Cultural and identity appropriation, an obstacle to Indigenous healing processes
Indigenous people are engaged today in a process of cultural reconstruction that involves a reappropriation of their languages and knowledge, and which is part of a more global movement of indigenous healing. Their approach is notably supported by actions aimed at protecting their cultures from appropriation and denouncing erroneous representations of autochthony. The cultural reconstruction is driven by a refusal to be assimilated into the dominant society. Indigenous people seek coexistence and not inclusion in the Euro-American world. The relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people are therefore marked above all by dichotomy. However, the networks of Indigenous healing ceremonies that have been observed are at odds with this dichotomy. They are developing outside of Indigenous reserves and attracting a gray area of autochthony that is little documented to date, in addition to many Whites and sometimes visible minorities. It appears that these ceremonial networks are the legacy of William Commanda (1913-2011), Anishinàbe chief of the Kitigan Zibi reserve, who took the initiative, some fifty years ago, to disseminate the knowledge of his people to everyone, Indigenous as well as non-Indigenous. As Indigenous people speak out against the fact that cultural appropriation disrupts their process of cultural reconstruction and healing, we see participants in the field borrowing and appropriating Indigenous symbolic resources without qualms. We propose to explore the dynamics of dissemination and appropriation of these resources by asking the question whether this phenomenon is part of colonial habit or could it be the onset of healing of the relationship in line with Commanda’s vision?