P-285

Cover illustration used for this teaching guide: Simon Roy © 2013.
Excerpted images from Mikomosis and the Wetiko, owned by the graphic narrative artists (Ken Steacy,
Janine Johnston [assisted by Jazmyn Mari], and Simon Roy [assisted by Jessica Pollard]).
Mikomosis and the Wetiko © 2013 Indigenous Law Research Unit.
Chapter images: Val Napoleon, from her watercolour series, Kokum Ravens. The ravens
dotted throughout the teaching guide are also excerpted from Napoleon’s art.

Teaching Guide © 2014 Indigenous Law Research Unit

Acknowledgements

Mikomosis and the Wetiko is part of a special national collaborative research

project, “Accessing Justice and Reconciliation,” by the Indigenous Law Research
Unit (Faculty of Law, University of Victoria), the Indigenous Bar Association, the
Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, and was generously funded by
the Ontario Law Foundation. While financially supported by the law Foundation
of Ontario, the findings of this research do no necessarily reflect the views of the
Foundation. Additional financial support was provided from the University of
Victoria Faculty of Law and Indigenous Peoples and Governance project. The
contributions of the Indigenous Law Research Unit were generously supported
by the Canada Research Chair in Law and Society (funded by the Social Sciences
and Humanities Research Council of Canada). Copies of the graphic novel and
this teaching guide are available for order at the University of Victoria
Bookstore (https://www.uvicbookstore.ca). The teaching guide is also available
as a free resource online at: http://www.indigenousbar.
ca/indigenouslaw/project‐documents/#teaching‐guide

This teaching guide was collaboratively prepared by Emily Snyder, Lindsay

Borrows, and Val Napoleon, with significant contributions from Hadley
Friedland.
About The UVic Indigenous Law Research Unit (ILRU)

The Indigenous Law Research Unit partners with communities in order to

rigorously and critically investigate research questions pertaining to Indigenous
legal orders. This ground‐breaking work includes researching and exploring
specific areas of law, legal processes and procedures, interpretive theories, legal
pedagogies, and legal reasoning and decision‐making, and creating Indigenous
law materials for communities, academic institutions, and practitioners.
Another aim of the ILRU is to support and develop substantive resources for the
proposed Indigenous law degree program (joint JID/JD) at the Faculty of Law,
UVic. This professional dual degree program would provide students with a
degree in both Indigenous law and Canadian common law. The program will
create the space necessary for living and breathing Indigenous legal orders in
the academy both as sources of normative insight and inquiry, and as practical
tools for governance and citizenry building. The ILRU is committed to
promoting gender inclusive teaching and research.

Dr. Val Napoleon is the Director of the ILRU and Renée McBeth is the Project
Coordinator. Contact: ilru@uvic.ca
Table Of Contents

Chapter 1: Introduction .................................................................................. 7

Media Article .................................................................................................................................... 8
Background to the Graphic Novel ........................................................................................... 10
The Accessing Justice and Reconciliation Project ...................................................... 10
The Importance of Indigenous Law and Challenging Common Assumptions 10
Gender and Indigenous Law ..................................................................................................... 14
Reframing and Responding to Questions ............................................................................ 18
Reframing Questions .............................................................................................................. 18
Responding to Common Questions .................................................................................. 20
How to Use This Teaching Guide ............................................................................................ 25
Pronunciation Guide and Glossary ......................................................................................... 27

Chapter 2: Lesson Plans .................................................................................. 31

1. Introduction to Indigenous Laws (Youth) ..................................................................... 32
2. Introduction to Indigenous Laws (Community & Post‐Secondary) ................... 36
3. Gender and Indigenous Law (Post‐Secondary) ........................................................... 42
4. Exploring Gender and Indigenous Law (Youth & Community) ............................ 52
5. Inter‐Societal Understandings of Law (Post‐Secondary) ........................................ 57
6. How to Draw Law out of Stories (Youth & Community) .......................................... 68
Actively Reading Visual Content in Graphic Novels (All Groups) ............................. 70
Additional Activities Using the Cree Legal Synthesis Summary (All Groups) ..... 72

