Indigenous

Monthly Archive: December Indi

When Whaling is Your Tradition

Posted: February 27, 2018 - 15:35 , by Hellen Fu
Inuit community standing on and near a recently hunted bowhead whale on beach

Guest blog written by Environmental Visual Communication student Ursula McClintock

In some Indigenous communities around the world, whaling is as much a part of their tradition as my family’s turkey dinner at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Whale hunting has played an integral role in feeding Inuit communities for millennia. Bowhead whales, among many other species of whales, were hunted to near extinction at the turn of the 20th century. Yet more often than not, Indigenous communities are cast in the same light as the commercial groups that are responsible for the near collapse of populations of these iconic marine animals.

Smudging Blue: Honouring the Spirit of Our Whale

Posted: August 17, 2017 - 13:20 , by ROM
Kim Wheatley drums and sings an Anishnaabe blessing to the skeleton of the blue whale. Photo by Rachel Brown

Guest blog written by 2017 Environmental Visual Communication student Rachel Brown

Kim Wheatley is an Anishinaabe mother and grandmother of the Shawanaga First Nation. Read this blog to hear the story of how EVC student Rachel Brown met Kim at the ROM, where she offered a traditional prayer and blessing for the bones and heart of ‘Blue,’ the whale - the star of Out of the Depths: The Blue Whale Story.

National Aboriginal History Month

Posted: June 15, 2017 - 14:05 , by Sarah Elliott
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an indigenous man wearing hip-hop clothing stands with his hands raised, giving instructions

By Bella McWatch, Kiowa Wind Memorial (KWM) Indigenous Youth Intern

In June, the entire country will be filled with festivities to commemorate National Aboriginal History Month. The ROM Learning Department is taking this opportunity to continue its ongoing reconciliation efforts through participation by offering Indigenous special events for school groups throughout the month.