GEO 2411 – FINAL EXAM Aidan Cowell-Miller 1. The Great Law of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) states: "In every deliberation, we must consider the impact on the seventh generation... even if it requires having skin as thick as the bark of a pine." Provide an interpretation of this statement and offer an example to illustrate what this statement might mean to people in your discipline (e.g., Kinesiology, Business, GIS). The Great Law of the Iroquois verbally manifests cyclical thinking as it represents a core component of Indigenous Knowledge (IK). The Law’s specification of the “seventh generation” conveys the long-standing impact of one’s actions today on future communities. This perspective recognizes that the cyclical behaviour of the world …show more content…
Their ways of knowing are shaped by their traditional territory and thus are their food supply, medicinal knowledge and spiritual well-being. When forcibly relocated from their land, like the Hebronimiut families in 1959, they are often unable to practice traditional means of food gathering and hunting, are excluded by the new societies and face severe psychological deterioration, otherwise known as culture stress. Without proper support, these sentiments manifest as internalized racism, with Indigenous folk blaming themselves for their health challenges. Similarly, urbanized Indigenous folk have trouble accessing higher income jobs and are forced to live off of cheap, unhealthy and/or unsafe foods. These sources of nourishment have negative physical effects and hamper Indigenous people’s psyches as they are stuck in a cycle of displacement without support in new environments. These kinds of indirect dispossession have lasting effects through intergenerational trauma as their ramifications are never addressed and colonial powers provide no aide to the populations they attempt to …show more content…
Comparatively, IK systems teach balance between humans, one another, and the environment. Known as reciprocity, IK emphasizes the value of maintaining strong relationships as we exist only in the context of our connections with each other and the Earth. Now, this mutual respect for the land is most exemplified in IK by principles of minimal waste and sustainability. For example, kaitiakitanga is central to Maori IK systems as practices for being stewards of the land. They teach that you must only take what you need and use it in full, and for what you take you must give back. In industrial society, there is a growing trend towards sustainability, but many countries and multinational organizations continue to neglect the Earth. To ensure a prosperous future for all, elements of IK can and should be integrated into modern economies, co-existing with industrial thinking. This can lead to advancements in healthcare, trade, and infrastructure development while healing the Earth rather than hurting it. It can be challenging for some to recognize the value of IK as Western societies have ignored it as savage or
This again shows the traumatic effects of residential schools and of cultural, psychological, and emotional upheaval caused by the intolerance and mistreatment of Aboriginals in Canada. Settlers not only displaced Aboriginal people from their land and their homes, but they also experienced emotional trauma and cultural displacement.
Kirmayer, Sehdev, Whitley, Dandeneau, & Isaac (2009), suggested that a culture-centered approach to resilience is better as a community process, rather than an individual struggle. In this article, the focus is on the Aboriginal people and resilience. The authors warned that resilience should not be used as an all-inclusive term to fix everything, but instead be used as a component of overall wellness in a community. A key strength of the wellness framework is that it is “culturally relative” and each person can define his or her pathway (Newman & Newman, 2012). The road to wellness and resilience is challenging due to the many factors influencing success. External influences can affect how an individual copes with certain situations and it can be detrimental if they have no external support. However, when excellent support is offered, it is more likely that an individual or community can effectively cope. Nevid & Rathus (2010) define acculturative stress as the feelings of tensions and anxiety that comes with trying to adapt to the dominant culture. This can lead to feelings of ambiguity in personal identity and can lead to further
“Defining one’s ‘culture’ is a life long process,” according to Indian rights activist Norman DesCampe of the Grand Portage Chippewa Tribe. “You have to live it.” Today, the life long process of understanding indigenous cultures is limited by terms of “cultural survival.” The ability of future generations to define themselves as Inuit or Kayapo is threatened as their natural environments and social integrity is hurt by government negligence: indigenous cultures must be protected under a political structure that allows the people to live as they choose to live, outside of the transformative power of established nation-states, and the assumptions of these powers.
Definition: Mental health has become a pressing issue in Indigenous communities. Often, a combination of trauma, a lack of accessible health resources, substance abuse, violence, and socioeconomic situations lead to high rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidality in Indigenous Peoples. This crisis is especially apparent in Indigenous youth, where there is a growing suicide epidemic but little mental health support and resources are provided. The increase in stigmatized and untreated mental illness has continued as trauma and systemic injustices remain unaddressed. Indigenous groups, governmental parties, and health organizations are involved.
... To provide Indigenous people with adequate health care, emphasis needs to be placed on understanding indigenous beliefs and the social detriments Indigenous communities are faced with. Applying a suitable model of health to each individual situation will provide the best outcome. This was evident in the case study discussed in the essay. Rodney’s experiences within the medical world ended with a positive and desirable result, but if the appropriate transcultural care was not given, that positive result would have created a negative outcome, which could have been detrimental to Rodney’s future health.
After colonization began there were countless detrimental changes to the indigenous way of life that took place. Neu (2000) discusses these detrimental changes in detail. The author accounts for the lost of their land and natural environment, the discouragement of their lifestyle focused on hunting and gathering, the separation of families via the residential school system, and the punishment received for the usage of traditional customs and language. In many ways the colonists disrespected the Aboriginal people by disregarding their fundamental needs and wants. Additionally, the process of colonization implemented some drastic gender role changes into Aboriginal culture. Colonization imposed European patriarchy, accompanied by racism and sexism, on the matriarchal Aboriginal cultures. As a result, the Aboriginal women of Canada lost their sense of purpose and responsibility, burdening them with less respect and power compared to the men. This loss contributed to many negative effects for these women and made them feel a strong sense of cultural estrangement.
