ConnectR Presents: Reconcile This!: Recent Episodes

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Reconciling colonization is a process, not a product. We all have our own traumas and truths and we will never be able to reconcile our pasts if we do not take responsibility for our actions, take back our power, and connect to our true selves through language and nature. In today’s episode, Ketiak Andre joins us to share the story of how he and his people were colonized, and how the ideas which were imposed upon him turned him into a colonizer. This is his personal journey of reconciliation, as much as it is a guide for the rest of us to embark on our own reconciliatory journeys. Ketiak means “knowledge keeper,” or “someone who knows,” and although he is always careful not to impose his beliefs on anyone else, his wisdom is profound, and there is so much to be learned from him.

Key Points From This Episode:

• The impact that colonization has had on language.
• The meaning of Ketiak.
• Power of indigenous languages for reconciliation.
• The importance of being true to who you are.
• How the term used to refer to indigenous people has changed over time.
• Keitak’s approach to sharing his knowledge, and breaking the cycle of colonization.
• The trauma that plagued Ketiak’s younger years.
• The sense of peace that Ketiak found in the natural world.
• Lessons which had a life-changing impact on Ketiak’s life.
• Why a relationship with the earth is vital for reconciliation.
• Exploring Ketiak’s ancestry.
• The meaning of Ketiak’s spirit name.
• Foundations of the Seven Generations Prophecies.
• Why Ketiak refers to himself as a colonizer, and his journey of overcoming this.
• Reconciliation requires taking responsibility for one’s actions.
• Damage that the church inflicted upon Ketiak’s people.
• Why Ketiak is grateful for the suffering he has experienced.
• The power that lies within you to stand up to abusers.
• Ketiak explains the significance of the year 1969 in our history.

Tweetables:

“Any natural, indigenous language of the world, that’s where we get direction in life. ” — Ketiak Andre [0:08:13]

“To reconcile, we need to have language.” — Ketiak Andre [0:11:14]

“Be who you are, who you were created to be. Don’t let anybody else impost any identity on you, because if you do that then you become a colonizer.” — Ketiak Andre [0:16:45]

“We cannot reconcile without having a profound, intentional relationship with the earth.” — Ketiak Andre [0:34:23]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Sienna Waskewitch on Twitter
Dany Muembo on Twitter

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Today’s guest is Alberta Muembo, here to share her perspectives on race and reconciliation both globally, and in Canada. Alberta was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) but spent most of her life in Sierra Leone and Kenya before relocating to Canada through the refugee program, with her family seven years ago. One of the things that shook Alberta after the move to Canada, was the amount of inequality she experienced within society, which was a much different reality than she was previously led to believe. As a refugee, the issue of reconciliation is extremely important and close to her heart, so she decided to make a concerted effort to understand the history of colonization in Canada as a way of understanding the true reasons behind the racial tensions she witnessed. We hear how Alberta learned about the dispossession ofIndigenousPeople of Canadathrough colonization, and her decision to get involved in activism for the rights of indigenous Canadian women. Alberta also started a YouTube channel called Heart2Heart in which she explores the complexities of race and culture, and she shares her thoughts on the themes discussed in her videos. We explore the problem of stereotyping and Alberta shares some personal experiences of the negative stereotypes and the effects it has had on both herself and those she is close with. Alberta also shares her thoughts on the divisions between left and right-winged politics and the contradictions to be found within each ideology. For nuanced insights from Alberta on navigating the relationship between race and culture, tune in today.

Key Points From This Episode:

• Introducing Alberta Muembo, her activism, and the trajectory of her life as a refugee.
• Why Alberta is interested in working on the issue of reconciliation in Canada.
• Differences between the image of Canada as an equal society and reality.
• Why Alberta became interested in the history of indigenous people from Canada.
• Alberta's focus on activism for the rights of indigenous Canadian women.
• Discovering the real reasons behind the negative stereotypes First People in Canada face.
• Issues of race and discrimination that Alberta explores in her YouTube channel.
• Alberta’s thoughts on the inferiority complex that groups who have been colonized develop.
• Differences in how Black versus white people get treated when they are minorities.
• Alberta’s opinion on how best to approach conversations around the sensitive topic of race.
• The illusion of racial categories and how culture has come to exaggerate them.
• Alberta’s experiences with people who behaved in ways that defied negative stereotypes.
• The importance of letting go of negative stereotypes to the project of living harmoniously.
• The issue of privileged people feeling oppressed when oppressed groups speak up.
• Marianne Williamson’s comments about hypocrisy in left-wing politics and Alberta’s views on this.
• Why Alberta loves to listen to South African music.

