Claiming Anishinaabe: Decolonizing the Human Spirit by Lynn Ghel
2018-02-05 Gehl divides her book into four sections. She lays this out in the very beginning - a helpful gesture that proves of increasing worth as one reads through the depths of each part. She maps it out well and does not deviate from course. Once you start reading you can trust this author until there is nothing left to read.
Throughout the book is Gehl's thoughtful discussion of Indigenous knowledge and how it differs from "western scientific laboratory methodology". It is a tale of when one approach overwhelms, must work in harmony with, or be informed by, the other.
Denied her Indian status registration in 1994, due to "unknown or unstated paternity", she was left to her own devices to claim her roots and her identity amidst much sexist and racist red tape. The forces she lists that variously attempt to oppress indigenous knowledge are quite something. She emerges, in spite of those forces, while providing a detailed narrative and analysis of where oppression, and its layers, can be found, fought, and/or bypassed. This book is vital, personal, and an essential schooling in status Ashinaabe, non-status Anishinaabe, trans-generational trauma, and, Lynne Gehl's unrelenting voice. Her voice is as detailed, determined, and, at the forefront of the topic as one could ever need. Here's to reading more from Lynn Gehl. --Neil
Claiming Anishinaabe: Decolonizing the Human Spirit by: Neil |
