<div dir="ltr"><div class=""><div id="content-font"><h1>Canadian media colonialism and the revitalization of indigenous languages</h1><div class=""><span class="">by <a href="https://intercontinentalcry.org/author/administrator/" title="Posts by John Ahni Schertow" class="" rel="author">John Ahni Schertow</a></span><span class="">July 11, 2016</span></div><div class=""><div class=""><div class=""><a class="" href="https://intercontinentalcry.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/first-nations-language-education-729x487.jpg"><img src="https://i0.wp.com/intercontinentalcry.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/first-nations-language-education-790x528.jpg" class="" alt="Photo: Province of British Columbia @flckr. Some Rights Reserved" title="Canadian media colonialism and the revitalization of indigenous languages" itemprop="image" height="528" width="790"></a><p class="">Photo: Province of British Columbia @flckr. Some Rights Reserved</p></div></div></div></div></div><div class="" id="essb_displayed_top_491837984"><ul class=""><li class=""><span class="" title=""><span class="">73</span></span></li><li class=""> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/&t=Canadian+media+colonialism+and+the+revitalization+of+indigenous+languages" title="" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li><li class=""> <a href="https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/#" title="" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li><li class=""> <a href="https://plus.google.com/share?url=https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/" title="" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li><li class=""> <a href="mailto:?subject=Canadian%20media%20colonialism%20and%20the%20revitalization%20of%20indigenous%20languages&body=Hi,%20there%27s%20a%20story%20on%20Intercontinental%20Cry%20that%20may%20be%20of%20interest%20to%20you:%20https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/" title="" target="_self" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li><li class=""> <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&ro=true&trk=EasySocialShareButtons&title=Canadian+media+colonialism+and+the+revitalization+of+indigenous+languages&url=https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/" title="" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li><li class=""> <a href="http://digg.com/submit?phase=2amp;url=https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/&title=Canadian+media+colonialism+and+the+revitalization+of+indigenous+languages" title="" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li><li class=""> <a href="http://www.stumbleupon.com/badge/?url=https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/" title="" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li><li class=""> <a href="http://reddit.com/submit?url=https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/&title=Canadian+media+colonialism+and+the+revitalization+of+indigenous+languages" title="" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li><li class=""> <a href="https://bufferapp.com/add?url=https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/&text=Canadian+media+colonialism+and+the+revitalization+of+indigenous+languages&via=intentlcry&picture=&count=horizontal&source=button" title="" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li><li class=""> <a href="whatsapp://send?text=Canadian%20media%20colonialism%20and%20the%20revitalization%20of%20indigenous%20languages%20http%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2F29ytz6H" title="" target="_self" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li><li class=""> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog_this.pyra?t&u=https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/&n=Canadian+media+colonialism+and+the+revitalization+of+indigenous+languages" title="" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li><li class=""> <a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?view=cm&fs=1&su=Canadian+media+colonialism+and+the+revitalization+of+indigenous+languages&body=https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/&ui=2&tf=1" title="" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><span class=""></span><span class=""></span></a><span class=""></span><br></li></ul></div><p>Some
93 percent of indigenous languages in Australia have become extinct.
This is by far the most serious case of "linguicide" in the world.
However, if things continue unchanged, Canada may come to challenge that
record. According to UNESCO, 88 of Canada's 90 Indigenous languages are
now on the verge of extinction. Unless indigenous language holders,
communities and their allies develop appropriate strategies that focus
more on revitalizing rather than merely preserving these endangered
languages, it's only a matter of time before we lose them just as we
have lost so many others.</p><p>Media has a distinct role to play in
these language revitalization strategies. However, there are several
social, political, economic and cultural obstacles that prevent
Indigenous Peoples from using media to effectively compliment such
efforts. Fortunately, it is possible to navigate around those obstacles.</p><p>To
understand the role of media in language revitalization let us first
come to terms with the number of Indigenous Peoples in the world.
According to the United Nations there are approximately 370 million
Indigenous Peoples. Very few people ever think to question that number,
but question it we must. After all, several UN member states officially
deny have any Indigenous Peoples including the Russian Federation,
Namibia and People's Republic of China. If we tally up the populations
of these and other indigenous nationalities not included in the UN's
accounting, we end up with a figure that exceeds 1.3 billion people—18
percent of the world's population. That figure is according to the <a href="http://cwis.org" target="_blank">Center for World Indigenous Studies</a> Fourth World Atlas Project.</p><p>The
number of endangered Indigenous languages in the world also varies.
