Making the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas the Anishinaabe Way
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Sound of the Drum, Energy of the Dance – Making the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas the Anishinaabe Way by Stephanie Anne Pyne A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Geography with Specialization in Political Economy Carleton University Ottawa, Ontario ©2013 Stephanie Pyne Abstract This thesis takes a reflexive narrative approach to critically interpreting the iterative processes involved in the making of the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas (the Atlas). The Atlas is an interactive, multimedia, geospatial web product that reflects an inclusive approach to telling the story of the Robinson Huron Treaty relationship process over time and across space, bringing together a variety of historical and geographical perspectives. Both the thesis and the Atlas interpret Anishinaabe perspectives and incorporate them in their style and approach; they participate in the current trend in critical cartography to engage in mapping in new ways by reflecting the multiple dimensions of socioeconomic, political and cultural ‘reality’. Making contributions in many areas, including in the conceptual and practical spheres of cartography, this thesis comments on some deep trends such as the spatial turn to performance and the critical turn to interpretation. In addition, it participates in the seventh fire project of reconciliation reflected in the significant Anishinaabe Teaching, the Seven Fires Prophecy, by promoting a holistic and emergent approach to development, and by emphasizing the possibility of bridging perspectives to build intercultural awareness through the collaborative creation of the Atlas as a reconciliation tool. This thesis asserts that through holistic, reflexive and critical cartographic practice, it is possible not only to acknowledge Anishinaabe perspectives in mapping processes, but to integrate them as well, in a manner that (1) preserves their inherent meaning and value, and (2) augments the meaning of the cybercartographic mapping processes. I aim to demonstrate how this type of practice has been employed in the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas project by providing ii critically reflexive narrative accounts of the Travels in the Making of the Atlas Map and the Map of Maps, each of which functions as a narrative portal to the other maps in the Atlas. iii Acknowledgements Chi-Miigwetch first and foremost to the Ancestors, who are many and who come from many places; to the Rock People, who have helped and guided me to come to know who I am; who inspired me, supported me, guided me, and danced with me – who have urged me to tell this story. My first thoughts on writing this Acknowledgements section were to include the names of all of the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas contributors together with a brief summary of their contributions – that was, until I realized that would practically comprise an entire thesis length and tire readers out before they reached the Table of Contents! Instead, I extend my most heartfelt gratitude to all those mentioned in this thesis, which also describes your contributions to various extents; in addition to the many people I have not had the opportunity to mention. To these people, and to those mentioned in the thesis, I can say that I intend to write another piece once this thesis is completed that provides further details and stories concerning the involvement and contributions of everyone I can possibly remember. This piece will present a broad view of “community” and illuminate the reality of the (Algonquin) Anishinaabemowin phrase “Dawnoweh-ma-geneduc (All My Relatives)”. In addition, excerpts from this future writing and associated media will be uploaded to the various maps in the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas. I am grateful that the work to produce the working Lake Huron Treaty Atlas and to complete this thesis were generously supported first, in phase I, by an Inukshuk Grant and second, in phases II and III, by a SSHRC Standard Research Grant and a SSHRC Outreach Grant, respectively. I am also grateful for the iv ongoing financial and related support of Carleton University, in particular the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies over the past seven years. Special acknowledgement and thanks to the Late Dr. William Commanda for his Teachings, spiritual support and prayers for the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas (and thesis) project; to the Late Elder Blaine Belleau for sharing his unique, inspiring and challenging insights with me over the years; to my good friend the Late Murray Stephens whose transcriptions of the Dennis Field Notes remain on the agenda to be mapped one day; to the Late Grandmother Louise Wawatie who inspired and encouraged me with her gift for visioning and her living commitment to healing and the land; and finally, to the Late Shirley Firth, whose lasting impact I only realized during the writing of this thesis – all of whom passed during the course