“In setter colonial nations like Canada and Israel, true peace and justice require some form of truth and reconciliation. But reconciliation and healing do not come without truth. And the truth is, a genocide is being carried out in Gaza AND the West Bank right now. It’s been underway for 76 years...
Images: Isaia McMath (L), Chief Dan George (R) A youth opinion by: Isaia McMath Working people love their favourite tools. A plumber might have a magical monkey wrench, a chef a silver spoon that is used for everything. I’m a writer, and the classic BiC pen is what I use to make things happen. What ...
Did you know that only 28% of Canadians fully understand what it means to give consent? Comprehensive sex education is a human right and yet there is much to be desired in Canadian curriculums. Growing up in Alberta during the mid-2000’s, the sex education I received in both the public and Catholic scho...
“Every person was born with a set of spiritual instructions or understandings… It’s what we do with it that defines us as human beings.” ― Aimée Craft (Métis), Treaty Words: For as Long as the Rivers Flow In Part 1 of this series, we looked at the significance of establishing relationships across...
The Maya were experts in thinking critically about our relationship with time. Their calendars demonstrate sophisticated knowledge around the intersections of cyclical rhythms found among the stars, on the Earth and within our bodies. In Part 1 of this series we looked at the significance of establishin...
Clockwise from top-right: Zainab at the Centering Race in Gender Advocacy event; Zainab at the Caribbean International Film Festival; headshot of Zainab. “While we see anger and violence in the streets of our country, the real battlefield is inside our bodies. If we are to survive as a country, it is in...
Zainab at the Black Speculative Arts Movement event at University of Toronto | Image source: Zainab Amadahy “It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.” Audre Lorde As someone of mixed race (including African American, Cherokee an...
“Windigo” by Norval Morrisseau, 1964. MUSKRAT Reflections for a New Year Yes, this is another reflection piece for 2020. No, it will not be a list of events you can easily find with a Google search. Still, no year in review can skip over the impact of the COVID-19 virus that has, at minimum,...
Right, Olivia Iheme and other protesters march in Toronto (Photo by George Talusan, BlogTO). Left, protesters march in California (Photo by Ayrton Ostly, The Californian). Middle, the statue of Sir John A. Macdonald in Montreal is seen after being defaced amid a growing debate over how to view historica...
Shawn Leonard. Image Credit: aptn.ca Being the publisher of MUSKRAT Magazine, an online Indigenous arts magazine, a lot of invitations come my way; and for the most part; I connect interested MUSKRAT writers to cover these amazing events. But just recently I got a really special invitation. It was an in...
