0:00:01.111,0:00:03.159
Dene Elder Paul Disain said,

0:00:03.183,0:00:04.578
"Our language and culture

0:00:04.602,0:00:06.999
is the window through which[br]we see the world."

0:00:07.023,0:00:08.174
And on Turtle Island,

0:00:08.198,0:00:10.433
what is now known as North America,

0:00:10.457,0:00:14.220
there're so many unique[br]and wonderful ways to see the world.

0:00:14.244,0:00:16.172
As a person of Indigenous heritage,

0:00:16.196,0:00:18.283
I'm interested in learning[br]Anishinaabemowin,

0:00:18.307,0:00:19.768
which is my heritage language,

0:00:19.792,0:00:22.387
because it lets me see the world[br]through that window.

0:00:22.411,0:00:24.037
It lets me connect with my family,

0:00:24.061,0:00:25.942
my ancestors, my community, my culture.

0:00:25.966,0:00:28.958
And lets me think[br]about how I can pass that on

0:00:28.982,0:00:30.449
to future generations.

0:00:30.903,0:00:32.054
As a linguist,

0:00:32.078,0:00:35.213
I'm interested in how language[br]functions generally.

0:00:35.237,0:00:37.142
I can look at phonetics and phonology --

0:00:37.166,0:00:38.355
speech sounds.

0:00:38.379,0:00:41.141
I can look at morphology,[br]or the structure of words.

0:00:41.165,0:00:42.333
I can look at syntax,

0:00:42.357,0:00:44.816
which is the structure[br]of sentences and phrases,

0:00:44.840,0:00:48.308
to learn about how humans[br]store language in our brains

0:00:48.332,0:00:51.047
and how we use it to communicate[br]with one another.

0:00:52.204,0:00:54.093
For example,

0:00:54.117,0:00:57.132
Anishinaabemowin,[br]like most Indigenous languages,

0:00:57.156,0:00:59.005
is what's called polysynthetic,

0:00:59.029,0:01:02.206
which means that there are[br]very, very long words,

0:01:02.230,0:01:05.234
composed of little tiny pieces[br]called morphemes.

0:01:05.258,0:01:09.651
So I can say, in Anishinaabemowin,[br]"niwiisin," "I eat,"

0:01:09.675,0:01:10.903
which is one word.

0:01:10.927,0:01:14.710
I can say "nimino-wiisin," "I eat well,"

0:01:14.734,0:01:15.918
which is still one word.

0:01:15.942,0:01:21.152
I can say "nimino-naawakwe-wiisin,"[br]"I eat a good lunch,"

0:01:21.176,0:01:23.510
which is how many words in English?

0:01:24.109,0:01:27.671
Five words in English,[br]a single word in Anishinaabemowin.

0:01:28.583,0:01:30.662
Now, I've got a bit of a quiz for you.

0:01:30.686,0:01:33.717
In a one-word answer,[br]what color is that slide?

0:01:34.083,0:01:35.321
Audience: Green.

0:01:35.345,0:01:37.305
Lindsay Morcom: What color is that slide?

0:01:37.329,0:01:38.493
Audience: Green.

0:01:38.517,0:01:39.942
LM: What color is that slide?

0:01:39.966,0:01:41.172
Audience: Blue.

0:01:41.196,0:01:42.895
LM: And what color is that slide?

0:01:42.919,0:01:44.117
(Audience murmurs)

0:01:44.141,0:01:46.557
Not trick questions, I promise.

0:01:47.209,0:01:48.589
For you as English speakers,

0:01:48.613,0:01:50.812
you saw two green slides[br]and two blue slides.

0:01:50.836,0:01:54.479
But the way that we categorize colors[br]varies across languages,

0:01:54.503,0:01:56.265
so if you had been Russian speakers,

0:01:56.289,0:01:59.504
you would have seen two slides[br]that were different shades of green,

0:01:59.528,0:02:01.593
one that was "goluboy,"[br]which is light blue,

0:02:01.617,0:02:03.369
one that is "siniy," dark blue.

0:02:03.393,0:02:05.282
And those are seen as different colors.

0:02:05.306,0:02:07.330
If you were speakers of Anishinaabemowin,

0:02:07.354,0:02:09.731
you would have seen slides[br]that were Ozhaawashkwaa

0:02:09.755,0:02:13.636
or Ozhaawashkozi,[br]which means either green or blue.

0:02:13.660,0:02:16.255
It's not that speakers[br]don't see the colors,

0:02:16.279,0:02:20.125
it's that the way they categorize them[br]and the way that they understand shades

0:02:20.149,0:02:21.307
is different.

