Historical Trauma & Colonization Workshop
An experiential workshop to help Canada understand & empathize with First Nations communities by feeling the impacts of historical trauma and the oppression that these communities have had to endure throughout their history.
After understanding how oppression has affected First Nations communities, participants will understand how these impacts have influenced the way Indigenous people see, think, feel, and eventually began to behave as a result of the oppression.
With this change in perception and having felt these impacts, participants will have a deeper and more accurate understanding of Indigenous People, therefore be better prepared to effectively communicate and empower the children of these communities.
As a result of seeing them differently they will begin to treat them differently.
And this is where change needs to happen - "The Way We See People"
Target Audience
Any
Sessions
Presenter
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Marsden Group Consulting
Brad Marsden
My name is Brad Marsden and I am from the Gitsegukla Indian Reserve within the Gitksan Nation of Northern Canada.
In response to the Truth & Reconciliation in Canada, I have been providing experiential “Historical Trauma and Colonization” workshops for the last 10 years in both Canada & U.S.A. to help educate about the Real & Hidden History that existed between the First Nations and the Canadian Government.
In this workshop we highlight the Unacknowledged & Unprocessed Trauma that the Indigenous people of Turtle Island (Canada/USA) have had to endure because of the Systemic Discrimination within Government Institutions (i.e. Media, Education, Law Enforcement, Law & Policy) which resulted in myself unknowingly being born into a community that was collectively traumatized for the last 200+ years.
As a result of this Unacknowledged and Unprocessed Trauma inflicted on Indigenous People by way of: Removal from their Traditional Lands, Disempowerment through Unfair & Unjust Laws & Policy, Severe Generational Trauma for over 100 yrs. of the Residential School/Boarding School, unfortunately a pattern of Generational Loss of Parenting began to take hold in our communities.
Growing up as a little boy on the Indian Reserve, there was no parent to help me process my negative childhood experiences in society and even in my own community. (Lateral Abuse)
I was left to my own thinking as a little boy to make a sense of this traumatized world that I was born into.
Needless to say, with this Loss of Parenting coupled with the Systemic Racism within Governments Institutions, my Self Esteem was shot at Age 7 and I started to believe the negative narrative (Negative Stereotypes) that Canadian Society had towards my people and I began to Internalize this racism seen & felt as a little Indian Boy until I became the Racist "I'm not Indian, I'm Mexican" (Internalized Racism)