Atikamekw Nehirowisiwok
THE PATH
The past tells us a Story. The brutal transformations of the First Peoples, from nomadic to sedentary, from self-sufficient to dependent, from prideful to shameful. Since this Story is written in time, it can not be erased. It exists to remind us that the settlement mentality can destroy identities, nations, humans.
A word must be said regarding the inability of this colonial mindset to foster a genuine convergence with the mindset of Others.
This Story built from bits of memory, shows us how resilient humans are. Even through loss and suffering, it is able to survive, rise up, restructure and be reborn. It is able to find its way.
To represent all of reality’s beauty and diversity, we stand at the cultures’ junction; our current identity is situated here, within the entanglement of what is possible, within this wealth of miscegenation inherent in a vibrant culture.
Hence, the Aboriginal Being [and art] is developing; it is interacting, open to the world and to exchanges, while remaining firmly rooted to its traditions. Its future may reside in the improvement of this dualism.
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