Tweetables:

“If you take a DNA test you are going to be surprised to find out that you have some white in you or Asian in you. Pretty much the whole world is interconnected through stories and DNA.” — Alberta Muembo [0:23:36]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Sienna Waskewitch on Twitter

Dany Muembo on Twitter

University of Saskatchewan

Heart2Heart

Marianne Williamson

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Today we speak with Regan Rat Misponis, a member of the Pinehouse Lake community and student at the University of Saskatchewan. Our conversation takes us across themes of community, belonging, finding one’s identity, and speaking your truth. We begin our in-depth discussion with Regan by finding out more on his background. Regan then shares how he adjusted to city life after living in a one-road town. He contrasts his life by highlighting his feeling of elation from being accepted into university with the stark reality of living in an unjust society. He tells us how the Colten Boushie shooting impacted him, his struggle for identity, and finding a way in a system that was not designed to benefit indigenous people. Throughout our conversation, we ask Regan difficult questions, like what advice he gives to those who are trying to integrate into a predominantly white society. Before we leave, Regan describes his favorite aspects of university and shares a nugget of wisdom for young students to chew on. Be sure to join us in this rich and stirring episode.

Key Points From This Episode:

• Introducing today’s guest, Regan Rat Misponis.
• Regan talks about his initial struggles after leaving Pinehouse.
• Hear about why Regan’s acceptance into the University of Saskatchewan meant so much.
• Regan talks about his transition into city life.
• We hear Regan’s deeper opinion on the Colten Boushie shooting and how he responds to the comments from others.
• Regan shares his thoughts on the first Nakota class being given.
• What Regan would tell a non-indigenous person about integrating themselves in society.
• Regan lets us know what he’d say to those who fear voicing their opinion.
• Advice Regan has for people entering institutions that weren’t designed to benefit them.
• Regan tells us about his favourite experiences at university.

Tweetables:

“One of my high points over 25 years of living was opening a letter that said, ‘congratulations you are being welcomed to come and attend the University of Saskatchewan.’” — Regan Rat Misponis [0:08:02]

“It was really the community and being immersed into the community that helped me get a good understanding. It’s helped me to keep going.” — Regan Rat Misponis [0:11:10]

“The society we live in right now wasn’t designed to benefit people of colour, nor was it developed to benefit indigenous people.” — Regan Rat Misponis [0:34:06]

“There is a saying that those that don’t know history are likely to repeat it. I can understand that people want to voice their sentiments and opinions, and, yes, what they have to say is important, but they need to understand the history.” — Regan Rat Misponis [0:38:36]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Sienna Waskewitch on Twitter

Dany Muembo on Twitter

University of Saskatchewan

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Today we kick things off on the ConnectR Podcast, introducing listeners to our two hosts, Dany and Sienna, and some background leading up to their lives in Saskatoon. It was the Moving Stories project that brought us together and we talk a little about the impact that this wonderful initiative has had on our lives, as well as that of the greater community. We talk about feelings of disconnection in our younger years, what it was like to arrive in Canada after moving around Africa, growing up as an outsider in your own town, and how unaddressed wounds take time to heal. For both of us, engagement with our past has opened worlds before our eyes, initiating acceptance, inner work, and progress on so many levels. Today's conversation also covers our earliest experiences of racism, feelings of pain, and how whiteness has been framed historically. To end things off, we look at some of the progress that has been made in Saskatoon and celebrate these steps that we want to build on! For us, this podcast is about growing the dialogue on important subjects, while allowing a multiplicity of experiences and positions to blossom, so make sure to subscribe and stay tuned for all we have in store for you in the exciting upcoming episodes!

Key Points From This Episode:

• How our hosts, Sienna and Dany, met on the Moving Stories project!
• Healing, connection and finding things around us that make us feel good.
• Arriving in Canada and adjusting to new cultural norms in Saskatoon.
• Growing up in Saskatoon and a disconnection from identity and heritage.
• The life-changing experience of a historical letter and how this led to standing up and being heard in public.
• Childhood memories of whiteness and the experience of this in Africa.
• Learning about slavery and the disturbing history of racism in the Americas.
• The motivation to learn and use the qualification to disprove the legacy of racism.
• Race relations in Saskatoon; positivity around diversity that is present in the city.
• Hopes for more conversations where differences of opinion are acceptable.
• The place of education in the process of opening and enlightening young minds
• Motivations for starting this podcast; jumpstarting important conversations!

Tweetables:

“Some of our struggles, as different as they can be, we also had such similar pain that we felt, and that we all resonated and connected on that.” — @SiennaLenae [0:01:34]

“Growing up in the early 2000s here, I just wasn't able to see myself anywhere and I inherited a lot of stereotypes very quickly.” — @SiennaLenae [0:09:02]

“I was able to gain a voice and I realized how strong that made me feel.” — @SiennaLenae [0:14:55]

“I used to also wish I was white, when I was a kid.” — @DanyMuembo [0:17:16]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Moving Stories

Pocahontas

2Pac

Walt Disney

Martin Luther King

Malcolm X

Sienna Waskewitch on Twitter

Dany Muembo on Twitter