Lest We Forget – The Aboriginal Angel Doll Project and the KETA Society
The following article was published in The Monitor, a publication of The Centre for Native Policy and Research: Volume 1, Issue 2, October 2005
Lest we forget – The Aboriginal Angel Doll project and the KETA Society’s Gloria Larocque
Vancouver has more than it’s fair share of missing women to account for, especially those women from the Downtown Eastside. The charges of first degree murder of 27 women (of which more than half are of Aboriginal decent) against Robert William Pickton, attest to the degradation that some Aboriginal women suffer.
In order to memorialize the missing Aboriginal women and shed light on the issue, the Aboriginal Angel Doll Project was developed. Based on the traditions of the Oneida and Iroquois People, over 100 handmade faceless dolls were produced as a symbolic gesture to express the neglect that these Aboriginal women received in life, and in death. The dolls were created in response to the media’s interpretation and predominant public discourse surrounding the issue, which commonly blames the women for their own tragic personal circumstances and consequent demise.
The questions that we have failed to ask are those which address our own social standards and the personal conditions of the missing and murdered Aboriginal women. Often, socioeconomic factors, characteristics of an individual’s upbringing, and other personal and systemic obstacles are not considered when this issue is brought to the forefront of debate in “mainstream society.” The missing and murdered Aboriginal women faced many challenges which the majority of society are not exposed to. We need to stop the dehumanization of these women, and cease to look at the issue through the rigid and mainstream lens. Realizing and acknowledging the challenges these women faced will help to ensure that such tragedies will not occur in the future.
The tragic situation faced by these women may appear unique, but Aboriginal women have commonly faced oppression throughout the history of colonization. Yet, Aboriginal women have a significant amount of strength, wisdom, and intelligence, and have often been able to thrive in the face of adversity when others could not. However, facing such oppression often does exact its own toll, which is often paid with our most vulnerable.
In order to address the victims and families of the victims, tools and knowledge from the communities affected must be harnessed. It is under this premise that a venue will be organized in Vancouver so that families of the victims can gather together. Let us acknowledge these women and honor their humanity with a “Celebration of Life” during the Spring equinox, a time of transformation and renewal.
In anticipation of this event, a community forum was held on November 23, initiating this pulling together the community tools and knowledge. It is the community which will ultimately provide the framework for this gathering of acknowledgement and remembrance.
THE KETA SOCIETY
The formation of the Kookum (Grandmother in Cree) Educating Traditional Acceptance (KETA) Society, will promote awareness of not only the missing and murdered Aboriginal women of Canada through artwork and other means, but will also promote educational initiatives to instill among all people a stronger awareness of the resilient, rich and diverse cultures of Aboriginal people in Canada.
A teaching tool kit will be developed for preschoolers, which will contain a doll similar in fashion to an Aboriginal Angel Doll, and will function as an “elder”. The doll, to be known as Kookum RETA (Rejuvenate, Educate, Traditional, Acceptance), will act as a center-piece for educating children about traditional Aboriginal culture, maintaining cultural integrity through a contemporary setting. The power of the elder teaching the young is a traditional Aboriginal teaching method.
As a teaching tool kit, the idea will be to plant seeds of survival skills’ concepts such as choice, strength, education, cultural connection and knowledge of self. Traditionally, dolls have been implemented as a teaching tool by many Aboriginal cultures of Turtle Island as a means of enforcing cultural values and norms. And it is thought that a short, daily visit from Kookum RETA, will reinforce a positive connection and awareness of these Aboriginal cultural values and norms (thank you to Chief Ian Campbell from the Squamish Nation for starting this process by contributing two stories). Through stories, legends, jokes and crafts, the child will form a cultural connection through this contemporary/traditional teaching method.
Gloria Larocque is the founder of the Aboriginal Angel Doll Project and the KETA Society, and is attending university as a criminology student.