Chapter 3: Supplemental Resources ........................................................... 75

Additional Background Reading List .................................................................................... 76
Cree Legal Synthesis Summary ............................................................................................... 81
British Columbia Education Curricular Outcomes .......................................................... 90
Alberta Education Curricular Outcomes ............................................................................. 93
Kokum Raven Series: Artist Statement ................................................................................ 103
Index .................................................................................................................................................... 104
 “Graphic Novel Explores Indigenous Law, Aiming to Empower and Educate”

By: Mitch Wright, published in the Ring, May 7, 2013

Reaching back in time to correct past wrongs isn’t typically within the realm of
legal literature, but a graphic novel created by the University of Victoria’s
Indigenous Law Research [Unit] is testing such new avenues in an effort to
broaden understanding of Indigenous law’s complexity and legitimacy.

The project draws on work with seven different legal orders across Canada that
will help empower Indigenous communities, as well as educate and engage legal
practitioners. The graphic novel genre was chosen to tell the story of Cree Law:
Mikomosis and the Wetiko because it is seen as a more engaging way to present
complex information or subjects.

“We’re looking to demonstrate indigenous law’s complexity in a way that is

accessible, but also sophisticated enough that it’s useful,” said Prof. Val
Napoleon, who led the project with UVic alumnae [and PhD Candidate in law],
Hadley Friedland.

Also involved were noted TV screenwriter Jim Henshaw and renowned comic
artist [...] Ken Steacy, who led a team of four additional illustrators.

“This is absolutely one of the most challenging, exciting and rewarding projects
I’ve been involved with,” said Steacy, a Camosun College instructor who has
worked on some of the world’s most recognized comics, during the graphic
novel’s official launch at UVic’s Fraser Building May 6.

Indigenous legal orders are living traditions of law that enable Indigenous
societies to manage themselves as self‐governing and self‐determining peoples.

8
The story is a composite of true situations, and evolved from [Hadley
Friedland’s graduate research,] material gathered by [ILRU] researchers and
[was] compiled by Napoleon. It explores the tale of a Cree man sentenced to
death by a 19th‐century Alberta court after carrying out an execution ordered
by his Cree community under a Cree legal concept known as Wetiko.

A contingent of Indigenous lawyers travels back in time to intervene and apply

aspects of Indigenous law not originally presented. With a more in‐depth
understanding of the circumstances, the court finds the accused not guilty.

Media article available at: http://ring.uvic.ca/news/graphic‐novel‐explores‐

indigenous‐law‐aiming‐empower‐and‐educate

9
 Background To The Graphic Novel

Prepared by Hadley Friedland

The Accessing Justice and Reconciliation Project

Mikomosis and the Wetiko (hereafter Mikomosis) was developed as part of a

national research project, the Accessing Justice and Reconciliation (AJR) Project,
undertaken by a partnership of the University of Victoria Indigenous Law
Research Unit, the Indigenous Bar Association, and the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission of Canada, with additional funding from the Ontario Law
Foundation. The AJR Project explored how Indigenous societies used and
applied their own legal principles to deal with harms and conflict between and
within groups.

The overall vision for this project was to honour the internal strengths and
resiliencies of Indigenous peoples and to identify and articulate principles
within Indigenous legal traditions that might be usefully applied today. The AJR
Project’s approach was to treat Indigenous laws seriously as laws. Researchers
analyzed publicly available materials and oral traditions within seven partner
communities, representing six legal traditions across Canada, using adapted
methods – with the same rigor required to seriously engage with state laws in
Canadian law schools. More information and additional resources can be found
here: http://indigenousbar.ca/indigenouslaw/.

