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Misconceptions Of Pan-Indianism In Canada

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Pan-Indianism is an issue that is slowly gaining popularity within many aboriginal communities in Canada. Indigenous elders and knowledge keepers worry that their unique culture which has been practiced for millenniums will be lost due to it being increasingly merged with and mistaken for other first nation cultures. This essay aims to deconstruct pan-Indian misconceptions within two indigenous groups (Cree and Lakota) found within Saskatchewan, Canada. It is especially focused on how these two cultures portray gender in their stories, traditions and daily roles. It should be noted that the aim of this essay is not to create differences but to acknowledge the uniqueness of these neighbouring cultures that have co-existed with each other for hundreds of years prior to the arrival of the Europeans. …show more content…

Pan-Indianism started around the 1980’s when the revival of first nation’s cultures occurred . After years of the severe suppression of their language and culture by the residential schools and Canada’s ‘aggressive assimilation policy’, a lot of their cultural substance was lost . Due to the severe loss of culture and spirituality, Native American youth grew increasingly depressed and suicide rates increased to 34%. To combat such loss of youth, a liberation philosophy, Pan-Indianism, was introduced . This allowed for young native families and single parents to base their spirituality and traditions on the synthesis of several first nations’ cultures and often even Christianity . Pan-Indianism was often seen as a ‘vehicle of repatriation’ of the years of the suppression of native cultures . However, not all indigenous people view Pan-Indianism in this light. Many mourn the loss of their unique culture in today’s increasingly mono-cultured world.

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