According to UNESCO there are 6000 languages still spoken in the world,
43 per cent of which are considered endangered. According to the Center
for World Indigenous Studies, there are closer to 7100 languages spoken
in the world, 36 percent of which are threatened, declining or nearly
extinct. <a href="http://www.ethnologue.com/" target="_blank">Ethnologue</a>, a comprehensive online catalog all of the world’s known living languages, reports <a href="http://www.ethnologue.com/world" target="_blank">similar numbers</a>.</p><p>Whatever
numbers we're prepared to accept, there's no disputing the threats to
the security of the world's indigenous languages. These threats include:
non-indigenous migrants and workforces entering into indigenous
communities; constant exposure to foreign languages in the home and
limited access to indigenous languages in school and in the media. The
greatest threat of all, however, is found in the national language
policies used by states like Russia, China, the United States of
America, Canada and Australia. Two years ago, Ghil'ad Zuckermann, a
professor of endangered languages at the University of Adelaide,
revealed just how much harm Australia's one language policy has caused
to indigenous languages in <em>the land of fire</em>. Professor Zuckermann says that 93 percent of indigenous languages in Australia are now extinct.</p><p>If
things continue unchanged, Canada may come to challenge that record.
According to UNESCO, 88 of Canada's 90 Indigenous languages are now on
the verge of extinction.</p><p>The reason for this ongoing catastrophe
is fairly simple: During Canada's residential school era, which ran from
1831 to 1969, more than 150,000 indigenous children were taken from
their homes, brought into military-style camps and indoctrinated to
think, dress, behave and speak like 'Canadians'. In addition to being
stripped of both their language and culture, these children were forced
to endure regular physical, sexual and psychological abuse at the hands
of residential school staff.</p><p>This 130-year legacy of assimilation took its toll on every residential school survivor—<a href="http://www.trc.ca/websites/trcinstitution/index.php?p=4" target="_blank">there are 80,000 former 'students' living today</a>—as
well as their families, their communities and their nations. That toll
continues to be paid, in one form or another, in almost every indigenous
household in what is now Canada.</p><p>However, Canada's assimilation
agenda did not begin or end with Residential schools. Rather, it was the
centerpiece in a much larger assimilation, enfranchisement and
civilization strategy. Nor is it a relic of some by-gone era given the
fact that Canada is still pursuing the same old policy objective; albeit
with a modern twist. For instance, First Nation schools are generally
obligated to obey provincial academic standards, which means First
Nation students must perform in one of Canada's two official languages.</p><p>Of course, many schools on Reserve now offer their own culturally and linguistically appropriate curricula like the <a href="http://freedom-school.org/" target="_blank">Akwesasne Freedom School</a>
which has provided a Kanienkéha (Mohawk) immersion curriculum for over
20 years “without approval or funding from state, federal or provincial
governments." The Lau, Welnew Tribal School on the on Tsartlip Reserve
has operated for almost the same amount of time, using a locally
developed SENCO<span style="text-decoration:line-through">T</span>EN language and culture curriculum. Many other First Nations, however, are still stuck in Canada's bilingual policy trap.</p><p><a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/indigenous-kids-made-up-almost-half-of-canadian-foster-children-in-2011statscan/article29616843/" target="_blank">An unacceptable number of indigenous children are also being pulled into the foster care system</a>
and sent to non-indigenous Canadian households. Most of these
households are completely void of anything even remotely connected to
any indigenous culture and language.</p><p>Add all this up—along with
our collective inability to access language programs and
linguistically-relevant media—and we have ourselves a recipe for
cultural genocide.</p><p>But all is not lost. Canada's 150-year old
assimilation agenda is beginning to unravel—thanks in no small part to
the work of Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, the Truth and
Reconciliation Commission and Idle No More.</p><p>Even though the
Canadian government worked in tandem with the media and the Assembly of
First Nations to prevent Idle No More from reaching critical mass, it is
nonetheless aware of the fact that Idle No More was, in many respects,
an early morning exercise for those among us who have never been
politically active, including many residential school survivors and
their children. Idle No More set the stage for Canada’s indigenous
movement to mobilize in a manner that <em>would</em> make that movement look like a morning exercise. It's in Canada's best interest to avoid that potential.</p><p>Enter
Prime Minister Trudeau. Ever since his election, Trudeau and his
cabinet have been desperately working to build a new image of Canada
that is less hostile towards Indigenous Peoples. This effort has
included pushing forward with a long-sought <a href="http://ipolitics.ca/2016/02/27/national-inquiry-into-missing-murdered-indigenous-women-will-address-provincial-issues-too/" target="_blank">national inquiry into Murder and Missing Indigenous Women</a> and promising to offer “<a href="http://www.northernpublicaffairs.ca/index/canada-undrip-indigenous-leaders-respond-to-announcement/" target="_blank">unqualified support</a>"
for the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous
Peoples—a legal instrument that Canada actively worked against before it
was officially approved in 2007. Most recently, Trudeau, in response
to an <a href="https://intercontinentalcry.org/preserving-native-language-key-overcoming-native-suicide-epidemic/">article that was published on IC</a> last April, acknowledged in Winnipeg on June 3 that <a href="http://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/restoring-indigenous-languages-key-to-preventing-suicides-trudeau-1.2930425" target="_blank">preserving indigenous language is key to preventing youth suicide</a>.