0:02:21.331,0:02:22.497
At the same time,

0:02:22.521,0:02:26.117
there are universals in the ways[br]that humans categorize color,

0:02:26.141,0:02:28.073
and that tells us about how human brains

0:02:28.097,0:02:31.030
understand and express[br]what they're seeing.

0:02:32.351,0:02:34.585
Anishinaabemowin[br]does another wonderful thing,

0:02:34.609,0:02:38.045
which is animate, inanimate[br]marking on all words.

0:02:38.069,0:02:40.307
So it's not unlike how French and Spanish

0:02:40.331,0:02:43.006
mark all words as either[br]masculine or feminine.

0:02:43.030,0:02:45.458
Anishinaabemowin[br]and other Algonquian languages

0:02:45.482,0:02:48.664
mark all words[br]as either animate or inanimate.

0:02:48.688,0:02:51.426
The things that you would think[br]to be animate are animate,

0:02:51.450,0:02:55.204
things that have a pulse:[br]people, animals, growing plants.

0:02:55.228,0:02:57.244
But there are other things[br]that are animate

0:02:57.268,0:02:59.545
that you might not guess, like rocks.

0:02:59.569,0:03:00.934
Rocks are marked as animate,

0:03:00.958,0:03:03.705
and that tells us really interesting[br]things about grammar,

0:03:03.729,0:03:05.903
and it also tells us[br]really interesting things

0:03:05.927,0:03:07.680
about how Anishinaabemowin speakers

0:03:07.704,0:03:10.417
relate to and understand[br]the world around them.

0:03:10.441,0:03:12.429
Now, the sad part of that

0:03:12.453,0:03:15.601
is that Indigenous languages[br]are in danger.

0:03:16.188,0:03:19.600
Indigenous languages that posses[br]so much knowledge of culture,

0:03:19.624,0:03:20.776
of history,

0:03:20.800,0:03:22.784
of ways to relate to one another,

0:03:22.808,0:03:24.894
of ways to relate to our environment.

0:03:24.918,0:03:27.116
Having been on this land[br]since time immemorial,

0:03:27.140,0:03:29.117
these languages have developed here

0:03:29.141,0:03:32.815
and they contain priceless[br]environmental knowledge

0:03:32.839,0:03:36.064
that helps us relate well[br]to the land on which we live.

0:03:37.022,0:03:39.751
But they are, in fact, in danger.

0:03:39.775,0:03:42.831
The vast majority of Indigenous[br]languages in North America

0:03:42.855,0:03:44.387
are considered endangered,

0:03:44.411,0:03:47.339
and those that are not[br]endangered are vulnerable.

0:03:48.038,0:03:49.402
That is by design.

0:03:50.506,0:03:52.984
In our laws, in our policies,

0:03:53.008,0:03:55.291
in our houses of governance,

0:03:55.315,0:03:58.117
there have been stated attempts

0:03:58.141,0:04:01.711
to eliminate Indigenous languages[br]and cultures in this country.

0:04:02.046,0:04:03.474
Duncan Campbell Scott

0:04:03.498,0:04:06.830
was one of the architects[br]of the residential school system.

0:04:06.854,0:04:11.267
On tabling a bill that required[br]mandatory residential school attendance

0:04:11.291,0:04:14.395
for Indigenous children in 1920, he said,

0:04:14.419,0:04:16.482
"I want to get rid of the Indian problem.

0:04:16.506,0:04:18.137
Our objective is to continue

0:04:18.161,0:04:20.686
until there is not[br]a single Indian in Canada

0:04:20.710,0:04:23.491
that has not been absorbed[br]into the body politic

0:04:23.515,0:04:26.840
and there is no Indian question,[br]and no Indian Department;

0:04:26.864,0:04:29.526
that is the whole object of this Bill."

0:04:30.608,0:04:34.048
The atrocities that occurred[br]in residential schools were documented.

0:04:34.072,0:04:35.271
In 1907,

0:04:35.295,0:04:39.517
P.H. Bryce, who was a doctor[br]and an expert in tuberculosis,

0:04:39.541,0:04:42.080
published a report[br]that found that in some schools,

0:04:42.104,0:04:46.130
25 percent of children had died[br]from tuberculosis epidemics

0:04:46.154,0:04:48.917
created by the conditions in the schools.

0:04:48.941,0:04:53.020
In other schools, up to 75 percent[br]of children had died.

0:04:54.243,0:04:56.663
He was defunded by federal government

0:04:56.687,0:04:57.838
for his findings,

0:04:57.862,0:04:59.893
forced into retirement in 1921,

0:04:59.917,0:05:02.958
and in 1922, published[br]his findings widely.

