Culture of Support

First Nations don’t support each other’s business. Other ethnic groups have a culture of support, for example, Chinatown’s. First nations have lost their sense of sharing due to the residential school influence. FN are not working co-operatively and collectively. They do not support each other because of their lack of identity and confidence. They have developed a sense of leaning towards other people for support. FN have a big problem of working together and sharing, this causes social problems that makes communities, reserves of insecurity. FN don’t have family support because they lost their sense of identity, confidence and self esteem. The concept of negativity has been the goal of history to make First Nations feel inferior, that only other nations are superior.  People that went to residential schools are still bitter. FN treat each other the way they were by residential schools and government. This treatment was negative, it fostered no self confidence, no self-esteem, you learn things how you were treated. A lack of culture of support example, can be used in Keeseekoowenin. The band started a gas bar and small grocery store, but a lot of band members did not shop there because they thought, they believed, the store in town owned by non aboriginals was more positive and legitimate. Keesee Lumber Yard, purpose was purchasing power through wholesale rather than retail. This purchasing power was meant to be collective and volume oriented. The objective was FN to work together and purchase together to get max volume of funding. In Keeseekoowenin, both the lumber yard and gas bar have failed. Fn has lost sense of collectiveness, but rather would like to work independently.

This belief system was developed by taking away language, culture and history because it was inferior to non aboriginal culture. Therefore FN don’t have confidence in one another. History has been negative to FN. Same thing with the cities north end, its negative, people have no confidence to vote, becoming a nation of grievance, blame, blame, blame, police force in the north end, mad at police because they don’t talk to the Indians or walk the beat. FN people didn’t go to the polls to support our candidates. Out of two candidates, Shaneen wins and her opponent runs as independent. Second candidate takes votes instead of bowing out. Color isn’t going to make difference if attitude never changes. Public opinion needs to change. Maud was discredited; nothing was mentioned if it was possibly a car with people pretending to be police with intentions to get people riled up. He was on a bus, had to catch a bus back into the city. it did damage, and mainstream is going to think that all our stories are lies. It re-enforces that we are not telling the truth. Evidence shows you lie once, you can lie again.