While we haven't seen anything substantial come from these words and
deeds (beyond a few stacks of cash), it is nonetheless encouraging to
see Canada depart from the malignant standard that so many other
administrations relied on with all the Canadian Pride they could muster.</p><h1 style="text-align:center">Canada’s apartheid-driven media landscape</h1><p>Whether
or not the Canadian government begins and continues to proactively
support indigenous rights, Canada’s apartheid-driven media landscape
will remain the same for the foreseeable future. This means Canadian
corporate and non-profit media outlets will continue to marginalize
indigenous voices, and suppress coverage of human rights abuses and
environmental tragedies involving Indigenous Peoples. Canadian
Journalists, reporters, correspondents and editors, meanwhile, will
continue to offer trite, condescending, racist or factually inaccurate
stories for their Canadian readers. And Canadian foundations will
continue to treat indigenous media as a novelty, preferring instead to
fund indigenous initiatives that are owned or controlled by
non-indigenous Canadians. The utter lack of linguistic diversity in
Canada’s media landscape will similarly continue.</p><p>We do not,
however, need to accept the media's oppressive negligence. Instead,
First Nations can develop ways to produce their own media, whether it's
by producing a community-run television station like <a href="http://www.akwesasnetv.com/" target="_blank">Akwesasne TV</a>, a radio station like <a href="http://www.wikiwand.com/en/CFTI-FM" target="_blank">CFTI-FM</a> in Elsipogtog First Nation, or a more comprehensive regionally-focused broadcasting network like the <a href="http://www.nac.nu.ca" target="_blank">Inuit Broadcasting Corporation</a>.</p><p>It's
not an easy task, especially with the limited amount of funding that
First Nations can access, but it's one that comes with several distinct
benefits that we just can't afford to dismiss:</p><ol><li>Communities
that generate their own media are in the position to disseminate
culturally-relevant information, which helps to ensure cultural
continuity and community cohesion.</li><li>It ensures that everyone in
the community can respond to any threats and challenges that arise,
whether it's a fire, an oil spill, or a mining company's illegal
intrusion into a culturally-sensitive area.</li><li>It insulates
languages and promotes indigenous language use. If that
community-generated media happens to broadcast online, it also serves as
a linguistic lifeline that every community member can grasp, no matter
where they are in the world.</li></ol><p>Of course, a First Nation must
overcome several obstacles before it can begin to produce its own media.