of this thesis project. The rate at which the Elders are passing makes now the time to seek to understand their critical insights. From time to time over the past seven years, I have estimated the number of people I have engaged with in discussions and collaborations related to this thesis and various aspects of the atlas development process. Each year, the number of people grows, as does awareness of the Lake Huron Treaty in a broad historical and geographical context. For this, I am happy and thankful to each person who took the time to listen, share their views, and contribute in other ways. Apart from thanking my supervisor Dr. Fraser Taylor for being the most ideal doctoral supervisor and atlas project principal investigator that I could imagine, I thank my family, which extends to all of my relations. v Contents Abstract ii Acknowledgements iv List of Tables x List of Figures xi List of Appendices xvii Foreword xviii Preface xxvii I Atlas Development in a Reconciliation Context: 1 Introduction 1 Reconciliation in a Seven Fires Prophecy Context 11 1.1 The Seven Fires Prophecy and the Wampum Belt 14 1.2 Reconciliation in a Seven Fires Prophecy Context 16 1.3 The Seven Fires Prophecy, Reconciliation and the 25 Lake Huron Treaty (Atlas) – Concluding Remarks 2 Reconciliation and Development as Bimaadiziwin 26 2.1 The Call to Spatialize History in the Name of Reconciliation 27 2.2 Working Toward a Holistic Approach to Development 31 2.3 Applying a Holistic Approach to Development as Bimaadiziwin 43 in the Making of the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas – Concluding Remarks 3 Crystallization in the Seventh Moment: Thesis Method 47 3.1 Qualitative Inquiry and Crystallization 49 3.2 Reflexive Methods 51 3.3 Critical Interpretive Method 54 3.4 Reflexive Narrative Analysis 55 3.5 Critical Conceptual Analysis 57 3.6 The Reflexive Relationship between the Thesis and the Atlas 57 3.7 Reflexivity and the Two-pronged approach to the Lake Huron Treaty 59 Atlas – Concluding Remarks vi II Re-visioning Cartography in A Growing Community 61 4 The Spatial Turn to Performance: Critical Perspectives in 63 Cartography 4.1 Cartography as Deconstruction 65 4.2 The Spatial Turn to Performance in Critical Cartography 67 4.3 Cartography and Community 76 4.4 Maps as Narratives of Experience 79 4.5 Critical Cartography and Policy – Concluding Remarks 80 5 Adding Voice to Mapped Silences: Critical Indigenous 82 Cartographies 5.1 The Land as Map 84 5.2 Early Colonial Mapping Encounters 90 5.3 Mapping with the Newcomers in a Reconciliation Context 92 5.4 Links to Critical Cartography – Concluding Remarks 97 III Developing an Atlas for Development 98 6 Cybercartography: Growing an Atlas Vision in Good Soil 99 6.1 Defining the Map and Cartography 100 6.2 Why an Atlas? Why not just a Map? 102 6.3 Cybercartographic Atlas Design and Development 104 6.4 The Cyber in Cybercartography 110 6.5 Emerging Development and the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas -- Charting 110 New Territory in New Ways using the Cybercartographic Approach 6.6 The Lake Huron Treaty Atlas as a Bridging Tool – Concluding Remarks 117 7 Tracing the Iterative Dimensions of the Lake Huron Treaty 118 Atlas Process 7.1 The “Stuff” of Iterative Processes: Talk, Templates and Tradition 119 7.2 Iterative Processes in the Design and Development of the 121 Lake Huron Treaty Atlas 7.3 Multiple Dimensions: Inter-dimensional Iterative Processes 123 7.4 Collaborative Relationships 126 7.5 Iterative Processes and Geonarrative 131 7.6 Iterative Processes and the Anishinaabe Perspective – 132 Concluding Remarks IV Waasaa-inaabidaa: We Look In All Directions 134 vii 8 Reflexive Tracking of the Travels in the Making of the 135 Atlas Map 8.1 The Story of How I Became the Treaties Module Research Assistant 137 8.2 Getting my Feet Wet – Swimming in the Seas of Cybercartography … 140 and History 8.3 Land in Sight – Lake Huron Treaty Region Aho(y) 143 8.4 Post-epiphany Focus 144 8.5 Story Circle – Patricia Kennedy and the Governance Paper Trail Map 145 8.6 The 43rd Algonkian Conference, Toronto, Ontario, October 18-20, 2007 146 8.7 Reaching Out – Early Collaborator Contacts 147 8.8 An Unexpected Mapping Epiphany 148 8.9 First Visit to the Lake Huron Treaty Region – 151 An Adopted Homecoming 8.10 Work at the Lab – Winter 2008 168 8.11 The “Visiting the Circle – Enhancing the Relationship” 169 Conference, Parry Sound, March 24, 2007 8.12 Work at the Lab – Pre-launch “Festivities” 172 8.13 Community Launch at Shawanosowe School, April 23, 2008 173 8.14 The Ottawa launch of the fledgling Atlas of Indigenous 176 Perspectives and Knowledge 8.15 Post-launch Requirements 179 8.16 Travels, Work at the Lab and Funding Proposal Preparation: 181 Spring - Summer 2008 9 Navigating the Narrative Logic of the Map of Maps 184 9.1 The Map of Maps 185 9.2 The Travels in the Making of the Atlas Map 187 9.3 The Treaties Module 189 9.4 The Survey Journeys Map 191 9.5 The Nations not Surveyed between 1851 and 1853 Map 196 9.6 The Marlatt Commentaries Map 198 9.7 The Treaties, Agreements and Proposals Map 199 9.8 The Bagone-giizhig (Hole in the Day) Biography Map 200 9.9 The J.W.