0:05:05.127,0:05:06.278
And through that time,

0:05:06.302,0:05:08.987
Indigenous children[br]were taken from their homes,

0:05:09.011,0:05:10.500
taken from their communities

0:05:10.524,0:05:12.707
and forced into church-run[br]residential schools

0:05:12.731,0:05:15.434
where they suffered, in many cases,

0:05:15.458,0:05:18.799
serious emotional, physical[br]and sexual abuse,

0:05:18.823,0:05:20.395
and in all cases, cultural abuse,

0:05:20.419,0:05:21.856
as these schools were designed

0:05:21.880,0:05:24.609
to eliminate Indigenous[br]language and culture.

0:05:24.633,0:05:28.743
The last residential school[br]closed in 1996.

0:05:29.759,0:05:34.934
Until that time, 150,000 children or more[br]attended residential schools

0:05:34.958,0:05:37.886
at 139 institutions across the country.

0:05:38.712,0:05:40.260
In 2007,

0:05:40.284,0:05:43.825
the Indian Residential School[br]Settlement Agreement came into effect.

0:05:43.849,0:05:46.934
It's the largest class action lawsuit[br]in Canadian history.

0:05:47.323,0:05:49.506
It set aside 60 million dollars

0:05:49.530,0:05:53.460
for the establishment of the Truth[br]and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

0:05:54.339,0:05:58.998
The TRC gifted us with the ability[br]to hear survivor stories,

0:05:59.022,0:06:01.776
to hear impacts[br]on communities and families

0:06:01.800,0:06:04.490
and to gain access to research

0:06:04.514,0:06:08.156
that explored the full effect[br]of residential schools

0:06:08.180,0:06:12.133
on Indigenous communities[br]and on Canada as a whole.

0:06:12.475,0:06:14.967
The TRC found that residential schools

0:06:14.991,0:06:17.522
constituted what's called[br]cultural genocide.

0:06:17.546,0:06:20.848
They state that, "Physical genocide[br]is the mass killing of the members

0:06:20.872,0:06:21.987
of a targeted group,

0:06:22.011,0:06:26.458
biological genocide is the destruction[br]of that group's reproductive capacity.

0:06:26.482,0:06:30.864
And cultural genocide is the destruction[br]of those structures and practices

0:06:30.888,0:06:33.649
that allow the group[br]to continue as a group."

0:06:33.673,0:06:36.474
The stated goals of Duncan Campbell Scott.

0:06:36.800,0:06:38.926
So they find that it's cultural genocide,

0:06:38.950,0:06:40.809
although as children's author

0:06:40.833,0:06:45.291
and a great speaker[br]David Bouchard points out,

0:06:45.315,0:06:46.926
when you build a building,

0:06:46.950,0:06:50.228
and you build a cemetery[br]next to that building,

0:06:50.252,0:06:54.531
because you know the people[br]going into that building are going to die,

0:06:54.555,0:06:56.021
what do you call that?

0:06:58.371,0:07:02.445
The TRC also gifted us[br]with 94 calls to action,

0:07:02.469,0:07:05.874
beacons that can lead the way forward[br]as we work to reconciliation.

0:07:06.295,0:07:10.707
Several of those pertain directly[br]to language and culture.

0:07:11.387,0:07:14.525
The TRC calls us to ensure[br]adequate, funded education,

0:07:14.549,0:07:16.426
including language and culture.

0:07:16.450,0:07:19.561
To acknowledge Indigenous rights,[br]including language rights.

0:07:19.585,0:07:21.601
To create an Aboriginal Languages Act

0:07:21.625,0:07:24.625
aimed at acknowledging and preserving[br]Indigenous languages,

0:07:24.649,0:07:26.577
with attached funding.

0:07:26.601,0:07:29.783
To create a position[br]for an Aboriginal Languages Commissioner

0:07:29.807,0:07:32.879
and to develop postsecondary[br]language programs

0:07:32.903,0:07:35.552
as well as to reclaim place names[br]that have been changed

0:07:35.576,0:07:37.909
through the course of colonization.

0:07:39.192,0:07:42.486
At the same time as the Indian[br]Residential School Settlement Agreement

0:07:42.510,0:07:43.724
came into effect,

0:07:43.748,0:07:45.272
the United Nations adopted

0:07:45.296,0:07:48.554
the United Nations Declaration[br]on the Rights of Indigenous People

0:07:48.578,0:07:49.728
in 2007.

