As an individual who was raised in rural Alberta I was raised in a very white community. We were not taught much about Indigenous ways of living or knowledge. As I have gotten older I have gotten more and more intrigued in not only other cultures, but particularly the cultures that have influenced the land I live on and my current way of life. One of the most obvious ones consists of the Indigenous Peoples of what we now call Alberta. Although I have always been interested in Indigenous cultures I have always been cautious to learn due to fear of intruding. I have learned that there is still a long way to go, but in the mean time, I wanted to create a resource for future non-Indigenous individuals to start their learning from. There are many resources out there and it is our job to educate ourselves as much as possible, to honour a way of life that is not ours. I continue my journey to show support and hope that you can join me on this journey. It is important to note that I am not Indigenous, and am continually learning. These sources are much more reliable than my own knowledge, and many being from Indigenous individuals or groups.
First... let's talk about allyship. What is allyship and how can you be a good ally? Below are some links to ally resources, particularly Indigenous allyship. The next blogs will go into a branch of different sources. As you read through these be sure to think what your intentions and motivations for this journey are.
Indigenous Ally Toolkit
https://www.segalcentre.org/co...
Generation 4 Equality: Allyship Fact Sheet
https://nwac.ca/assets-knowled...
11 Ways to be a Better Ally to Indigenous People (A Guide to Allyship)
https://resistclothing.ca/blog...
How to be an Indigenous Ally
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Performative Allyship is Deadly
This site does not discuss Indigenous Allyship, but does bring attention to performative allyship. An important aspect to consider as it can cause more harm than good.