Search:

Water confidential : witnessing justice denied--the fight for safe drinking water in Indigenous and rural communities in Canada / by Blacklin, Susan,author.;
Includes bibliographical references."In Water Confidential, Susan Blacklin (formerly Sue Peterson) revisits the important work of her late ex-husband, Dr. Hans Peterson. Beginning in 1996, Peterson, growing frustrated with his work in government funded research in Saskatchewan, brought attention to the desperate need for equal access to safe drinking water after a health inspector encouraged him to visit the Yellow Quill First Nation. In response to the issue, he developed biological technology for effective water treatment, still in use today. Peterson and Blacklin joined forces with scientists from around the world to establish the registered national charity, the Safe Drinking Water Foundation. The SDWF developed accredited education programs for schools across Canada, while also educating the general public and Water Treatment Operators from Indigenous communities. Advocacy became a high priority when they discovered a variety of challenges to their mission, including questionable government practices that were blocking the reality of safe drinking water in First Nations communities. As committed activists, it became their life's work to ensure that access to Peterson's technology was available to all rural and First Nations communities. Thirty years later, the majority of First Nations communities in Canada continue to face atrocious health issues as a result of unsafe drinking water. Blacklin, now retired, shares her deep concerns at the indifference, corruption, and lack of due diligence from all levels of government in response to the safe water movement. She echoes the work of the SDWF stating that Canada needs to implement federal drinking water regulations, and that a responsible government should use rather than abuse science when accurately determining Boil Water Advisories and addressing the deplorable state of access to potable water. In this passionate and timely memoir, Blacklin shares her experiences with fundraising, activism and lobbying work. She reveals the complexities of negotiating between cultures, communities and the provincial and federal government. Blacklin emphasizes that ensuring safe drinking water to each and every First Nations community should be the top priority toward reconciliation with Indigenous people of Canada."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Personal narratives.; Blacklin, Susan.; Drinking water; Drinking water; Human rights workers; Right to water; Water quality management; Water-supply; First Nations; First Nations;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

