Author: kwetoday

Kelly Cutrone’s "Normal Gets You Nowhere"

Kelly Cutrone, Normal Gets You Know Where Leave a comment

If there is one thing I can say about this book it is this, this book is amazing!

There are several reasons why I like this book. One of them is that this book literally just tells it like it is and nothing is off limits. Everything from sex, to religion, and even the need to help others–No. Matter. What.

Not even the topic of death is removed from discussion in this book. Death–a ceremony of life that is often so looked over and that is so often dismissed as an important part of life, just as much as birth. I recommend you read the book to have a better grasp as to what I am saying. I can only talk about it from my point of view.

Another reason, possibly the major reason, why I enjoyed this book is because she talks about (although very briefly, and probably for good reason: this isn’t a history textbook), the real history behind Thanksgiving. She goes to give this real history in her book in the Holy Daze (Holla, Days Off!) chapter:

But what really happened is that Europeans came over and obliterated this continent’s inhabitants with guns and diseases and then stole their land. The ones they couldn’t kill off, even after hundreds of years of wars, they crowded onto the worst tracts of lands–Indian Reservations [and] “Americans” told the Indians to give up their spiritual practices, from medicine wheels to Sun Dancing, to cut their hair, change their names, and learn English if they wanted to continue to receive subsidies

(To view this quote, go directly to bottom of page 59 to top of page 60 of the book titled “Normal Gets You Nowhere” by Kelly Cutrone. To buy this book, check out Amazon.com)

And you know what, this isn’t a lie. It is the plain truth whether non-Natives want to believe it or not.

In that same chapter, she goes on to question why there isn’t a whack load of Natives outside Macy’s protesting this holiday. She provides an entertaining answer: Maybe we are all on the Internet. Certainly made me laugh.

The only thing that I have to say to Kelly Cutrone is that, We do protest or we do fight for change (well, in Canada we do). And yes, we are on the Internet. Not even going trying to lie about that one because look at me, I am here and I am on the Internet. However, we use the Internet for greater things than just games or chat. For example, I write about things that I think are important or issues that need to be addressed. I didn’t expect much from this site when I first began but I have some dedicated readers and even people searching key words/issues like “Shannen’s Dream” or “Indian Smokes.” I give these readers a non-institutional/non-conventional point of view, or more easily put, a perspective from the inside, on issues or topics such as the two previously mentioned.

This is what Kwe Today is all about…Experiences of an Aboriginal female in Canadian Society.

In the end, the book is great for anyone looking for a no-holding back, bold approach of looking at various things in life, whether or not you want to agree with what Kelly Cutrone has to say is up to you. But I think it would be safe to say that even if you didn’t agree with her, it probably wouldn’t really matter to her if you conformed to the rest of society and its views because really… like the book title says “Normal Gets You Nowhere.”

2011 E-Spirit Winners!

Aboriginal youth, BDC, Business, E-Spirit Leave a comment

Check out the BDC article titled BDC Announces Winners of the 2011 E-Spirit National Aboriginal Youth Business Plan Competition!

Congrats to not only the winners but to everyone who participated!

I participated in this competition for three years in a row. In 2003, where I won the silver award in Halifax NS. In 2004, where I attended with friends as a team in Prince George BC. In 2005, where me and my sister Alicia won best video award in Edmonton AB.

I know how hard each and every participant worked and how dedicated each of the teams, whether as an one person team or group of people in a team, must have been to the competition.

When I attended, I was not enrolled in any business course at my high school. I did this as an extra-curricular. I also did not know anything about accounting or writing a business plan, etc. By the time the competition had rolled around, I finished the plan literally just in time. To qualify to attend the competition, I had to write a business plan, make a powerpoint presentation, make a video/commercial and also a tradeshow display.

Believe me when I say this:

If you really want to do something, go for it and don’t let anyone say you can’t do it or scare you by telling “it’s a lot of hard work.”

In the end, I ended up attending the competition as a one-person team, with no experience (ie – I wasn’t taking or studying business at the time), and I won the Silver award!

Really, you can do anything you set your heart on 😉

For more information about the competition check out the E-Spirit page!

#NativeAwesome

#NativeAwesome, Jessica Yee, Lisa Charleyboy, Lynzii Taibossigai, Samantha Boshart, University of Western Ontario Leave a comment

Please check out the LFpress.com article titled Western Med Grad Aims To Be a Native Role Model!

This an Aboriginal female, Samantha Boshart, doing amazing things and giving back to the community. In the best possible way ever!

