As an institution located on the treaty lands and territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, Centennial College takes its responsibility of honoring the rich history and legacy of the First People of Canada very seriously. Not only do we have programs and events on our campuses, but we have a community that works to advance Indigenous issues outside the college, too.
One such event is an upcoming discussion and panel, centered on a conversation between Indigenous Artist and Elder Phillip Cote, and Margot van Sluytman, poet, activist and Centennial College instructor. Called The Criminalization of Indigenous World Views: Colonial Narratives, the discussion will be happening on February 24th, from 7 to 9 PM, at Roncesvalles United Church, which contains a mural drawn by Cote, depicting Indigenous creation stories. In addition to the sharing, there will be questions from and a conversation with the audience about the effects of colonization, calls to action, and Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The event will be streamed live on Facebook.
A Centennial Connection
Margot van Sluytman is an alumni of distinction from what’s now our Publishing – Book, Magazine and Electronic program, in addition to her current role as a Global Citizenship teacher. Outside of the college, she’s a poet, researcher, political influencer, and the creator of Sawbonna: A New Model for Restorative Justice, which she discusses in this talk with the CBC. One way or another, she’s been involved with victims and offenders for years.
“He's Indigenous,” Margot says about Phillip Cote, “and his experience of the church is one of, of course, colonialism and brutality. And that mural [he painted at Roncesvalles], it’s called the Wall of Welcome. And what it is, it's indigenous creation stories, sitting in a Christian church, and the wall that Philip chose, it's the stained glass of Christian creation stories. So he chose a wall to have the two together. Is that not amazing?” The making of the mural was covered in the short film The Eighth Fire, which Margot shows students in her Global Citizenship course.
What they’re talking about
“The silencing of Indigenous stories, of indigenous culture, by churches, by governments, is something that Truth and Reconciliation in this country is addressing profoundly,” Margot says about the topics covered at the event.
“Philip is an artist and a wisdom keeper,” she says about her co-speaker, “and a person that knows those stories through his bones, I could just see them standing there in that space, and sharing the link between those areas, and then having conversation around calls to action.”
“And here's the other thing,” Margot says about the artist. “Philip is a really warm and gentle person. I understand when you're raging, I get the context. But Phillip offers a really generous invitation to be part of something that is so huge, and can be absolutely terrifying, with so much shame and guilt, and he does not speak from that place.”
“So it's really inviting a conversation that can invite an action,” she says. “And if the action really is simply an understanding, and having a feeling in the heart that they can be part of the conversation.”
Teaching Global Citizenship
For Centennial College students like those taking Margot’s Centennial College course, Global Citizenship, the topics covered by the event are of special interest.
“A lot of our students are international students and immigrants,” Margot says. “And they are very interested, because a lot of them do not know about the depth and the destruction and the genocide that colonialism actually caused.”
“I teach all of this within the framework of Sawbonna,” Margot says, referring to her philosophy of healing and restorative justice. “These related words, shared humanity. This is a very, very challenging conversation for many people, shame and guilt come up.”
“What helps is to acknowledge it,” she continues. “And then ask how we can be a part [of the solution], as global citizens, within the context of Sawbonna, within the context of shared humanity. That is what I think Centennial offers as well to our students, especially in Gen Ed 500. Spaces where many voices are included.”
“I say this to my students all the time, the personal, the professional, and the political are siblings,” Margot says. “So the conversations around calls to action, there’s the personal, how we respond, how we respond within our professional settings, and then of course, politically, it's a call to each of us.”
By: Anthony Geremia