Posts by UCN

Chadwin Scatch           On October 28, 2022, I completed an interview with my grandpa, Brian Rowden Sr., whom I had not known well enough to connect my life with before this interview. Unlike most of the lucky children who spent lots of time with their grandparents, I had never spent much time with my maternal…

Kelly Laybolt Re-evaluating current Indigenous social issues from a historical viewpoint has been an integral part of the Truth and Reconciliation process because it has changed the narrative of Indigenous social issues since the 19th century as well as the Eurocentric perceptions of Indigenous people and their culture. As a university student, I have taken…

Shaila Moodie Northern Canada was created around 1867-1870. Since then, there have been various conflicts, mostly between races. The overriding theme of this portfolio is the clashes between the Aboriginal society and non-aboriginal peoples. I have put together twelve items in this article that showcase “The Conflicting North”. I will use examples from as early…

The residential school system has an extremely tumultuous history in Canada due to the multi-generational trauma that has been disseminated among Indigenous people. Since the conception of residential schools in the early 1800s, numerous generations of Indigenous people have been negatively affected by the trauma of being removed from their communities and the abuses that…

Nateshia Constant-Personius Poem 1 Take me back I am trying to sleep, it is quietSomething drops, boom!! What is itThe sound takes me backJust for a fewThat sound of that racketBut, who knew, boom!I am back, back in that placeI cry and cry because of that hitI fight my mind more and some moreI run,…

Vritee Marrott On a cold December 2nd evening, I was blessed with an extraordinary experience. I had the uncommon privilege of sitting down to a one-on-one interview with a survivor of Canada’s residential school system. This particular survivor is not just any person. He is also the chancellor of the University College of the North.…

The University College of the North (UCN) has continued to make every effort possible to respond to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action through the education it provides. Over 75% of students at UCN are Indigenous. This current issue of Muses from the North (MFTN), the 11th in the series, has more to…

Jasyn Lucas Yellow Cedar Mask I carved this mask out of yellow cedar during my time at the Studio Art Program at Capilano College in North Vancouver, British Columbia, in 2003. The yellow cedar tree was salvaged by my art instructor and brought to the college. The extreme weather washed it ashore to the beaches…

Nateshia Constant This is the story of a child survivor of who attended Indian Day School (established in 1892 and closed on September 1, 1979), Shoal Lake and Red Earth (established in 1902 and closed on September 1, 1980), Saskatchewan. The interviewee wishes to be anonymous, but she felt it was important to share her…

Kelly Laybolt It has been universally accepted that the Canadian fur trade caused extreme environmental degradation as fur bearing animals were over-harvested to near extinction; however, there are many different opinions about the causation of this ecological damage. Traditionally, Indigenous people have been associated with the environmental wisdom worldview, and they are thought of as…