This is just one example of Aboriginal women doing amazing things in the greater community…

Check out these posts on other Aboriginal women who I think are just as amazing:

  1. Lisa Charleyboy
  2. Lynzii Taibossigai
  3. Jess Yess

Secret to Happiness? Just Be Nice!

Just be Nice, The Secret To Happiness Leave a comment

According to the Globe and Mail, The Secret To Happiness? Just be nice…

Well, I could have told you that! No really, I could have. I do nice things every day, well try to. Whether this be just sharing a piece of information that might help someone with whatever it is that they are doing. Sometimes, just listening and being there for someone. Sometimes just asking how someone is, is a good way to be nice to someone. Really, ask yourself, how many times have you asked someone that is in your life, “How are you today?” and really actually meant it and actually wanted to hear and listen to their answer?

What are some of the ways that you have been able to be nice to someone else that ended up making your day, but most importantly made THAT person’s day? Go ahead share them and it might inspire someone else to be nice to someone else in their own life 😉

Land of the Long Knives

Aboriginal, Anishinabemowin, Chippewa, Language, Ojibway, Saulteaux Leave a comment

Land of the Long Knives

Here is a screen caption of a user I follow on Twitter: Anishinabemowin. Their profile reads:

Free resource to learn Anishinaabemowin, Saulteaux, Ojibway and Chippewa

This particular word in the above image translates to the “Land of the Long Knives.” I remember learning about a related word when I was younger. The person told me that sometimes we can refer to “white people” as “gitchi-mookiman” which she told me, meant “Big Knife.” She went on to tell me that it literally was referring to the long knives white people carried with them when they arrived. She also told me that they were also referred to as this because they used their long knives to “cut up the land.” Now I think they probably used those “long knives” to do a lot more than to just “cut up the land.”

Also, I am not sure if the Land of the Long Knives is relating to North America or not, because I don’t think North America belongs to “the Long Knives.”

Note: Obviously, the word presented in the image is a variant or different dialect from the word I was taught. That is a given for any language, whether the language is Aboriginal or not. Gitchi-mookiman is pronounced “get-chi mook-i-mun” as I was taught.

Update: I had a friend tell me that the name Chimookimaning refers to the Bayonets that were used during the war of 1812 and refers to only America. Check out my friend, Andrew Manitowabi on his twitter HERE!

Take A Break: Don’t Get Burnt Out

Education, First Nations, responsibility Leave a comment

Today, I emailed my First Nations Liaison Education Counsellor. I gave her an update on my status. No not my Indian Status. Status update on my grades and other things in life, just a quick update. I told my liaison counsellor I was working two jobs for the summer. The second job, I came across just by chance. I emailed someone, told them I was interested in knowing more (because I was interested in knowing more…) and **voila** Seriously, I didn’t expect this second job, and I am very thankful for it. When I see another person who is struggling to make ends meet, whether student or not, I can relate, and I give thanks for the opportunities given to me because I was that person before … many times.

My liaison counsellor, in response to my exciting update, replied with a “Good to hear, but don’t get burnt out.” Don’t get burnt out I thought to myself? Well, someone has to pay my rent, and since I live on my own, the only person fit for that task is … well, me. I sometimes envy my peers when they get to go home for the summer. When I see them talk about their “cool summer concerts” or “cool new car” or “cool new $300 bar clothes”, yeah, I’ll admit… I’m jealous. A bit. But then, I remember all the cool things I have, like my apartment that I work hard to maintain on my own. My cool family, who are there for me when they can be (even though they live far away) and are there for me no matter what. My new friends I made at school, who I see how hard they work to achieve their dreams. Aboriginal or not. I am thankful for everything that I have.

In the beginning, I was worried about this summer. I was worried about how was I going to pay rent? How was I going to afford groceries? Would I have to ask for help from someone? Asking for help is the hardest thing someone can do. Especially if you don’t want to feel like a burden. I told my family. I told my counsellor at school. I almost broke down. I thought: Would I lose my apartment–the apartment that I worked so hard to maintain and care for? Then, one day in an entire different conversation with my mom over the phone, she told me a story about responsibility when I asked her for input on a speech I was preparing. A speech I was attempting to prepare totally unrelated to this post and to my apartment.

My mom told me the story of the little boy who lost his jacket because he didn’t take care of it. She was trying to tell me a story that was told to her by an elder at a conference. She ended up telling me the lesson to be learned from hearing this story, and the lesson is this: if you take care of the things you own, your things will last. That is responsibility. Taking care of the things that belong to you. If you take care of the things that belong to you, you won’t lose them.

