Sandi L Boucher (Anishinaabe Kwe of Seine River First Nation, Treaty 3 territory) records a personal vlog discussing problems with the blanket use of the word "Indigenous." She argues that while Métis, First Nations, and Inuit are all Indigenous under the federal government’s categories, they are distinct cultures and practices and should not appropriate one another’s traditions or claim each other’s lands. She objects to Métis land-claim behavior that she characterizes as overreaching into traditional First Nation territory, stresses stewardship over ownership, and calls for mutual respect and clear cultural boundaries.
Questions this video answers
Sandi L Boucher.
Seine River First Nation (Treaty 3 territory).
July 23, 2024.
Chapters
I'm really hoping that the sound quality is going to work on this. I'm in my gym. I shut down the fan. So hopefully that doesn't cause any negative reaction for you. But I'm wondering, have you ever been on the treadmill and suddenly, like, clarity or holy crap, that's the problem. Whatever the case may be, like, that you've cleared your mind because you're working out and then suddenly, wow, I get it now. So that just happened to me. We gotta discuss the word Indigenous. Now. I've made it clear in other videos why I have problems with that word. But this is a different problem with that word. We need to talk about it. Like I said, this is not my usual. I'm definitely not in my office. I'm actually in my home gym, just finished working. Oh, you can't see the treadmill. Do not look in my assistant's office. The cat's gone in there. That is not the subject of this video. Focus, Sandy, focus. We're talking about the word Indigenous. Now, I have made it clear in the past that I have an issue with that word because it leads non Indigenous people to believe we're all the same. And that could not be further from the truth. The practices and culture, cultural teachings and ceremonies that I practice as Anishinaabe Kwe, are totally, completely different from Haudenosaunee or Mi', Kmaq, Salish, whatever. Across the country, the things change. And that's why that word is so problematic. One of the reasons. But this morning on the treadmill, I realized I do not share with you an Indigenous perspective. I share one of the Indigenous perspectives. I now backtrack some context here. Under the Indian act, or as defined by the federal government, Indigenous is made up of three very distinct groups. First nations, which I belong to, Seine River First Nation Treaty 3 territory. The Metis people, another very distinct culture. I never speak about Metis people or from a Metis perspective because that is not my culture. I'm not crossing that line. I'm not the person you should go to for that information. Neither and I don't. Neither. Probably not the right word. I don't speak for the Inuit. The Inuit of North. North. North Canada. You will not ever see me making a nanook shook along the highway cultural appropriation march if you don't know what it means. And it is definitely not a I was here. That is such a colonial perspective. Travel marker so you don't get lost in a wicked storm. Absolutely. But not some ego trip. Let's leave that to the colonists and the settler Descendants. This morning though, I was thinking about this. The fact that I speak from a First nations perspective, one of many First Nation perspectives. There is no one thought process any more than there's one non Indigenous thought process or one Canadian thought process. But recently, you may or may not have seen this in your news. Talked about that yesterday, how you may not be getting all of the news. Metis and First Nation have really been at odds with each other. Most recently, Metis has negotiated with the federal government to lay claim on their traditional lands. This is where I peeve off all the Metis people. By the way, if you're Metis, I get that this is not your perspective. I am not Metis. And I understand why first nations have a perspective with that. Because Metis do not have traditional lands. They may have lands where their settlements existed, but those were traditional First Nation lands. They Metis were there because half of a Metis family is First Nation. Do you see the problem? Metis cannot be crossing the line into First Nation either. And I see Metis dancing at Powwow and I see their beautiful sashes, and that's amazing. But Powwow is not your cultural tradition. Rendezvous with. There's so many beautiful. I see so many Metis people that know. I can't think of the dance step stepping comes to mind. The fiddle music that is absolutely phenomenal. Like, if there's one thing I preach across the board, it is be proud of your culture, but do not assimilate another's. For me to pretend imat or know anything about their culture would be disingenuous and disrespectful. To pretend I know anything about Inuit culture except like second, third hand disrespectful and dishonest. Metis trying to appropriate First Nation culture is the same thing. Metis is a beautiful combination of. Of a culture that grew and you see the French influence and it's amazing they are not First Nations. And even though the federal government has all lumped us together as Indigenous, we're going to know where the lines are. And we need to respect each other. Doing the land grab. I'm sorry, that sounds more settler descendant than anything else. Stewardship, not ownership. So honoring your first nations roots doesn't mean laying claim. It's fighting alongside each other. And I will fight to defend Metis rights and the right to exist. Do not come at First Nation because then I will equally stand with my First Nation brothers and sisters. I defend your right to be. Not when you're trying to overpower my right to be. Right stay on yours. Under the feather. We'll stay on ours. We can respect each other. Is it a week of rants? I don't know. It's only Tuesday. I guess time will tell. Guess it's what else I think about or what else I watch. Who knows? Who knows? I'd love to know your thoughts. I fully expect. I do not want to see some kind of Metis rant on my page. If you want to tag me to your YouTube channel or bring my attention to your video on this, absolutely, go right ahead. If there's channel, I would love to know. If there's Mickey influencers on YouTube that have their channel to celebrate their culture, I would absolutely love to know that you don't take over First Nation space. My YouTube channel is First Nation space. I am Indigenous. First Nation Indigenous. Now for the non indigenous watching, this might have just confused the daylights out of you. But you know what? Respect is one of our sacred teachings. I know where my lines are. I can be strong and proud and confident in who I am without taking up space. That's going to lessen who you are. All I ask in return is that you do the same. Let's meet in the middle of the feather and try to turn it all into one side or the other. That's what the settlers did. We don't need to be replicating that. Okay, I am only one third done my workout. I'm going to go back. I do not think I'm going to be doing another video on this, but who knows? Or I mean, during this workout, I think the next video should be from my office where you're not looking like I have a fan coming out of my head. That's kind of cool. That's worse. Welcome to my world. Until tomorrow. I love you. I hope that clarified things. There are some firm lines we gotta draw. And for First Nation to draw firm lines. Who should be surprised at that? No one. Look at Canadian history. Until tomorrow. I love you. Take care. Bye. Bye.
