We All Have Culture
This morning, while juggling my busy household (including 2 swim lessons), I had the privilege of listening to a group of physicians and cultural advocates discuss Indigenous People’s Health, with a focus on women’s health. One of the speakers, Dr. Daniele Behm Smith, highlighted a number of vital considerations for Indigenous Peoples which I would like to highlight as a challenge to all of us to better work toward what is referred to as “cultural humility”.
Dr. Behm Smith stresses in health research, Indigeneity, or being of an Indigenous background, does not represent a risk factor for having health problems. In fact, it is the colonization or the forced assimilation, racism, and cultural destruction of Indigenous ways of life is what led and leads generations of Indigenous peoples to suffer health problems. In other words, health problems in Indigenous (and other cultures of colour, for that matter) are in a large part, preventable if we all practiced “cultural humility.”
This means, not to stereotype, not to generalize, and not to make assumptions. Instead, be curious and compassionate, take the time to listen to Indigenous stories, and be accountable for the part you have to play in supporting Indigenous people in the way that makes them feel safe. The final part of Dr. Behm Smith’s speech which empowered me is that we all have culture - we are more similar than we are different, and that we all have stories that matter. It’s the space that we don’t all have to tell our story, so I hope we create space for everyone to speak, especially our Indigenous communities, because without them, we would not be here today.
The film, Gather, illustrates the origin, destruction, and resilience of Indigenous cultures across North America, as seen through the lens of food. As described by the stories, by giving space, by giving voice, and by recognizing that Indigeneity is the saving grace to removing risk factors of health, we can slowing find our way back to what is best. Indigenous people were here thousands of years before any settlers even knew of the lands; they valued and stewarded the land, the food systems, and the environment that granted them optimal health. Today, we acknowledge that this has been lost, and it is in all of us to practice cultural humility, because we all have culture, so that Indigenous peoples achieve the health status that has been so disproportionately granted for so many centuries.
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