Inclusive Voices
Inclusive Voices
Earth is home to between 250 and 300 million Indigenous people, and although they comprise only four percent of the world’s population, they inhabit 22% of the world’s land surface. In spite of these statistics, Indigenous peoples’ rights to land are often not recognized, and they are excluded from national and international political processes. As a result, well-intentioned but inadequate (and sometimes even harmful) climate action policies and actions are undertaken without their input or consent.
Marginalization and inequality affects Indigenous women across the globe. “We are required to undergo lengthy processes of defining ourselves in a Western framework within which we risk losing sight of our inherent knowledge systems and values,” writes June Oscar AO, Australian Social Justice Commissioner and proud Bunuba woman from the remote town of Fitzroy Crossing in Western Australia’s Kimberley region. Such knowledge systems include ways and means of healing people, relationships, and the land. “Traditional healing aims to restore balance,” explains the Native Women’s Association of Canada in their paper entitled Aboriginal Women and Traditional Healing. They continue: “The ways of traditional healing are as diverse as Aboriginal cultures, but there are many things in common. One is the belief that healing takes time and that it can be intense. Another common belief is that the relationship between the healer and the person [or the land] is important.”
For many years, white Western European decision makers (and their settler-colonist cohorts) have considered Indigenous spirituality, values, and culture to be outdated and of little use; as a result, national policies and public programs were—and still are—shaped by this view. In order for nations to flourish, equality and prosperity must be available to everyone. Programs that encourage collaboration, such as Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN) and Australia’s Wiyi Yani U Thangani Project (both featured in this film) show how governments can successfully partner with First Nations women, communities, and non-Indigenous collaborators to build mechanisms that guarantee Indigenous women and girls are not excluded or left behind, and that women’s knowledge and lived experiences are central to making decisions and policies that impact their lives.
It is our sincere hope that the salient, intensely personal stories of Black, Indigenous, and Women of Color knowledge keepers documented in the Sisterhood film will increase cross-cultural understanding, shine a light on the immense societal benefits in uplifting historically marginalized voices, and inspire more healing, activism, and allyship for environmental, racial, and gender justice around the world.
Questions for Discussion
The following questions are meant to spark further thought and discussion. You can use them as journal prompts, conversation starters for classroom discussions, dinner table topics, or even chat about them over coffee with sisters and friends.
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Do you observe inequalities in your own work, school, community, or home life? What about the lives of your friends, peers, and neighbors?
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What does the word “inclusive” mean to you? How are you working toward being more inclusive?
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What does the word “justice” mean to you? How can we work together to heal past injustices?
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Do you know the names of the Indigenous peoples who stewarded the land you live on, before it was settled or colonized?
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Beyond land acknowledgement, what steps can we take to uplift the voices and knowledge of Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color in your community and around the world?
Further Resources
Bibliography
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Native Women's Association of Canada, “Aboriginal Women and Traditional Healing,” Issue Paper (National Aboriginal Women’s Summit, June 2007), 1.
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WECAN, “Women’s Climate Action Agenda” (Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network, International, 2015), 67.