An IBMer’s Journey to Reclaiming their Indigenous Identity

Colleen is a seasoned Senior Technical Writer and Team Lead with deep expertise in crafting user assistance for enterprise applications and cloud-based environments. Her day-to-day activities include collaborating with writers, developers, designers, and editors to design and create a variety of deliverables, such as online help, User Interface (UI) text, tutorials, demos, web pages, videos, and blogs.

In this blog, Colleen shares her personal story of reconnecting with her Indigenous roots through language and history.

Ever wondered what it’s like to unravel your own identity, piece by piece? Let me take you on a journey through the twists and turns of my life. I’m Haudenosaunee, a proud member of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte First Nation and am Bear clan. My family roots are in the Tyendinaga Mohawk territory.

Picture this: a kid growing up in the suburbs just north of Toronto, completely disconnected from my Kanien’kéha (Mohawk) language, traditions, and teachings.

My story, though personal, is far from unique. It echoes that which I have heard from so many other Indigenous people of my generation – there was disruption in the transmission of knowledge between the generations of my family.

My grandmother grew up learning to hide who she was. Due to different external and societal factors, my grandmother was not very vocal about her Indigenous heritage while growing up. With the Indian Act, like many other Indigenous women, my grandmother lost her status rights when she married a non-Indigenous Canadian. This loss of status also applied to my father, myself, and the rest of my grandmother’s descendants.

Fast forward to the late ’80s, and the winds of change began to blow. With amendments to the Indian Act in 1986, 2010, and 2017 aimed at removing gender discrimination, my father and I were able to regain our Indigenous status.

Years of growing up separated from my Indigenous identity and traditions left me with an underlying feeling of not being worthy of belonging. Now, I’m on a life-long journey of learning and reclamation. As I’ve been learning the Kanien’kéha language, I’ve been struck by how speaking the language of my ancestors connects me to who I am. For Indigenous families, to reclaim their culture, it’s important to start with learning their languages. The language was always based on the knowledge of the land and there are special codes in the language that activate one’s DNA in reclaiming and remembering who they are.

As part of my journey, I’ve learned that my experience is not unique. There are countless Indigenous families who have lived through decades of inter-generational trauma and are still rebuilding their connection to their communities. By telling my story, I hope to inspire others to educate themselves about the history that Indigenous families have lived through and are still recovering from.

To echo the wisdom of Len Pierre, people can “learn about Indigenous brilliance and success as much as they learn about Indigenous suffering and trauma.”

In IBM we have several global and local Business Resource Groups (BRGs) – employee run communities for individuals with similar identities, along with their allies. One thing I value most in being a co-chair of IBM Canada’s Indigenous Peoples Network Group BRG, is the opportunity to connect with – and learn from – other individuals who are also rediscovering their ties to their Indigenous heritage.

For individuals who are Indigenous, please know that you are not alone. There is a community for you. For those who are not Indigenous, I strongly encourage allyship and education so that we can continue to walk the path of healing together.

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