Sandi L Boucher (Red Thunderbolt, Loon clan, Seine River First Nation) explains what allies should actually do: call out events with no Indigenous representation, show up to Indigenous events without speaking, ask Indigenous people directly. Don't claim Indigenous identity, don't speak for Indigenous people, and don't lose humility.
Questions this video answers
Sandi L Boucher (Red Thunderbolt, Loon clan)
When Allies Become Enemies
September 5, 2023
Seine River First Nation (Treaty 3 Territory, Northern Ontario)
Chapters
Allyship. It's such a huge topic. I meet so many non Indigenous people who want to be an ally, and not just an ally, but a really good ally. They don't know how, and that's okay. We can teach them. And in fact, we have to, because it is really easy for allies to cross the line and quickly become the enemy. Let's talk about it. Sam. Bonjour. Mishko Ponan, Queen the Dish that Kasmano Dam hi everybody. My name is Sandy Boucher. I'm Red Thunderbolt, woman of the Loon clan, a proud member of Seine River First Nation in Treaty 3 Territory in Northern Ontario. And I'm here once again to talk about all things reconciliation. Now, today we're looking specifically at the September 5 blog post which was called When Allies Become Enemies. Now, I included in this blog post a nice big list of all the amazing things that allies can do and that we appreciate you doing. For example, calling out when you attend an event or a meeting and there's no Indigenous people there, bringing that to the attention of the organizers. Supporting Indigenous by showing up at our events not to speak, not to get on stage, not to share your opinion, but just to be there to up the numbers so we get more publicity on our causes and most importantly, in no circumstance speaking for us, but rather directing people who have questions to us so they can hear the facts. Those are the things that great allies do. But there's a whole bunch of people that start out as a great ally. Forget humility, which is the thing that will build bridges and keep you on safe ground. Humility. Always ask questions. Do not assume you know. As soon as you start thinking you know, danger, danger, danger. It is better to ask and hear the same thing that you already knew. Don't ever comment and say you already knew. But it is better to hear it and be confirmed that you were on the right path than to take a step or say something and find out you weren't. And there's so many allies that do just that. They forget their humility and they start speaking up for us or they start sharing their opinions on Indigenous issues when it's not their opinion that is important. Let me be crystal clear. Allies never become Indigenous. I don't care how long you've worked with a community or even if you live in one, you are not Indigenous. And by the way, the parent of indigenous, just because your children are indigenous doesn't mean you are. Your culture doesn't just change. You may be more knowledgeable, but you would understand humility if you truly understood, you wouldn't be calling yourself indigenous. So check out the full blog post is always below my videos. This is an important list. This is an important discussion. And if you have any questions, as always, either post below my video which helps get this video in front of people. Subscribe, share it if you so choose. That would be super appreciated. And if you're not comfy doing that, send me an email sandyndybushe.com this is about important conversations. This is about us working together to break those ropes, the ropes of Canadian history that has brought us to this place. We can do so much better, but we need real allies, not allies on the verge of becoming enemies. I hope that made sense to you tomorrow. I hope to see you back. I love you. Take care. Bye bye.
