The gatherings : reimagining Indigenous-settler relations
In a world that requires knowledge and wisdom to address developing crises around us, The Gatherings shows how Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples can come together to create meaningful and lasting relationships. Thirty years ago, in Wabanaki territory - a region encompassing the state of Maine and the Canadian Maritimes - a group of Indigenous and non-Indigenous individuals came together to explore some of the most pressing questions at the heart of Truth and Healing efforts in the United States and Canada. Meeting over several years in long-weekend gatherings, in a Wabanaki-led traditional Council format, assumptions were challenged, perspectives upended, and stereotypes shattered. Alliances and friendships were formed that endure to this day. The Gatherings tells the moving story of these meetings in the words of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous participants. Reuniting to reflect on how their lives were changed by their experiences and how they continue to be impacted by them, the participants share the valuable lessons they learned. The many voices represented in The Gatherings offer insights and strategies that can inform change at the individual, group, and systems levels. These voices affirm that authentic relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples - with their attendant anxieties, guilt, anger, embarrassments, and, with time, even laughter and mutual affection - are key to our shared futures here in North America. Now, more than ever, it is critical that we come together to reimagine. Mawopiyane Gwen Bear The Reverend Shirley Bowen Alma H. Brooks/Zapawey-kwey gkisedtanamoogk JoAnn Hughes Debbie Leighton Barb Martin Miigam'agan T. Dana Mitchell Wayne A. Newell Betty Peterson Marilyn Keyes Roper Wesley Rothermel Afterword by Dr. Frances Hancock To reflect the collaborative nature of this project, the word Mawopiyane is used to describe the full group of co-authors. Mawopiyane, in Passamaquoddy, literally means "let us sit together," but the deeper meaning is of a group coming together, as in the longhouse, to struggle with a sensitive or divisive issue - but one with a very desirable outcome. It is a healing word and one that is recognizable in all Wabanaki languages.
Available Copies by Location
Location | |
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Victoria | Available |
Browse Related Items
- ISBN: 9781487508951
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Physical Description
print
304 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm - Publisher [Place of publication not identified] : [publisher not identified], 2021.
Content descriptions
General Note: | NFPL Indigenous Collection. |
Bibliography, etc. Note: | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
Additional Information
Table of Contents
Gatherings : Reimagining Indigenous-Settler Relations
Section | Section Description | Page Number |
---|---|---|
Preface | p. xi | |
With Gratitude | p. xiii | |
Notes on Terminology | p. xvii | |
Introduction | p. xxi | |
Gathering | ||
Preparing | p. 3 | |
The Talking Circle | p. 13 | |
Miigam'agan | p. 13 | |
Wayne | p. 21 | |
Gwen | p. 27 | |
Dana | p. 33 | |
Alma | p. 42 | |
Barb | p. 49 | |
Gkisedtanamoogk | p. 57 | |
Shirley H. | p. 64 | |
Debbie | p. 70 | |
Shirley B. | p. 76 | |
Wesley | p. 84 | |
Marilyn | p. 92 | |
Betty | p. 99 | |
JoAnn | p. 106 | |
The Last Gathering | p. 115 | |
The Decision | p. 119 | |
Hindsight | p. 120 | |
Photos: The Gatherings, May 1987 to May 1993 | p. 123 | |
Photos: Creating this Book | p. 125 | |
The Giveaway Blanket | ||
The Circle and Ceremony | p. 131 | |
The Circle and Decision Making | p. 132 | |
Ceremony: Protect or Share It? | p. 135 | |
Allies, Friends, Family | p. 145 | |
Beginnings | p. 145 | |
The Women Compare Notes | p. 150 | |
The Relationship Evolves | p. 152 | |
Mutuality | p. 154 | |
How We Got Here | p. 159 | |
The Doctrine of Discovery | p. 159 | |
But What about the Treaties? | p. 162 | |
The Personal Is Political | p. 169 | |
Economic Self-Determination | p. 172 | |
Beginning to Make Amends | p. 173 | |
Some Progress...and a Long Way to Go | p. 175 | |
How It Could Be Different | p. 183 | |
Being Here Legitimately | p. 183 | |
Acknowledging First Peoples / Honoring the Treaties | p. 184 | |
An Indigenous Worldview | p. 186 | |
The Need for Gathering Spaces | p. 190 | |
Creating a Gathering Space | p. 193 | |
Working Together on a Cause | p. 196 | |
Humility versus "White Guilt" | p. 198 | |
Non-Natives Working with Our Own People | p. 200 | |
Entering the Longhouse | p. 203 | |
Being in the Relationship: An Afterword Frances Hancock | p. 207 | |
Appendix: How This Book Came to Be | p. 223 | |
Notes | p. 227 | |
Suggested Resources | p. 233 | |
Contributors | p. 241 | |
Map: Location of the Gatherings in the Gulf of Maine Bioregion/ Traditional Wabanaki Territory | p. 255 | |
Readers Guide | p. 257 | |
Index | p. 267 |