Running a local television station is a prohibitively expensive effort
that requires specialized training, equipment; and, under most
circumstances, a broadcast license. For many indigenous communities,
it's just not worth the effort, especially if most families don't even
own a television.</p><p>Indigenous community radio is usually a more
viable option. The cost of running a community radio station is still
quite expensive—according to the <a href="http://prometheusradio.org/startup_costs" target="_blank">Prometheus Radio Project</a>,
"Many stations get on the air for under $15,000 and can stay on the air
for less than $1,000 per month"—but it's nowhere near as costly as
running a television station.</p><p>Digital media is viable and far less
costly alternative to radio and television. It costs next to nothing to
start a digital media service like a blog, a podcast, an internet radio
station or a daily video stream on YouTube or <a href="http://www.isuma.tv/" target="_blank">Isuma.tv</a>. You also don't need much in the way of training: your entire family could have a blog running in less than a day.</p><p>However,
new media still faces the same old problems. At this point, there
aren't enough computers on reserve for new media to fully serve a
community. Also, there is very little funding available for indigenous
new media, be it from the government, from foundations, from advertisers
or from crowdfunding websites like Kickstarter.</p><p>There have been a few crowdfunding successes over the last couple years. Reclaim Turtle Island, for instance, <a href="https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/reclaim-turtle-island/" target="_blank">managed to raise</a> $12K in 2014, the non-indigenous owned <a href="https://ricochet.media" target="_blank">Ricochet Media</a> has had two consecutive crowdfunding wins for its Indigenous Reporting Fund, and Ryan Mcmahon's <a href="http://www.indianandcowboy.com/" target="_blank">Indian and Cowboy Podcast Network</a>
now gets around $1K per month from over 100 people. However, this is
about as high as the indigenous media crowdfunding bar gets; and it is a
continent-wide leap from the level of funds that non-indigenous media
outlets routinely raise in Canada and the United States.</p><p>Independent
and urban indigenous media is stuck between a rock and a hard place,
however, Indigenous communities can overstep this problem with the help
of Band/Tribal Councils who can fund the work directly, make
arrangements with some kind of for-profit entity or set up their own
entity to run the community service.</p><p>That said, it's also
important to note that most of the world's Indigenous Peoples face the
same problems that we have here in Canada; but that's not stopping them
from launching their own new media projects. By teaming up with
non-profits, Indigenous Peoples are utilizing mobile phones, cameras and
laptops to document traditional stories, record songs, carry out
interviews with elders and produce their own citizen journalism—all of
which contributes directly to the preservation and promotion of
indigenous language and culture.</p><p>In the Peruvian Amazon, for example, the <a href="https://intercontinentalcry.org/shipibo-stories-pass-to-the-next-generation-with-a-little-help-from-digital-media/">Chariboan Joi</a> project encourages Shipibo youth to produce their own media—and they're doing it with gusto. In Brazil, the landmark <a href="https://intercontinentalcry.org/digital-indigenous/">Indios Online</a>
project allows indigenous communities across several linguistic lines
to promote intercultural dialogue while providing their own communities
with information that they would never otherwise be able to access.
Throughout Australia, Indigenous Peoples are using mobile phones to tell
stories in their own languages. Video for Volunteers helps indigenous
reporters in India produce independent video reports at <a href="http://www.videovolunteers.org/about/indiaunheard/" target="_blank">India Unheard</a>.
And then of course we have the ever-growing Indigenous Communication
Network of Abya Yala which is devoted to securing continent-wide
Indigenous communication networks for Indigenous Peoples throughout
Latin America. There is nothing else in the world quite like it.</p><h1 style="text-align:center">Technology and language</h1><p>While
media technology can help to insulate and promote indigenous
languages—especially when used as part of a larger language
revitalization strategy—we have to make sure that our priorities are in
check, as the Skwomesh language activist Khelsilem recently told <em>IC</em>. A <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/aboriginal/skwomesh-language-activist-b-c-university-launch-immersion-course-1.3404541" target="_blank">lead Skwomesh language instructor</a>
at Simon Fraser University, Khelsilem has used a number of tools and
techniques over the years to ensure that the traditional language of the
Squamish Nation—now spoken by just 7 people in a community of
4000—survives for future generations.</p><blockquote><p>In my community I
used various media platforms, such as a social media, a website, or
tapping into classical media coverage to help raise awareness. The
publicity of the tools helped create an understanding of the work and an
interest too. I have used other tools such as recording devices, video
recorders, [and a] searchable digital dictionary for looking up correct
spellings, and flashcard apps on my iOS devices.</p></blockquote><p>Through
this work, Khelsilem has gained an intimate understanding of what it
takes for an indigenous language to survive. He continues,</p><blockquote><p>First
Nations should start pushing more to produce their own linguistically
relevant media (radio and television especially) instead of being stuck
with Canada's bilingual media landscape—if it's needed. A language
community like mine, for example, could divert resources to producing a
100% or even 50% bilingual newspaper in Skwomesh and English, but for
whom would this be useful? Only 0.2% of the community speaks the
language, and significant resources would be needed to create such a
resources. It might be more useful later in our stages of language
community development when access to language media is both useful and
needed. I'm in favour of building the need first, then the institution
