UNCOVERING COLONIAL LEGACIES: INDIGENOUS YOUTH IN CHILD WELFARE (DIS)PLACEMENTS

Transcription

1 Tia Ledesma Angela Gladue Virginia Red Crow Levi First Charger Daniela Navia Tyler Blackface UNCOVERING COLONIAL LEGACIES: INDIGENOUS YOUTH IN CHILD WELFARE (DIS)PLACEMENTS Youth Arts Showcase Honouring Our Knowledge Gifts Conference November 13 th, 2014

2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT & THANKS -The Treaty 6 Nations whose footsteps have marked this territory for thousands of years -All of our ancestors -The generations to come

3 THE MILLENIUM SCOOP Sinclair, 2007 # of Indigenous youth in care= 3x # of youth placed at the height of residential schools (Blackstock, 2003) Number of Indigenous Children in Residential Schools and Child Welfare 8,900 10,294 Residential Schools 1949 Residential Schools ,500 Child Welfare ,500 Child Welfare 2010

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5 You cried when I was born. gave me a name, forgot who I was there, your eyes daze over and focus on the scars on the wall Spirits lead you away There, I was taken by the wrist. They took my name, took my clothes, took my life and washed it anew. I cried for the girl You forgot was inside I keep her away

6 There, Her reflection will sometimes stare back at me Wake up and take your name back, she says My eyes daze over and I focus on living ghosts. Mother, Do you remember me? Wake up and take your life back. Your eyes close and I focus on the blood on the wall. Try to remember, I was a daughter once we want to forget but focus on the pictures on the walls That we hope will bring us back home.

7 You seem to remember- When you notice the flowers that bloom through the concrete ground. When you have true forgiveness for another Or see a fire that burns and gives new life. You remember that things can be renewed. Recalling your true form Like the souls and souls before your time, You are resilient. -Tia Ledesma

8 This piece is dedicated to the memory of my late brother Anthony Marino Gladue. Beading is definitely a gift of healing, and every stitch that goes into my beadwork is a step towards that. I miss you and love you dearly tony - Angela Gladue

9 Truth and Reconciliation Commission Performance -Angela Gladue

10 Kurly s Piece -Angela Gladue

11 Working with youth in jails and in remote Northern communities

12 Virginia Red Crow

13 When I look at the dancers and the drummers, it makes me feel that there is always hope. They are proud to be dancers. They are really spiritual, they know Blackfoot. They understand the music and they sing along to it. - Virginia Red Crow

14 My art means a lot to me. I remember when my art got stolen from me I stopped for about a year. I am not really much of a talker but I can draw for hours. -Brendon Peequaquat

15 Tattooing gives me a purpose. It will be on people s bodies forever. One of my legacies. I am getting back into the Native culture. I want to get a bunch of Native stuff tattooed on me. -Brendon Peequaquat

16 I did this canvas to represent how important sobriety is to me. The graffiti style is used to represent my take on modern Native art. The dots represent the lives of those affected by alcoholism. - Tyler Blackface

17 I wanted to take a new approach on the sober canvas previously painted. This new one is more vibrant and I feel promotes the idea of sobriety better. The drips represent all the alcohol I ve consumed and it s dripping to downwards to show where it led me. Rock bottom. -Tyler Blackface

18 I originally started with a blue background because I find this colour to be somehow emotional. I was in a dark state of mind when painting this. The black represents my heritage, blackfoot. And the white represents being raised in a foster home and the two colliding into something more beautiful, the grey. -Tyler Blackface

19 This one represents my feelings while growing up in care. The red, black and yellow are colours from the medicine wheel. The white is supposed to represent a cage and how I felt that I couldn t be who I truly am while growing up white. The gold is to represent the illusion of life being golden when I was facing numerous problems that I couldn t deal with at that time. -Tyler Blackface

20 -Laura Dionne Royal

21 -Jessica

22 THANK YOU FOR LISTENING! WE MUST RECLAIM OUR STORIES. OUR LAND, OUR TREATIES, OUR IDENTITIES, OUR PRAYER, OUR LANGUAGE AND OUR CHILDREN. - FRANNIE, INDIGENOUS RIGHTS ACTIVIST

23 THANK YOU TO OUR PARTNERS & SPONSORS: