SESSION 3.2: Who Am I and What Is my Role in Decolonization, Indigenization, and Reconciliation?

In 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) completed the five-year national inquiry into the truth of survivors, families, communities and anyone personally affected by the Indian Residential Schools (IRS). Through the voices of the survivors, the TRC report informs Canadians and the world on what really happened and the ongoing impact on Aboriginal people, hoping that this guides Canadians to reconcile through a process of mutual understanding and respect. The TRC calls for action hold every Canadian accountable. Some have ignored them, others resist them, and others are taking action. For me as an educator, teacher educator, researcher, and visitor in Secwepemcúlecw, the TRC report and its calls for action have strong resonance. The TRC report has built a momentum for change, but unless we all sincerely, humbly, and consistently engage with this, it will just remain a report that has shortly shaken Canadian society. The TRC report has shaken me and driven me to a deep exploration of my own identity and my role in the process of reconciliation. I am aware that this requires decolonizing and indigenizing myself first. This paper reports on an auto ethnographic examination of my identity, my positionality and my role in decolonizing and indigenizing the academy through my research and teaching practices. Intersectionality (Crenshaw, 1991), critical (Bhabba, 1998) and indigenous (e.g., Little Bear, 2009; Smith, 1999, 2012) theories guide this examination. Key words: auto ethnography, decolonization, indigenization, reconciliation, higher education, intersectionality, critical theory, indigenous theor