Here I was worried about losing my apartment, how I would afford groceries, how I would “make ends meet,” yet I was learning a story on responsibility. If I take care of it, I will not lose it (yes of course, still have to pay rent but that’s like taking care of it).

Sometimes I never know why people tell me things or why people share stories with me, but the more I think how it ties into my life… I believe even more now that everything happens for a reason. Even though I worked hard at maintaing my place, making it my safe-haven, and working hard at school, applying to scholarships, I was taking care of my life. Being responsible. Trust me when I say this: When you work towards the things you want, like really truly want, without any hidden intentions, things happen. Good things. But don’t forget, from the words of my liaison counsellor, don’t get burnt out… Take a break 😉

Kwe Today!

Kwe Today, Little Miss Kwe Leave a comment

Well, decided to do a quick, more permanent, name change 😉 Why the name change you ask? Well, I wanted to get rid of the “Little” from the blog name, and that left me with “Miss Kwe”. Personally, I just didn’t like the way that sounded.

It took sometime to figure out what I wanted the domain name to be, but I eventually figured it out. I choose “Kwe Today!” because

  1. I am an Aboriginal female (“Kwe” translates to “girl”, “woman”, or “female” in my Ojibwe language). “Kwe” is pronounced “qu-way”.
  2. The word “Today!” comes from me writing about my experiences as an Aboriginal female living in Canadian society… well, Today!

PS. Feedback is encouraged and appreciated…Oh, and happy reading!

Remember when…..

Canada, Globalization, Globe and Mail, Manitoba, Michael Moore, Thompson, Vale Mining Leave a comment

Remember when I wrote a post about the effects of globalization? No, that’s okay. I’ll refresh your memory. I wrote a post titled “Is this the effects of globalizations?” wherein I just finished researching and writing an essay that answered the question:

Have women benefitted from Globalization, specifically Aboriginal women?

I said No, globalization does not benefit women, specifically Aboriginal women.

I didn’t know how I was going to introduce this essay. Yes, I wrote the entire essay with arguments and counter-arguments even before I finished the introduction and conclusion–it’s how I write best. Then, I came across a Globe and Mail article that featured Michael Moore’s blog post titled “Why I support the people of Thompson, Canada–and you should too.” Mr. Moore wrote about Vale, an apparently huge mining company that violated their “social contract” that was meant to benefit the people of Thompson, Manitoba and supposedly Canada under the Investment Canada Act. My introduction was born. Thank you, Mr. Moore…

However, the people of Thompson, Manitoba were apparently left worried about their futures. Vale was pulling out of the small Manitoba town. It was closing up shop, according to the Globe and Mail, on “it’s nickel smelter and refiner just months after it received a $1-billion loan from Export Development Canada.” Read the Globe and Mail article titled Michael Moore Adds Star Power to Manitoba Mining Battle. This article is dated February 25, 2011. Over 500 jobs at stake, but that doesn’t matter… Vale made net profits of $17.3 billion last year. So what, big deal.

Big deal, now Globe and Mail has another article titled Vale Launches $11 Billion Bid for South Africa Miner. Here the Globe talks about how Vale has a vision to set up shop in Africa and even try to diversify from it’s main business of iron ore. This article is dated April 8, 2011, last update May 5, 2011.

The February article states that by 2015, Vale received the above mentioned loan after promising to increase employment, and then immediately after Vale announced that the same refinery would be closed by 2015.

The April article states that by 2015, Vale would like to increase cooper output by 45% by 2015, as it plans to move away from iron ore (its main business). In this same article, an analyst (Sasha Naryshkine, analyst at Johannesburg-based Vestact) is quoted saying the following:

“The fact that a big Brazilian global partner is having a look at African assets might signal something for some of the other majors around the world…Because if you aren’t afraid of mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo, you are not afraid of anything.”

.

I bet they are not afraid of anything if they got away with what they are apparently getting away with in Canada. Providing hope to citizens, then tearing it away. As Michael Moore says in his post in relation to Thompson, Manitoba,

So this is about one thing and one thing only: killing the social contract of Canada…The corporations’ plan is that the Third World will become the Only World.

In this world of Multi-national corporations and globalization, there is always a winner and a loser. Mainly the winners are the MNCs; the losers, the citizens of not just poor countries, but First World countries…Thank you globalization.

Links to the following posts/articles mentioned in this post listed below: