E025 Clarence Cachagee Territorial and Land Acknowledgments
Let’s Be Well Together Podcast - Episode 25
Date: July 19
Participants: John Webster, Sammy Damaren, Cameron Earnshaw and Sheila Webster
Guest: Clarence Cachagee and Laurie Flanagan
Start times and Segment Segments:
[0:00:19] What’s On Your Mind: Sheila chats with her sister Laurie about energy takers and energy givers. The energy takers can exhaust you. Bring on the energy givers.
[0:12:38] Expanding Minds Interview: [Social Wellness] Clarence Cachagee tells us about differences between a territorial acknowledgment and a land acknowledgment. He describes an Indigenous smudging ceremony. We both express hopes for allyship and moving towards reconciliation.
Website for Crow Shield Lodge: https://www.crowshieldlodge.com/
[0:35:25] Adventures of the Starving Artist: Cameron navigates sniffle and road blocks before performing live, and is happy about new songs being released by artist Natalia Zuk (Unbreakable You) and Eric Bolton (Neon Soul). Cameron helped with both projects.
Spotify link: Neon Soul by Eric Bolton
[0:42:08] Move That Body: Sheila tells us about someone she met on a scenic hike on a recent trip to St. John’s, Newfoundland. He hikes Signal Hill every day. What a great way to Move That Body.
[0:47:34] Running Popup: John describes his favourite running feeling, and when he feels it.
[0:48:45] Flipside of the Coin: Rusty Nail Comedy show where Sheila turned out to be one of the “happy sisters”
Quotes and Take-Aways:
Laurie – If you ever look at a flower when it doesn’t have water, that’s pretty much what we look like when we’re dehydrated.
Clarence – Through my lens, as soon as a nation’s name (e.g., Haudenosaunee, Anishinaabe or Neutral People), it’s a territorial acknowledgment. A land acknowledgment – that’s when we specifically speak about the land.
Clarence – [Land acknowledgement] The Haudenosaunee have a thanksgiving address. Sometimes that thanksgiving address can take at least a day. They are addressing the land from top to bottom. They address the sky. They address all the different kinds of birds. Then they come down and address all the different types of trees and then they start addressing all the different types of plants, all the different types of grasses. Then they go beneath the ground and talk about the creatures that dwell underneath the ground. There’s much more.
Clarence – The thing that many non-indigenous organizations don’t understand is that we [Indigenous people] have that deep connection and we’re giving thanks all the time. Then they come up to us and say, “Do you mind doing a territorial acknowledgment for us.” We tell them that we acknowledge this territory and this land every day. We are not the ones to do that. It’s not our place. It’s not our time to do that.
Clarence – A territorial acknowledgment is a small form of reconciliation. We’ve turned the tap on just a little bit and a drip is starting to come – of reconciliation, or maybe of allyship. It’s just starting to flow, which is great, because people are finally starting to notice and they’re paying attention and they’re being accountable and they’re listening and they’re learning. That is one of the biggest steps that we want in allyship and for people to walk with us. They need to unlearn and re-educate themselves about the truths, because a lot of history that has been shared with people is incorrect.
Clarence – The time is right to have these conversations, and John they’re not going to be easy conversations. We are giving people a starting point, and it is not easy, because we’re starting to talk about those truths that have not been talked about, and it’s not about blaming or shaming anybody. It’s just about – those truths have to be disclosed and talked about so that those fractures of the past can be repaired and so that we can all have a different understanding of what it’s like to walk down a road together as equals. Colonialism has had a horrendous impact on all of us, especially the Indigenous people. We’re not used to systems. We don’t work that way. We don’t work with tiered systems. We work within a circle.
Clarence – That’s a great question. I think you [Let’s Be Well Together Podcast] should acknowledge the territory that you are on. Acknowledge the nations of Indigenous people who were here before you. Then it’s just about giving respect, because we need to remember who was here and who was stewarding this land before point of contact.
Clarence – It’s not only about what we carry with us in our minds. It’s about what dwells in the darkness of our shadows. It’s what we carry and the stuff in our shadows. It all depends where you stand. That shadow could be very small, or that shadow could be very long. You could have a lot of things in the darkness of that shadow.
Bulletin Board Quote brought to you by John: I don’t want to hear from the Happy Sisters!
Guest Information: Clarence Cachagee has undeniable spirit for change, with a focus on working with the Spirit within. He’s a helper, visionary and author who is known for investing his whole self into his community. Clarence originates from Chapleau Cree First Nation and calls Waterloo Region his home. He faced struggles, and chooses to serve and support those living on the margins of society. Clarence continues to engage with his community through land-based teaching and healing as an Indigenous Community Educator, public speaking and facilitating groups to encourage “healing”. Clarence says “it is said that Mother Earth has all the medicines for every disease there is. Indigenous people of Turtle Island are land-based people. They have received the teachings from the animals. Their creation stories are about mother earth, and it’s said that you can go anywhere on Turtle Island and find the medicine you need. Understanding land-based philosophies helps us become better connected and feed our spirits”. Clarence works at Conestoga College as an Aboriginal Services Coordinator and the visionary and founder of Crow Shield Lodge.
Website for Crow Shield Lodge: https://www.crowshieldlodge.com/
Crow Shield Lodge Instagram: @crowshieldlodge
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Thanks for joining us,
(-(-_(-_-)_-)-) Your wellness check-in team
John, Sammy, Cameron, Sheila and Julie