Art as a response to the MMIWG2S+

To provide culturally safe care, emerging professionals need an understanding of Canada’s troubling history with Indigenous peoples and the impacts of colonialism and Indigenous-specific racism. One avenue to develop this critical understanding involves engaging with the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG2S+) Report. The report describes how colonial structures and perspectives enabled a race-based genocide, and many participants created art to share their heart-breaking stories and hope for the future as part of the inquiry process. However, there is a concerning lack of response to the report and its 231 Calls to Justice within higher education. 

 

Despite a growing awareness of the need for antiracist pedagogy to engage students with MMIWG2S+, educators often lack the teaching resources to do so effectively. Art is one potential pedagogical path. Arts-based pedagogy engages students emotionally and cognitively, challenges deeply held assumptions, foster dialogue amongst diverse groups, and facilitates perspective changes. Students learn through responding to works of art, creating works of art, or performing artistic works. Our MMIWG2S+ project builds on team members’ previous work on integrating art into the education of healthcare professionals. Findings revealed that art alters the learning process and the learning product in the education of healthcare professionals, with numerous reported positive outcomes such as improved self-awareness, awareness of others, empathy, cultural sensitivity, critical reflection, and in-depth understanding, all of which are crucial in moving towards reconciliation.