The Importance of Indigenous Law and Challenging Common Assumptions

Many mainstream educational materials suggest the stereotype of Indigenous

peoples as lawless prior to European contact. This false idea still goes
unquestioned, or worse, is being implicitly taught to students today. We have all
developed certain assumptions and associations with the concept of ‘law’ that
can make it hard to understand that law existed in Indigenous societies prior to
10
European contact and the arrival of European style police force, legislature and
judicial system. Historically, these stereotypes and assumptions played out
tragically in real life. For example, in several documented cases in the late 1800s
and early 1900s, Canadian legal authorities made decisions to execute
Indigenous legal authorities who were carrying out legitimate Indigenous legal
decisions to execute someone who had become a wetiko. We define wetiko as a
Cree and Anishinaabek legal concept to describe someone harmful to
themselves and others in socially prohibited ways. In the past, a wetiko has been
commonly described as ‘cannibal’ or, by outside researchers, as a culturally
specific ‘psychosis’ or ‘hysteria,’ but our research shows the legal concept
definition is more accurate. This graphic novel tells the story of the case of
Mikomosis, which is based on a compilation of actual historic cases, and then re‐
tells it in a way that considers and respects Cree laws.

When discussing this case, it may be useful to also talk about how Canadian
laws and values change over time. For example, in 1878, a Cree man named
Swiftrunner was executed after becoming a wetiko – by the Canadian
authorities at Fort Saskatchewan! He was hanged. This would not happen today
because there is no longer capital punishment in Canada. In the graphic novel,
Mikomosis executes Sap‐was‐te when it is determined by the decision‐makers
that there is no other way to keep the group safe from her increasing violence.
Just as execution would not be an option in Canadian law today, it is important
to point out that this would not ever be a current option in Cree law today
either.

It is also important to point out that there were always a variety of responses to
someone turning wetiko in Cree law, just as there is a range of responses to
someone acting dangerously in Canadian law today. For example, in our
research project, a Cree elder stated the Cree preference for healing very
strongly:

11
 When one researcher asked this elder about the published stories he
had read in which wetikos were killed, the elder stated emphatically
that, “probably someone who didn’t know nothing and had no
compassion would just go kill somebody else.” She went on to say the
proper response is to try to help the person turning wetiko instead. She
stressed that people turning wetiko should not be seen as faceless
dangers, but rather that “these are our family members.”
‐IBA AJR Project Cree Legal Traditions Report

It is important to realize that, even historically, the execution of someone

turning into a wetiko, as occurs in the graphic novel, was very rare. It was much
more common that a person was either healed, or separated or supervised until
they could be healed. These people were then reintegrated into the group with
supervision and support.

It is also worth noting that while the graphic novel suggests starvation may be
the cause of Sap‐was‐te turning wetiko, this reflects only one theory, albeit a
dominant one, of why people turn wetiko. There are several other theories as
well, but, like many aspects of our human condition, there is no one definitive
answer or a simple cause and effect answer to the question of why some human
beings come to do terrible things to others.1 Importantly, while starvation is one
source of deprivation, stress and suffering, there are many contemporary
sources beyond literal starvation that disproportionately impact Indigenous
people today. It may be helpful to discuss some of these with your students.
When thinking about stress and human suffering, it is vital that we not lose
1. For a fuller discussion see: Hadley Friedland, sight of the underlying social problems that can create stressful circumstances
The Wetiko (Windigo) Legal Principles:
Responding to Harmful People in Cree, for individuals and communities and can cause individuals enormous hardship
Anishinabek and Saulteaux Societies – Past, and suffering. At the same time, it is also really important that ‘stress’ or
Present and Future Uses, with a Focus on ‘suffering’ do not get used to automatically predict future harmful behaviour or
Contemporary Violence and Child Victimization
Concerns (LLM thesis, University of Alberta, justify or excuse harmful behaviour. Stress and suffering may contribute to, but
2009), pages 47‐55. do not automatically cause anyone to harm others. The conversation should not
12
stop there, in any instance of harm or violence. For further discussion on this
point, see the “Gender and Indigenous Law” section below to consider how
gendered power dynamics need to be accounted for in these discussions.

