Turtle Island Reads opens ‘doorway’ into Canadian history
Writer-activist says fiction might best help shine light on nation’s difficult past
To learn the truth about their country’s origins, Canadians may first need to embrace fiction.
One advocate says that perhaps the easiest introduction to the history of Indigenous Peoples isn’t through textbooks or dry lectures, but rather through prose.
“Indigenous literature offers a doorway that allows young people to access our communities, our stories, some of our world views, the way we understand and experience the universe,” said Ryan McMahon, an Anishnaabe writer and comedian.
“Any time you’re walking through that doorway, you’re growing as a person.”
McMahon was in Montreal Wednesday to partake in Turtle Island Reads, an event that promotes the work of Indigenous authors. He says fiction offers people a “softer landing pad” into some of the difficult truths about Canada’s history of colonial violence.
Last winter, Quebec’s high school history curriculum was revised to include the contributions of Indigenous Peoples in the creation of Canada. Whereas older material either glossed over or completely ignored the land theft and assimilationist policies the federal government imposed on First Nations, the new textbooks introduce students to these concepts.
But critics — including many high school history teachers — say these are superficial teachings that do little to address the depth of Indigenous perspectives.
This is where fiction comes into play, McMahon said.
On Wednesday, he read an excerpt from Son of a Trickster — a coming-of-age novel by Haisla author Eden Robinson — before an audience at McGill University. In the book, a high school burnout called Jared smokes pot, encounters domestic violence and runs afoul of some local gangsters.
But Jared is also a profoundly caring young man who watches over his alcoholic mom and acts as the protector to his family despite being just 16 years old. The story also weaves in mythology, family and community in a way that hearkens back to traditional elements of Indigenous storytelling.
“These are big, heavy subjects and we need to talk about them,” McMahon said. “To offer our humanity up through art and literature is essential to Canadians better understanding who we are.
“When we’re young, we want to go to university, too, we want to own a home, too, we want to have kids and be healthy, too, we want to travel and see the world.”
If there are benefits for those who grow up reading Indigenous authors, much of Quebec’s youth may be missing out. There’s an effort by the English Montreal School Board to include more Aboriginal perspectives in history class, but there’s no requirement for English teachers to include the work of Indigenous authors in the classroom.
“It’s at the teachers’ discretion,” said Michael Cohen, spokesperson for the EMSB.
Waubgeshig Rice, who hosted Turtle Island Reads, says the day he discovered Indigenous fiction was one that changed the course of his life.
“When I was a kid on the reserve, storytelling was a huge part of our culture,” said Rice, a CBC journalist who hails from Wasauksing First Nation in Ontario. “We would have elders come into our classrooms and share their stories in circles. But that was never reflected in the literature we read.
“When I was a teenager and really into books, my aunt introduced me to Indigenous authors. It blew my mind. You sort of see yourself represented in the pages of a book and it opens up a whole world to you.”
For McMahon, literature showcases not only the humanity but the resilience and warmth of Indigenous Peoples. In Robinson’s book, Jared’s often difficult situation is punctuated with humour.
“There were times where I had to put the book down, that it was too hard for me to read,” McMahon said. “But then I’d pick it back up and two pages later I’m laughing out loud. Sometimes you’re going to have to deal with the hard s--, but just know that when we’re dealing with it, we’re going to be laughing, too.”
To offer our humanity up through art and literature is essential to Canadians better understanding who we are.