, C., 2022. An Indigenous Perspective on Reconnecting With the Land. Resilience / YES! magazine. https://www.resilience.org/stories/2022-11-21/an-indigenous-perspective-on-reconnecting-with-the-land/ ↩︎
FILMS & DOCUMENTARIES
Boys of Nunavut (short documentary): Boys of Nunavut
If you are interested in how (mental) health care can be co-created to be culturally relevant, this ten-minute film is a great starting point. Screened at the Global Health Film Days 2024 as part of a short film programme on youth mental health, this film addresses the mental health impact of colonialism on young Inuit boys and showcases a land-based programme to address the high suicide rates in Inuit communities.
Twice Colonized (documentary): Twice Colonized – international trailer
Have you been wanting to learn more about colonialism in our own backyard? Then look no further than Greenland and this documentary. Shown at Copenhagen Dox in 2023, it is a raw film about the life of filmmaker Aaju Peter, who was removed from her home and culture to study in Denmark in the 1960s. With a deeper look on the personal internal impact of colonization and assimilation on one family, while also gathering stories from Sámi and other Inuit across the arctic, it is a great follow-up to Boys of Nunavut.
‘Twice Colonized’: CPH:DOX Review
Our sisters in spirit (documentary): Our Sisters In Spirit (MMIWG Documentary)
Violence against Indigenous peoples is still ongoing. Our Sisters in Spirit, initiated by an Indigenous student and created in a film production class, addresses the fact that Indigenous women are murdered and go missing at a much higher rate than other groups, something that many are unaware of. The short documentary explores personal stories and the impact of violence as well as grassroots activism and what it demands from the government.
Reel Injun (feature documentary): Reel Injun Official Trailer
If your knowledge about Indigenous peoples right now is mostly based off of Hollywood movies, this is the perfect film to start questioning that image. It looks back at the history of Indigenous representation in colonial media, including interviews with well-known actors and Indigenous film stars, to analyze and correct the clichés that many of us probably grew up seeing on the screen, keeping a sense of humor despite a dark topic.
Reel Injun ~ I Review Westerns
Smoke Signals (film): Smoke Signals – Trailer
As a cornerstone of Indigenous cinema, this is the film you’ll probably want to watch right after Reel Injun. The first film to be produced with major involvement of Indigenous voices in writing, production and acting, it played a major role in the claiming of cinema as a site to celebrate Indigenous culture. Humorously jumping off the so familiar stereotypes, it takes a look at them from the opposite perspective.
What Smoke Signals Means 20 Years Later – JSTOR Daily
Atarnajuat, the fast runner (film): 2001 Atanarjuat The Fast Runner Official Trailer 1 Aboriginal Peoples Television Network
Next up is a perfect film for anyone fascinated by ancient legends and storytelling that diverges from the usual template. The first movie ever made in the Inuktitut language and largely starring lay actors, it depicts the ancient Inuit legend of Atanarjuat, which features everything from a love rivalry to rituals unfamiliar to most viewers to dramatic visuals of the bare arctic and the main character running across the ice naked.
BBC – Films – review – Atanarjuat – the Fast Runner
Reservation Dogs (comedy TV show): Reservation Dogs Season 1 Trailer | Rotten Tomatoes TV
Are you interested in contemporary coming-of-age stories and have never seen one starring youth living in reservations? Then you should check out the first mainstream TV show written exclusively by Indigenous screenwriters. Reservations are far from a thing of the past, and continue to have a huge influence on the living conditions of many Indigenous people. This show gives us a balanced glimpse into what life is like there.
‘It’s a completely new day’: the rise of Indigenous films and TV shows | Culture | The Guardian
BOOKS
Moon of the Crusted Snow (novel by Waubgeshig Rice)
This one is for those who enjoy quiet and thoughtful dystopian stories along the lines of Station Eleven. Branded as a post-apocalyptic thriller, it tells the story of how a remote Northern Indigenous community deals with being cut off from a ‘modern’ society that crumbles and eventually no longer exists. (A note: this novel includes a creature from the Anishinaabemowin Story tradition that is only supposed to be talked about when snow covers the ground – so perhaps read it during winter.)
A Review of Waubgeshig Rice’s “Moon of the Crusted Snow” | by Zachary Houle
The Marrow Thieves (youth novel by Cherie Dimaline)
Residential schools. Perhaps you heard about the mass graves uncovered in the past few years and want to learn more, but aren’t sure how to start researching yet. This book might be a good option. A dystopian youth novel set in a climate change-affected future where Indigenous peoples in North America are on the run from bone marrow hunters coming for their dreams, it draws on the real horrors of residential schools to build a compelling fiction that also echoes a warning.
The Marrow Thieves – Quill and Quire
(And for anyone wanting to look more into the short-term and long-term health consequences of residential schooling, here is an interesting article on that: Canada’s Residential Schools Were a Horror | Scientific American)
Braiding Sweetgrass (non-fiction by Robin Wall Kimmerer)
Something that might catch your eye if you are looking to decolonize your scientific knowledge and get an introduction to Indigenous ways of knowing is this essay collection by a Potawatomi botanist and professor. It addresses ecosystems and the ways we as humans interact with them, weaving Indigenous storytelling and scientific inquiry together.
Review: Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer | Earth.Org
There, there (novel by Tommy Orange)
If you’ve ever seen pictures or videos of powwows (traditional gatherings of Indigenous peoples in Northern America involving song and dance) and wanted to know more about the rites and celebrations behind them, there is a book for you. Far from centering on just that though, this novel follows many different figures in present-day Oakland as they grapple with the loss of traditions and memories amidst the demands and limits of so-called modernity, touching on topics as far away from powwows as the occupation of Alcatraz.
There There by Tommy Orange review – moving and powerful | Fiction | The Guardian
Indian Horse (novel by Richard Wagamese)
This novel by acclaimed author Richard Wagamese is perfect for sports fanatics who want to dive deeper into how racism is woven into the world of professional hockey. The story weaves a thread from the horrors main character Saul experiences in residential school through the comradery he finds in an Indigenous team all the way to his attempt to integrate into the overwhelmingly white world of professional sports, and
Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese | Book review – Citizens’ Press
Jonny Appleseed (youth novel by Joshua Whitehead)
A perfect book for anyone looking for stories about the intersection of queer and Indigenous identities, or those who have been wondering what exactly ‘two-spirit’ means. It deals with the complexities of finding yourself within and between definitions, the struggles of growing up, and how our families make us who we are in both good and bad ways.
Teya, un corazón de mujer (novel by Marisol Ceh Moo)
We end with a recommendation for Spanish readers with a passion for literature. Not only is this award-winning book the first novel written by a woman in an Indigenous language of Mexico. As the first modern novel ever originally written and published in the Yucatec Mayan language, it broke with the almost tradition of books in Indigenous languages exclusively dealing with Indigenous traditions. It is simply a novel about a political assassination. Just because an author is Indigenous does not mean that they only have something to say about Indigenous culture.
La Jornada: El temor a romper tradiciones limita a las lenguas originarias
Of course, these novels and films are just a small selection – and they are predominantly English, from Indigenous authors from the Northern American continent. There is a lot more to discover out there. If you’ve been looking for something to read or watch over summer, keep an eye out for the many wonderful Indigenous voices wanting to speak to you.
And a thank you to the one who first introduced me to some of these voices (and made me gladly wait to read Moon of the Crusted Snow until January): Tareyn Johnson, the University of Ottawa’s first Director of Indigenous Affairs, and a wonderful teacher who encouraged learning as an experience rather than a list of skills.
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