The memoirs of Miss Chief Eagle Testickle. a true and exact accounting of the history of Turtle Island / by Monkman, Kent,author,artist.; Gordon, Gisèle,author,artist.;
Includes bibliographical references."From global art superstar Kent Monkman and his longtime collaborator Gisèle Gordon, a transformational work of imagined history that will remake readers' understanding of the land called North America. For decades, the singular and provocative paintings by Cree artist Kent Monkman have featured a recurring character--an alter ego of sorts, a shape-shifting, time-travelling elemental being named Miss Chief Eagle Testickle. Though we have glimpsed her across the years, and in countless canvases, it is finally time to hear her story, in her own words. And, in doing so, to hear the whole history of Turtle Island anew. The Memoirs of Miss Chief Eagle Testickle: A True and Exact Accounting of the History of Turtle Island is a genre-demolishing work of genius, the imagined history of a legendary figure through which a profound truth emerges--a deeply Cree and gloriously queer understanding of our shared world, its past, and its possibilities. Volume one, which covers the time period from the creation of the universe to the confederation of Canada, follows Miss Chief as she moves through time, from a complex lived experience of Cree cosmology to the arrival of the first settlers, many of whom will be familiar to students of history. An open-hearted being, she tries to live among those settlers, and guide them to a deeper understanding of the interconnectedness of all beings and the world itself. As their numbers grow, though, so does conflict, and Miss Chief begins to understand that the challenges posed by the hordes of newly arrived Europeans will mean ever greater danger for her, her people, and, by extension, all of the world she cherishes. Blending history, fiction, and memoir in bold new ways, The Memoirs of Miss Chief Eagle Testickle are unlike anything published before. And in their power to reshape our shared understanding, they promise to change the way we see everything that lies ahead."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Creative nonfiction.; Personal narratives.; Monkman, Kent.; Indigenous peoples in art.; Indigenous peoples; Indigenous peoples; Indigenous peoples; First Nations artists; First Nations in art.; First Nations; First Nations; First Nations;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Tsqelmucwílc : the Kamloops Indian Residential School--resistance and a reckoning / by Haig-Brown, Celia,1947-author.; Fred, Randy,author.; Gottfriedson, Garry,1954-author.; Container of (work):Haig-Brown, Celia,1947-Resistance and renewal.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."The tragic and shameful story of Indigenous erasure and genocide at the Kamloops Indian Residential School in Canada. In May 2021, the world was shocked by news of the detection of 215 unmarked graves on the grounds of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia, Canada. Ground-penetrating radar confirmed the deaths of students as young as three in the infamous residential school system, which systematically removed children from their families and brought them to the schools. At these Christian-run, government-supported institutions, they were subjected to physical, mental, and sexual abuse while their Indigenous languages and traditions were stifled and denounced. The egregious abuses suffered in residential schools across the continent caused--as the 2021 discoveries confirmed--death for too many and a multigenerational legacy of trauma for those who survived. "Tsqelmucwílc" (pronounced cha-CAL-mux-weel) is a Secwepemc phrase loosely translated as "We return to being human again." Tsqelmucwílc is the story of those who survived the Kamloops Indian Residential School (KIRS), based on the 1988 book Resistance and Renewal, a groundbreaking history of the school and the first book on residential schools ever published in Canada. Tsqelmucwílc includes the original text as well as new material by the original book's author, Celia Haig-Brown; essays by Secwepemc poet and KIRS survivor Garry Gottfriedson and Nuu-chah-nulth elder and residential school survivor Randy Fred; and first-hand reminiscences by other survivors of KIRS, as well as their children, on their experience and the impact of their trauma throughout their lives. Read both within and outside the context of the grim 2021 discoveries, Tsqelmucwílc is a tragic story in the history of Indigenous peoples of the indignities suffered at the hands of their colonizers, but it is equally a remarkable tale of Indigenous survival, resilience, and courage."--
Subjects: Kamloops Indian Residential School.; Indigenous peoples; Indigenous peoples; Indigenous peoples; Indigenous peoples; First Nations; First Nations; First Nations; First Nations;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Kukum / by Jean, Michel,1960-author.; Ouriou, Susan,translator.; translation of:Jean, Michel,1960-Kukum.English.;
"A Quebec bestseller based on the life of Michel Jean's great-grandmother that delivers an empathetic portrait of drastic change in an Innu community. Kukum recounts the story of Almanda Siméon, an orphan raised by her aunt and uncle, who falls in love with a young Innu man despite their cultural differences and goes on to share her life with the Pekuakami Innu community. They accept her as one of their own: Almanda learns their language, how to live a nomadic existence, and begins to break down the barriers imposed on Indigenous women. Unfolding over the course of a century, the novel details the end of traditional ways of life for the Innu, as Almanda and her family face the loss of their land and confinement to reserves, and the enduring violence of residential schools. Kukum intimately expresses the importance of Innu ancestral values and the need for freedom nomadic peoples feel to this day"--
Subjects: Biographical fiction.; Historical fiction.; Novels.; Jean, Michel, 1960-; French-Canadian women; Great-grandmothers; Indigenous women; Orphans; First Nations; First Nations; Innu; Innu; Residential schools;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Becoming a matriarch : a memoir / by Knott, Helen,1987-author.;
"When matriarchs begin to disappear, there is a choice to either step into the places they left behind, or to craft a new space. Helen Knott's debut memoir, In My Own Moccasins, wowed reviewers, award juries, and readers alike with its profoundly honest and moving account of addiction, intergenerational trauma, resilience, and survival. Now, in her highly anticipated second book, Knott returns with a chronicle of grief, love, and legacy. Having lost both her mom and grandmother in just over six months, forced to navigate the fine lines between matriarchy, martyrdom, and codependency, Knott realizes she must let go, not just of the women who raised her, but of the woman she thought she was. Woven into the pages are themes of mourning, sobriety through loss, and generational dreaming. Becoming a Matriarch is charted with poetic insights, sass, humour, and heart, taking the reader over the rivers and mountains of Dane Zaa territory in Northeastern British Columbia, along the cobbled streets of Antigua, Guatemala, and straight to the heart of what matriarchy truly means. This is a journey through pain, on the way to becoming."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Personal narratives.; Knott, Helen, 1987-; Knott, Helen, 1987-; Bereavement.; Mothers and daughters.; First Nations women; First Nations;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