0:07:50.387,0:07:53.907
It states that Indigenous people[br]have the right to establish and control

0:07:53.931,0:07:56.799
their own education[br]systems and institutions

0:07:56.823,0:07:59.386
providing education[br]in their own languages,

0:07:59.410,0:08:01.728
in a manner appropriate[br]to their cultural methods

0:08:01.752,0:08:03.418
of teaching and learning.

0:08:04.101,0:08:05.252
In 2007,

0:08:05.276,0:08:06.926
when that was brought into effect,

0:08:06.950,0:08:08.483
four countries voted against it.

0:08:08.507,0:08:11.601
They were the United States,[br]New Zealand, Australia

0:08:11.625,0:08:12.775
and Canada.

0:08:13.908,0:08:15.724
Canada adopted the United Nations

0:08:15.748,0:08:19.249
Declaration on the Rights[br]of Indigenous People in 2010.

0:08:19.273,0:08:22.376
And in 2015, the government[br]promised to bring it into effect.

0:08:23.895,0:08:27.776
So how are we collectively[br]going to respond?

0:08:29.490,0:08:31.498
Here's the situation that we're in.

0:08:31.522,0:08:35.252
Of the 60 currently spoken[br]Indigenous languages in Canada,

0:08:35.276,0:08:39.509
all but six are considered endangered[br]by the United Nations.

0:08:40.057,0:08:44.834
So, the six that aren't are Cree,[br]Anishinaabemowin,

0:08:44.858,0:08:47.969
Stoney, Mi'kmaq,

0:08:47.993,0:08:49.824
Dene and Inuktitut.

0:08:50.374,0:08:52.198
And that sounds really dire.

0:08:52.222,0:08:55.413
But if you go on to the Atlas[br]of the World's Languages in Danger

0:08:55.437,0:08:57.977
through the UNESCO website,

0:08:58.001,0:09:01.243
you'll see a little "r"[br]right next to that language right there.

0:09:01.267,0:09:02.958
That language is Mi'kmaq.

0:09:02.982,0:09:05.776
Mi'kmaq has undergone[br]significant revitalization

0:09:05.800,0:09:08.363
because of the adoption[br]of a self-government agreement

0:09:08.387,0:09:10.752
that led to culture[br]and language-based education,

0:09:10.776,0:09:12.680
and now there are Mi'kmaq children

0:09:12.704,0:09:15.149
who have Mi'kmaq as their first language.

0:09:15.173,0:09:17.029
There's so much that we can do.

0:09:17.053,0:09:18.502
These children are students

0:09:18.526,0:09:21.490
in the Mnidoo Mnising[br]Anishinabek Kinoomaage,

0:09:21.514,0:09:23.578
an immersion school on Manitoulin island,

0:09:23.602,0:09:25.996
where they learn in Anishinaabemowin.

0:09:26.020,0:09:28.125
They arrived at school[br]in junior kindergarten

0:09:28.149,0:09:30.871
speaking very little,[br]if any, Anishinaabemowin.

0:09:30.895,0:09:33.783
And now, in grade three and grade four,

0:09:33.807,0:09:36.910
they're testing at intermediate[br]and fluent levels.

0:09:36.934,0:09:38.252
At the same time,

0:09:38.276,0:09:41.299
they have beautifully high self-esteem.

0:09:41.323,0:09:43.458
They are proud to be Anishinaabe people,

0:09:43.482,0:09:45.805
and they have strong learning skills.

0:09:47.363,0:09:50.498
Not all education[br]has to be formal education either.

0:09:50.522,0:09:51.672
In our local community,

0:09:51.696,0:09:54.213
we have the Kingston[br]Indigenous Language Nest.

0:09:54.712,0:09:56.561
KILN is an organization now,

0:09:56.585,0:10:00.584
but it started six years ago[br]with passionate community members

0:10:00.608,0:10:03.108
gathered around an elder's kitchen table.

0:10:03.132,0:10:07.528
Since then, we have created[br]weekend learning experiences

0:10:07.552,0:10:09.299
aimed at multigenerational learning,

0:10:09.323,0:10:12.260
where we focus on passing[br]language and culture on to children.

0:10:12.284,0:10:16.116
We use traditional games,[br]songs, foods and activities to do that.

0:10:16.521,0:10:17.791
We have classes

0:10:17.815,0:10:20.022
at both the beginner[br]and intermediate levels

0:10:20.046,0:10:21.312
offered right here.

0:10:21.695,0:10:23.934
We've partnered with[br]school boards and libraries

0:10:23.958,0:10:27.878
to have resources and language[br]in place in formal education.

0:10:28.807,0:10:30.482
The possibilities are just endless,

0:10:30.506,0:10:33.363
and I'm so grateful[br]for the work that has been done

0:10:33.387,0:10:36.361
to allow me to pass language[br]and culture on to my son

0:10:36.385,0:10:38.577
and to other children[br]within our community.

