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The Race/Culture Divide in Education, Law and the Helping Professions
The Fifth Annual Critical Race Conference
May 4-6, 2006 University of Regina
By: Sheila Lewis, School of Nursing, York University
17 May 06 - The purpose of this conference was to “1) bring together faculty, graduate students, and community activists to profile and reflect critically on contemporary Canadian scholarship that explores issues of race and culture; 2) examine how professionals in law, education and the helping professions engage with issues of race and culture in their practice; 3) provide a forum in which diverse disciplinary approaches to the same issues are compared”. The conference provided opportunities for educators, researchers, community stakeholders and health professionals to listen and dialogue with each other in order to shape an agenda of change focused on social justice, (anti-) racism and (anti-) oppression.
Pre-Conference Workshop by ACT Facilitators:
This excellent interactive workshop of approximately 25 participants introduced drama tools based on Forum Theatre methods called Theatre-for-Living. ACT (anti-racism cross cultural team building) is a program which applies this work in order to promote anti-racism and social justice in the schools, with a focus on issues of identity and power in youth. Participants in this workshop were given an opportunity to explore their own personal experience with racism and oppression, connect these experiences to wider social issues and then consider actions to deal with these issues. Story-telling along with Theatre-for Living drama techniques were used by all participants to unfold their experiences with racism and oppression.
Keynote Speakers:
Verna St. Denis, Associate Professor, College of Education, University of Saskatchewan
How I Learned to Stop Talking About Culture
Dr. Denis stated early in her presentation that each person must
have the courage to ask for what they want. She then went on to explore
how she has done this in her scholarship which is informed by both her
head and her heart. She shared her own life experience and then
challenged the predominate messages that tell us that we either need to
spend more time on culture or we are spending too much time on culture.
She believes that much of this ideology is based on white supremacy with
attitudes of homogenous approaches towards all aboriginal peoples. One
thing that all aboriginals share is colonization and racialization.
Cultural competency does not deal with root issues of racism and power.
The nature of people is expressed through their unchanging spirit which
is expressed through myths, songs and other deeply rooted past
experiences which then shape present values and beliefs. However, this
simple approach ignores other issues such as poverty and attitudes by
the dominant culture. Dr. Denis acknowledged the need to know one’s past
in order to know ourselves in the present, but she also believes that
this must be done with priority being placed on the right to live a life
of dignity. This life of dignity includes meeting your basic needs for
shelter, food, clothing and meaningful relationships. As long as there
is socio-political oppression, this right to a life of dignity will not
be possible.
Andrea Smith, Assistant Professor of American Culture and Women’s Studies at the University of Michigan.
The Future of Native Studies
Dr. Smith challenged everyone in the audience to take a very hard
look at themselves, their role in maintaining the status quo within our
workplace structures and to consider what role those in the academy can
play in movement-building work that promotes social justice and social
consequence. Decolonization hasn’t “happened” but is a current project
that we are all living. She reminded us that whatever is socially
constructed can be deconstructed.
Other Reports
from this Conference:
Alice Propper's Report
Narda Razack's Report