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Year of Indigenous Languages lunch marked by youth push for revitalization

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Mary Rose Sunberg, left, a Tlicho interpreter and Snookie Catholique, former language commissioner attend a luncheon in March of 2019 to mark the Year of Indigenous Languages. Language revitalization efforts in the NWT would receive a boost if the GNWT returned the interpreter-translator training program at Aurora College. NNSL photo

The Dene Nation marked the 2019 International Year of Indigenous Languages with a luncheon held at its Yellowknife head office, March 29 and much of the event focused on youth efforts to revitalize traditional ways of speaking. 

Mary Rose Sundberg, left, and Snookie Catholique, were among those at the Dene Nation lunch to mark the United Nations Year of Indigenous Languages, last Friday. The two have been longtime advocates of Indigenous language revitalization in different capacities over the years but today say they say there is movement in bringing back ways of traditional speaking.
Simon Whitehouse/NNSL photo

More than 30 people packed the office for an informal, shared meal and heard from speakers, including Snookie Catholique, Mary Rose Sundberg, Shene Catholique-Valpy, and Gord Grandjambe of Fort Good Hope.

In 2016, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 2019 as the International Year of Indigenous Languages with the purpose of recognizing the role that language has in preserving cultural traditions and upholding Indigenous identity.

In the NWT, there are 11 official languages recognized according to the Official Languages Act, nine of which are Indigenous including Chipewyan (Dëne Sųłıné Yatıé), Cree (Nēhiyawēwin),  Gwich’in, Inuinnaqtun, Inuktitut, Inuvialuktun, North Slavey (Sahtúǫt’ı̨ne Yatı̨́), South Slavey (Dene Zhatıé), and Tłı̨chǫ. The other two are French, and English.

The lunch in part featured Catholique-Valpy who continues to advocate for her children’s right to have government documentation written in traditional Chipewyan dialect.

Catholique-Valpy recounted her story of trying to get GNWT birth certificates to reflect the traditional names of her daughter Sahᾴí̜ʔᾳ and sister Náʔël.

The GNWT amended Bill 5 the Vital Statistics Act in 2016 after Catholique-Valpy protested the GNMWT's refusal to spell her daughters' names on their birth certificates using Dene fonts. Although amendments do allow for Indigenous characters on territorial vital statistics like birth certificates, the territorial government says it is currently unable to print birth certificates with traditional names because of difficulties integrating information systems with other jurisdictions, such as the federal government which issues passports. 

“So because of (the amendment) I had a lot of people think that I had won the battle, but I hadn’t won the battle,” she said. “I was still in limbo and waiting. I was told it was costing too much, there were too many roadblocks and too many jurisdictions.

“As of right now where we stand is I am still waiting. They say we are still working with partners and other people are involved and have to update printers at Vital Statistics. It just seems way too much for them.”

More than 30 people attended the Dene Nation lunch marking 2019 as the international Year for Indigenous Languages, Friday. The informal event was marked by speakers offering their experiences championing the cause of trying to protect traditional languages spoken in the North.
Simon Whitehouse/NNSL photo

Patrick Scott thanked Catholique-Valpy and appealed to visitors to support the young mother by contacting their MLAs and forcing them to recognize the territory’s official languages.  

“There are more than 30 people in this room,” he said. “We all have MLAs. Pick up the phone and call them. Tell them you support her. Write an email to cabinet members and tell them you support her. Lobby your MLAs and the Cabinet because that is where she is going to get a response.”

Snookie Catholique, Shene’s mother, who hosted the event, is a residential school survivor and has been working in language-related work for decades. The former languages commissioner said it is important to protect Indigenous language and to ensure people are speaking. She also said she thinks these are positive days as young people like her daughter seem to be advocating the importance of speaking Indigenous languages.

“Now it seems there is a movement toward reviving our languages and I see a lot of young people and a lot of name changes,” she said, noting Shene’s experience.  

She said that language is wrapped up closely in Indigenous identity and that preserving traditional languages allows for fuller expression.

“Without our languages we are nothing,” she said. “As a dual speaker, there is so much meaning and power behind our words, which can’t be translated into English. That is who we are and we have to maintain that because that is our culture.”

In other ways, however, some say young people are not speaking it enough as elders and traditional knowledge holders die off.

“The problem is our younger generation,” said George Grandjambe of Fort Good Hope. “They are not picking it up. As soon as the kids leave school they revert right back to English.

"A lot of the problems is that our young people don’t want to speak our language because every time they try we laugh at them. That is not right."

Mary Rose Sundberg, who has been working in promoting Indigenous languages since the early 1980s called for greater financial support from area governments for new translators, interpreters and Indigenous language experts as well as for modern preservation of archival material.

“I just wanted to say it is about time to start recognition languages and I’m so glad the UN has recognized this year as the Year of Indigenous Languages. It is a long time coming and I have been waiting a long time of dedicated interpreters and language workers in the NWT. We don’t recognize them enough.”

GNWT response 

Glen Abernethy, minister of Health and Social Services, issued a statement this week stating that while the amendment of the act does allow for Indigenous characters, the implementation of the act is complicated because of several factors.

He stated that "information management systems and official document recognition rules with other jurisdictions"  have to work seamlessly "with each of our nine Indigenous languages."

"This means ensuring that any changes to NWT vital statistics documents are compatible with federal, provincial or international systems including those that document and produce Social Insurance Numbers (SIN), passports and international driver’s licenses," Abernethy stated.

Abernethy stated that obtaining Canadian passports for air travel, birth certificates issued by a territorial or federal government are often used as proof of identity.

"If the NWT were to proceed with producing vital statistics documents in isolation prior to working with the federal government, it would create unintentional barriers for NWT residents seeking passports. These systems must be programmed to accept new characters that are unique to each Indigenous language.

Read the full statement here.