0:10:39.045,0:10:42.319
We've developed a strong,[br]beautiful, vibrant community as well,

0:10:42.343,0:10:44.474
as a result of this shared effort.

0:10:46.022,0:10:48.656
So what do we need moving forward?

0:10:49.173,0:10:51.331
First of all, we need policy.

0:10:51.792,0:10:55.371
We need enacted policy[br]with attached funding

0:10:55.395,0:10:57.755
that will ensure that Indigenous language

0:10:57.779,0:11:00.643
is incorporated meaningfully[br]into education,

0:11:00.667,0:11:02.731
both on and off reserve.

0:11:02.755,0:11:05.771
On reserve, education is funded[br]at significantly lower levels

0:11:05.795,0:11:07.334
than it is off reserve.

0:11:07.358,0:11:08.680
And off reserve,

0:11:08.704,0:11:11.168
Indigenous language education[br]is often neglected,

0:11:11.192,0:11:12.704
because people assume

0:11:12.728,0:11:15.625
that Indigenous people[br]are not present in provincial schools,

0:11:15.649,0:11:18.933
when actually, around 70 percent[br]of Indigenous people in Canada today

0:11:18.957,0:11:20.129
live off reserve.

0:11:20.153,0:11:24.329
Those children have equal right[br]to access their language and culture.

0:11:25.544,0:11:27.884
Beyond policy, we need support.

0:11:27.908,0:11:30.869
And that doesn't just mean[br]financial support.

0:11:30.893,0:11:33.948
We need space where we can[br]carry out activities,

0:11:33.972,0:11:39.130
classes and interaction[br]with nonindigenous populations as well.

0:11:39.623,0:11:41.116
We need support

0:11:41.140,0:11:43.853
that looks like people[br]wanting to learn the language.

0:11:43.877,0:11:47.404
We need support where people talk[br]about why these languages are important.

0:11:48.004,0:11:50.180
And to achieve that, we need education.

0:11:50.204,0:11:53.418
We need access to immersion[br]education primarily,

0:11:53.442,0:11:56.410
as that is most certainly[br]the most effective way

0:11:56.434,0:11:58.856
to ensure the transmission[br]of Indigenous languages.

0:11:58.880,0:12:01.598
But we also need education[br]in provincial schools,

0:12:01.622,0:12:04.062
we need education[br]for the nonindigenous populations

0:12:04.086,0:12:06.554
so that we can come to a better[br]mutual understanding

0:12:06.578,0:12:08.751
and move forward in a better way together.

0:12:10.625,0:12:13.971
I have this quote hanging[br]in a framed picture on my office wall.

0:12:13.995,0:12:17.437
It was a gift from a settler ally student[br]that I taught a few years ago,

0:12:17.461,0:12:18.779
and it reminds me every day

0:12:18.803,0:12:22.434
that we can achieve great things[br]if we work together.

0:12:23.002,0:12:25.280
But if we're going to talk[br]about reconciliation,

0:12:25.304,0:12:26.510
we need to acknowledge

0:12:26.534,0:12:29.558
that a reconciliation that does not result

0:12:29.582,0:12:33.307
in the survivance and continuation[br]of Indigenous languages and cultures

0:12:33.331,0:12:35.410
is no reconciliation at all.

0:12:35.434,0:12:37.228
It is assimilation,

0:12:37.252,0:12:39.863
and it shouldn't be[br]acceptable to any of us.

0:12:40.204,0:12:43.419
But what we can do[br]is look to the calls to action,

0:12:43.443,0:12:45.545
we can look to the United[br]Nations Declaration

0:12:45.569,0:12:47.205
on the Rights of Indigenous People

0:12:47.229,0:12:49.197
and we can come to a mutual understanding

0:12:49.221,0:12:50.529
that what we have,

0:12:50.553,0:12:52.913
in terms of linguistic[br]and cultural heritage

0:12:52.937,0:12:54.752
for Indigenous people in this country,

0:12:54.776,0:12:55.926
is worth saving.

0:12:56.908,0:12:59.749
Based on that, we can step forward,

0:12:59.773,0:13:01.193
together,

0:13:01.217,0:13:03.876
to ensure that Indigenous[br]languages are passed on

0:13:03.900,0:13:06.321
beyond 2050, beyond the next generation,

0:13:06.345,0:13:08.478
into the next seven generations.

0:13:09.508,0:13:12.129
Miigwech. Niawen’kó:wa. Thank you.

0:13:12.153,0:13:16.563
(Applause)