second. Not the other way around.</p></blockquote><p>Expanding on that last point, Khelsilem adds that,</p><blockquote><p>Internet
technology tools are often implied to be the panacea for the decline of
Indigenous languages. People say things like "this new app we had built
will help us save our language". In our desire to be bold and
innovative, we're sucked into this flawed thinking that an app can do
what is needed: create fluent speakers. A person has never become a
highly proficient speaker with good fluency from an app the same way a
professional basketball player can't become a highly skilled
professional basketball player from an app. You have to practice, and
you have to do the work. An app might help remind you to practice, or
help you get directions to the games, but it's not going to make you a
skilled player just like an app won't save a language. The trend to
prioritize technological solutions is worrisome because significant
resources are diverted into strategies that won't create results needed
while our languages continue to decline.</p></blockquote><p>As the Mississauga Nishnaabeg poet and academic <a href="http://leannesimpson.ca/" target="_blank">Leanne Betasamosake Simpson</a>
points out, we also need to confront the "funding" mentality that
deters us from initiating language revitalization in our communities. We
can’t afford to wait around for the funding to come in. We have to
begin this difficult process now, whether as families, individuals or
online communities, without prompting or affirmation from funding
agencies.</p><p>Cherokee Professor Jeff Corntassel, Director of the Indigenous Governance Program at the University of Victoria, adds,</p><blockquote><p>We
have to be careful how we learn the language [as well]. Languages
reflect our worldviews and the intricate relationships between land,
culture and community. To fully honor the nuances and actions behind
Indigenous languages, we cannot base our understanding of these
languages on western worldviews by translating words based on the
English equivalent. Such a dictionary approach loses the deeper meanings
behind Indigenous languages and obscures the worldviews embedded in
them. When our languages get colonized, our worldviews get compromised.</p></blockquote><h1 style="text-align:center">Building the need</h1><p>Even
though Canada has pushed, pulled, and prodded 88 indigenous languages
to edge of extinction, there is still hope. With each passing day, more
and more indigenous language revitalization efforts of all shapes and
sizes are taking root. M'Chigeeng First Nation on Manitoulin Island, <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/manitoulin-island-first-nation-builds-bilingual-community-1.1281896" target="_blank">for instance</a>,
is now in the process of creating a fully bilingual community and it’s
altering the local school curriculum to immerse children in
Anishinaabek. The Tsuut’ina Gunaha Institute in Alberta is rolling out
different initiatives to <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/tsuutina-nation-language-children-1.3662936" target="_blank">save the Tsuut’ina language</a>. The <a href="http://www.quuquuatsa.ca/Quuquuatsa/Welcome.html" target="_blank">Nuu-chah-nulth are doing the same</a> in BC. The four First Nations of the Maskwacîs Cree just made <a target="_blank" href="https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/%E2%80%9Chttp://creeliteracy.org/2016/06/16/maskwacis-declares-nehiyawewin-their-official-language/%22">their official language</a> Nêhiyawêwin (Cree). The non-profit organization <a href="http://www.nativemontreal.com" target="_blank">Native Montreal</a>
is working to provide a wide range of language classes in Abenaquis,
Anishnabe, Cree, Inuktitut, Innu and Mohawk. There's a lot more where
this came from.</p><p>Canada’s rather colonized education system is also
beginning to open new doors to support indigenous language use. More
than a few colleges and universities have launched indigenous language
courses, while others have established partnerships like Memorial
University's team up with the Nunatsiavut Government <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/inuktitut-language-kids-books-1.3640660" target="_blank">to create children's books in the Labrador Inuktitut dialect</a>. The Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation recently adopted a new language policy to <a href="https://www.stf.sk.ca/about-stf/news/cultural-diversity-and-language-introduced-new-policy" target="_blank">line up with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms</a>.</p><p>Unfortunately,
when it comes to media, there isn't a heck of a lot to smile about.
Even though media plays more of a supporting role in language
revitalization, it is an essential service that all Indigenous Peoples
depend on, especially when it comes to human rights abuses and
environmental emergencies. Right now, Indigenous Peoples can't depend on
Canadian media outlets to do have their backs. We cannot depend on
Canadian editors, Canadian journalists, Canadian foundations, Canadian
NGOs and the Canadian government. At this point, we can only rely on
each other.</p><p>Given Canada's history, perhaps it's for the best.
After all, there is nothing more empowering than standing on our own two
feet, as long as there is a ground to stand on.</p><p><br></p><p><a href="https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/">https://intercontinentalcry.org/canadian-media-colonialism-revitalization-indigenous-languages/</a><br></p><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature">**************************************<br>N.b.: Listing on the lgpolicy-list is merely intended as a service to its members<br>and implies neither approval, confirmation nor agreement by the owner or sponsor of the list as to the veracity of a message's contents. Members who disagree with a message are encouraged to post a rebuttal, and to write directly to the original sender of any offensive message. A copy of this may be forwarded to this list as well. (H. Schiffman, Moderator)<br><br>For more information about the lgpolicy-list, go to <a href="https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/" target="_blank">https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/</a><br>listinfo/lgpolicy-list<br>*******************************************</div>
</div>