The memoirs of Miss Chief Eagle Testickle. a true and exact accounting of the history of Turtle Island / by Monkman, Kent,author,artist.; Gordon, Gisèle,author,artist.;
Includes bibliographical references."From global art superstar Kent Monkman and his longtime collaborator Gisèle Gordon, a transformational work of true stories and imagined history that will remake readers' understanding of the land called North America. For decades, the singular and provocative paintings by Cree artist Kent Monkman have featured a recurring character--an alter ego of sorts, a shape-shifting, time-travelling elemental being named Miss Chief Eagle Testickle. Though we have glimpsed her across the years, and on countless canvases, it is finally time to hear her story, in her own words. And, in doing so, to hear the whole history of Turtle Island anew. The Memoirs of Miss Chief Eagle Testickle: A True and Exact Accounting of the History of Turtle Island is a genre-demolishing work of genius, the imagined history of a legendary figure through which a profound truths emerge--a deeply Cree and gloriously queer understanding of our shared world, its past, its present, and its possibilities. Volume Two, which takes us from the moment of confederation to the present day, is a heartbreaking and intimate examination of the tragedies of the nineteenth and twentieth century. Zeroing in on the story of one family told across generations, Miss Chief bears witness to the genocidal forces and structures that dispossessed and attempted to erase Indigenous peoples. Featuring many figures pulled from history as well as new individuals created for this story, Volume Two explores the legacy of colonial violence in the children's work camps (called residential schools by some), the Sixties Scoop, and the urban disconnection of contemporary life. Ultimately, it is a story of resilience and reconnection, and charts the beginnings of an Indigenous future that is deeply rooted in an experience of Indigenous history--a perspective Miss Chief, a millennia-old legendary being, can offer like none other. Blending history, fiction, and memoir in bold new ways, The Memoirs of Miss Chief Eagle Testickle are unlike anything published before. And in their power to reshape our shared understanding, they promise to change the way we see everything that lies ahead."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Creative nonfiction.; Personal narratives.; Monkman, Kent.; Indigenous peoples in art.; Indigenous peoples; Indigenous peoples; Indigenous peoples; First Nations artists; First Nations in art.; First Nations; First Nations; First Nations;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Crow winter : a novel / by McBride, Karen,author,illustrator.;
Since coming home to Spirit Bear Point First Nation, Hazel Ellis has been dreaming of an old crow. He tells her he's here to help her, save her. From what, exactly? Sure, her dad's been dead for almost two years and she hasn't quite reconciled that grief, but is that worth the time of an Algonquin demigod? Soon Hazel learns that there's more at play than just her own sadness and doubt. The quarry that's been lying unsullied for over a century on her father's property is stirring the old magic that crosses the boundaries between this world and the next. With the aid of Nanabush, Hazel must unravel a web of deceit that, if left untouched, could destroy her family and her home on both sides of the Medicine Wheel.
Subjects: Indigenous peoples; Magic; Family secrets; Tricksters; Crows; Gods; Algonquin Indians;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

The mystery of right and wrong / by Johnston, Wayne,author.;
In a novel that grapples with sexual abuse, male violence and madness, Wayne Johnston reveals haunting family secrets he's kept for more than 30 years. Johnston was born and raised in Goulds, NL. From the author of First snow, last light and The colony of unrequited dreams, which was nominated for 16 national and international awards including the Scotiabank Giller Prize and the Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction, and was a Canada Reads finalist defended by Justin Trudeau.
Subjects: Domestic fiction.; Sisters; Family secrets;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

From Bear Rock Mountain : the life and times of a Dene residential school survivor / by Mountain, Antoine,1949-author.;
Includes bibliographical references."In this poetic, poignant memoir, Dene artist and social activist Antoine Mountain paints an unforgettable picture of his journey from residential school to art school-and his path to healing. In 1949, Antoine Mountain was born on the land near Radelie Koe, Fort Good Hope, Northwest Territories. At the tender age of seven, he was stolen away from his home and sent to a residential school-run by the Roman Catholic Church in collusion with the Government of Canada-three hundred kilometres away. Over the next twelve years, the three residential schools Mountain was forced to attend systematically worked to erase his language and culture, the very roots of his identity. While reconnecting to that which had been taken from him, he had a disturbing and painful revelation of the bitter depths of colonialism and its legacy of cultural genocide. Canada has its own holocaust, Mountain argues. As a celebrated artist and social activist today, Mountain shares this moving, personal story of healing and the reclamation of his Dene identity."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Personal narratives.; Mountain, Antoine, 1949-; Indigenous peoples; First Nations; First Nations; Denesuline; Denesuline;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Heart berries : a memoir / by Mailhot, Terese,author.;
"Guileless and refreshingly honest, Terese Mailhot's debut memoir chronicles her struggle to balance the beauty of her Native heritage with the often desperate and chaotic reality of life on the reservation. Heart Berries is a powerful, poetic memoir of a woman's coming of age on the Seabird Island Indian Reservation in British Columbia. Having survived a profoundly dysfunctional upbringing only to find herself hospitalized and facing a dual diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Bipolar II; Terese Mailhot is given a notebook and begins to write her way out of trauma. The triumphant result is Heart Berries, a memorial for Mailhot's mother, a social worker and activist who had a thing for prisoners; a story of reconciliation with her father--an abusive drunk and a brilliant artist--who was murdered under mysterious circumstances; and an elegy on how difficult it is to love someone while dragging the long shadows of shame. Mailhot "trusts the reader to understand that memory isn't exact, but melded to imagination, pain and what we can bring ourselves to accept." Her unique and at times unsettling voice graphically illustrates her mental state. As she writes, she discovers her own true voice, seizes control of her story and, in so doing, reestablishes her connection to her family, to her people and to her place in the world."--
Subjects: Autobiographies.; Biographies.; Mailhot, Terese.; Mailhot, Terese; Native women;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI