Conducting research from an Indigenous lens

Abstract

The residential school legacy is one of the darkest chapters in Canadian history. During this period thousands of Indigenous children were taken from their homelands and placed in residential schools. This chapter shares one chapter from my PhD dissertation to illustrate an Indigenous scholar writing from an Indigenous lens. The chapter highlights an Indigenous perspective of the residential school legacy by using a cultural framework, Anishinabe teachings and concepts to capture the plight of residential school survivors. The pivotal Anishinabe teaching within this chapter comes from Waterdrum and, the Seventh Fire Prophecy. This prophecy states, “If the New People will remain strong in their quest, the Waterdrum of the Midewiwin Lodge will again sound its voice”. In this dissertation the residential school survivors are the New People sounding their voice. The Waterdrum is a sacred object used in Anishinabe Ceremonies. The Waterdrum framework was utilized after a correlation was discovered between the prophecy and the resiliency of the Indian Residential School survivors. The chapter ends with an appeal to Indigenous scholars to sound their voices. Indigenous people around the world have a place in society: let’s make use of that space and sound our voices loud and clear.