For immediate release
March 12, 2013
KPU invites you to an Idle No More Teach-in
(Metro Vancouver, BC) – Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) faculty and students will be hosting a public education symposium, also known as a teach-in on March 22, 2013. The symposium, Indigenous Resurgence: An Invitation to Unite and Defend the Land, Air and Water, will explore the issues that have ignited a groundswell of grassroots mobilization of Aboriginal peoples and their supporters across Canada through the Idle No More movement.
Since 2010, KPU students have been participating in a project called Teaching and Learning for Truth, Justice and Reconciliation. Initiated by Seema Ahluwalia, department of sociology, KPU, the project was conceived as a way to generate awareness about historical and ongoing colonial policy. “Through this project, students engage in meaningful social action by helping to organize an event that brings diverse members of the community together and makes Indigenous knowledge and experience central to our understanding of who we are as Canadians,” said Ahluwalia. “Students develop important research, teamwork, and global citizenship skills in the process of empowering themselves by acting on issues of social justice with compassion, commitment, and leadership.”
Keynote speakers at the event will include Lillian Rose Howard (Mowachaht Elder and activist), Dr. Greg Younging (UBC Okanagan), Dr. Ashok Mathur (TRU, Canada Research Chair in Cultural and Artistic Inquiry), Tamara Starblanket (Native Education College), and Dr. Lisa Monchalin (KPU, department of criminology). Kwantlen First Nations Elders will provide a welcoming and opening invocation. Carl Boneshirt, Sr. (Sicangu Lakota) will offer prayer songs from the Lakota tradition. A Round Dance, featuring the Indian Time singers, will close the event.
Support for Idle No More has spread around the globe and non-Aboriginal groups and individuals are encouraged to join in and learn about the issues and unite against apathy and ignorance. Concerns are growing about the efforts of corporations and governments to bypass consultation with Aboriginal peoples about resource exploitation in their territories and to avoid or minimize environmental protection assessment processes and regulations. Through Idle No More, Canadians are learning why Indigenous land rights and treaty rights are the most fertile ground upon which we can unite against environment destruction.
Everyone is welcome to attend this free event from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm at KPU’s Surrey campus, conference centre, room G1205. To register for this event, contact arts@kwantlen.ca with Idle No More in the subject line. For more information, contact Seema.Ahluwalia@kwantlen.ca.
The event is sponsored by KPU’s department of sociology, the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research: Community Learning and Engagement (CIR:CLE), the KPU Aboriginal Gathering Place, the faculty of arts, and the KPU Sociology Students’ Club.
Kwantlen Polytechnic University has been serving the Metro Vancouver region for 30 years, and has opened doors to success for more than 250,000 people. Four campuses—Richmond, Surrey, Cloverdale and Langley—offer a comprehensive range of sought-after programs, including business, liberal arts, science, design, health, trades and technology, apprenticeships, horticulture, and academic and career advancement. Over 18,000 students annually have a choice from over 200 programs, including bachelor’s degrees, associate degrees, diplomas, certificates and citations.
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For information on the symposium, contact:
Seema Ahluwalia
Kwantlen Department of Sociology
Tel: 604.599.2631
seema.ahluwalia@kwantlen.ca
For more information about Kwantlen, contact:
Cara Johnson
Media Specialist
Tel: 604.598.6196
cara.johnson@kwantlen.ca