...s a way of coping with bad memories and changes in culture (Reser, 1991). Many Indigenous are still being affected by the events which unfolded long ago. Alcohol is consumed by many who are known to have mental disorders. Depression is a major issue within the aboriginal population with many suffering with factors like grief, shame, worry, homesickness, and anger due to the colonization and the way it has changed their everyday life, culture and environment (Reser).
Native Americans have undergone a horrific past of genocide, discrimination, forced acculturation, miscommunication, and misunderstanding. They were frequently dehumanized and stripped of basic human rights. Treated as “savages” they were herded into areas of confinement and robbed of their language, culture, and way of life. In many instances of genocide, experts have noted a type of historical trauma that may be passed down through families, known as generational trauma. While the potential effects of this concept are not proven, the stories, images, and memories of thousands of Native Americans continue to be shared with their children, thus perpetuating, and never forgetting the pain and embarrassment that their people have experienced.
The authors describe Indigenous perspectives on health and well-being based on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s historical and cultural backgrounds. In the Indigenous culture, health comprises not just physical and mental health, but emotional well-being, social and environmental factors as well. Moreover, this holistic approach to health is most associated with their cultural and spiritual dimension. For instance, it is important to maintain their physical and cultural connection to traditional lands as well
In order to understand the impact of colonisation on Aboriginal health; it is important to recognize their worldview or set of beliefs on health (Tilburt, 2010). They practice a “holistic” approach unlike the Western Biomedical model where health is centred on biological functioning (Lock, 2007). According to this model the essence of being healthy relies on the mental, spiritual and social well-being rather than the absence of an illness (Hampton & Toombs, 2013). It is closely linked to spiritual and environmental factors; the heart of which is country, tradition and kinship. Land is a source of identity and spirituality for indigenous people (Hampton & Toombs, 2013). Kinship manages connection to land as well as ceremonial obligations and interpersonal relationships (Hampton & Toombs, 2013). For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders a healthy person consists of physical and spiritual elements. It’s evident that colonisation eroded the structures upon which Indige...
Since colonialism after the invasion, Australia indigenous peoples have experienced a great deal of loss of identity, loss, disempowerment, cultural alienation, grief. Many indigenous people's mental and physical health impaired. Suicide, family violence, drug abuse and unemployment rates is higher than the Australian average(Berry et al. 2012). That is complicated to contributing to develop and support sustainable mental health and social wellbeing for Australian aboriginals staying in rural areas ,related to much diversity involved in and between individuals and communities (Guerin & Guerin 2012).
To be consider experiencing trauma, the individual have to react to the traumatic event with deep fear, helplessness, or horror. According to the DSM-5 trauma must include three parameters: re-experiencing, avoidance, and arousal (pp. 192-193). In the same way, a whole coulter could be traumatize as well. External factors could set pressure on the culture. An unexpected pressure could overwhelm the cultural structure, inability to cope, and resulted by cultural trauma (p. 191). Native Americans experienced individual and cultural trauma that overwhelmingly influence their lives, in the individual aspect as well as in the communal aspect as well. In addition this trauma is a transgenerational trauma. The influence of past trauma merge together with contemporary trauma, which resulted in collective trauma (p. 192). The phenomena of passage of trauma through the generations called transposition. Some critic of this term suggest that generations suffer from dysfunctional parenting as a result of the trauma, more than the direct trauma itself (p. 198). Native Americans are in high risk for facing trauma, violence, stress-elevating situations. Understanding the way that historical trauma form these experiences and continue to inhibit recovery is the key for culturally focused intervention progress as well as clinical work (p.
Indigenous people around the world have been affected by colonization, Christianization, and the advancement of technologies and development more than any other group. This has caused untold harm as Native peoples have suffered staggering rates of poverty, violence, and suicide. The Native people have not given up. Many indigenous people from tribes around the world are standing up and saying “no more”. They are reclaiming their heritage, their language, traditions, and spirituality and sharing it with the world to encourage a healthier, more balanced way of being.
The history of indigenous peoples disadvantage began with the dispossession of land. Indigenous people were stripped off their hunting grounds and ...
Indigenous Knowledge (IK) can be broadly defined as the knowledge and skills that an indigenous (local) community accumulates over generations of living in a particular environment. IK is unique to given cultures, localities and societies and is acquired through daily experience. It is embedded in community practices, institutions, relationships and rituals. Because IK is based on, and is deeply embedded in local experience and historic reality, it is therefore unique to that specific culture; it also plays an important role in defining the identity of the community. Similarly, since IK has developed over the centuries of experimentation on how to adapt to local conditions. That is Indigenous ways of knowing informs their ways of being. Accordingly IK is integrated and driven from multiple sources; traditional teachings, empirical observations and revelations handed down generations. Under IK, language, gestures and cultural codes are in harmony. Similarly, language, symbols and family structure are interrelated. For example, First Nation had a