13
 Gender and Indigenous Law

Prepared by Emily Snyder2

It is essential to include gender in discussions about Indigenous law. Any

articulations and practices of law exist in relation to social context. For example
in Canadian law we see how racism occurs in the justice system, especially
when looking at Indigenous people’s experiences with state law. Sexism is also a
major social problem in Canada and gendered power dynamics, gender norms
(ideas about what ‘normal’ behaviour is for people based on perceptions about
their gender), and stereotypes about gender also play out in law. Sexism is
2. This information is based on Snyder’s
dissertation (Emily Snyder, Representations of
pervasive not only in Canadian society, but is also a major social issue in
Women in Cree Legal Educational Resources: An Indigenous communities. Thus Indigenous women face gendered oppression
Indigenous Feminist Legal Theoretical Analysis from both settler society and face sexism within their communities.3 While
[PhD dissertation, University of Alberta, 2014])
and can also be found in a report on gender and
many Indigenous peoples embrace notions of gender balance, value the
Indigenous laws, at: http://indigenousbar.ca/ domestic work that women typically do, and are sometimes described as
indigenouslaw/wp‐content/uploads/2013/04/ matriarchal, the lived gendered realities that Indigenous women face cannot be
Gender‐and‐Indigenous‐Law‐report‐March‐31‐
2013‐ESnyder1.pdf.
overlooked. For example, Indigenous women, on average, make less money than
3. See Joyce Green, ed, Making Space for Indigenous men,4 and therefore have less economic stability. Further,
Indigenous Feminism (Winnipeg: Indigenous women experience high rates of gender‐based violence such as
Fernwood, 2007).
4. Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development
domestic violence and sexual assault.5 While there are aspects and experiences
Canada, “Aboriginal Women in the Canadian of colonialism that Indigenous people share, Indigenous people also have
Economy: The Links Between Education, different experiences based on gender. These realities must be accounted for
Employment and Income” (fact sheet, 2012,
online: http://www.aadnc‐aandc.gc.ca/DAM/
when thinking about Indigenous women’s access to, and participation in, both
DAM‐INTER‐HQ/STAGING/texte‐text/ai_res_ Indigenous laws and Canadian law.
aborig_econ_pdf_1331068532699_eng.pdf)
at page 1.
5. See Amnesty International, “No More Stolen
Patriarchal violence and colonial violence operate together. Western
Sisters: The Need For A Comprehensive conceptualizations of gender have been imposed on Indigenous peoples
Response to Discrimination and Violence through Canadian laws and other attempts at assimilation (such as residential
Against Indigenous Women in Canada” (London,
2009, online: http://www.amnesty.ca/sites/
schools). Understanding the ways that gendered oppression is perpetuated
default/files/amr200122009enstolensisters through colonial violence deserves a great deal of attention. Yet too often
update.pdf). sexism in Indigenous communities is treated as only a product of colonialism. It
14
is important to recognize the violence and sexism of colonialism, but to also be 6. Joanne Barker maintains that “[t]he important
conceptual challenge in understanding the
careful not to treat Indigenous gender relations prior to contact as though impact of these ideologies [of patriarchy and
things were perfect.6 Gendered relationships may have looked different prior to heterosexism] on Indian peoples is refusing a
contact, and there are prominent distinctions between many Indigenous norms social evolutionary framework in which pristine,
utopian Indian societies degenerate into
about gender when compared to Western norms, however, there still would tragically contaminated ones” (Joanne Barker,
have been disagreements about gender roles. We cannot assume that everyone “Gender, Sovereignty, Rights: Native Women’s
accepted and conformed to gender roles and that there was not gender based Activism against Social Inequality and Violence
in Canada” [2008] 60:2 American Quarterly 259
conflict. at page 262).

It is thus crucial to think about Indigenous laws (and all laws for that matter) as
gendered – not just in terms of gender ideals and gender roles in relation to law,
but in terms of raising serious questions about the ways that perceptions about
gender and gendered power imbalances can play out in legal practice. The
graphic novel grapples with these subjects and we encourage you to discuss and
raise questions about gender in all lessons about Mikomosis. We have also
included specific lesson plans on gender, for more focused discussions.

It is important not to treat the topic of gender as an afterthought, or as relating

exclusively to women or ‘women’s issues.’ The problem with dealing with
gender at the end of conversations is that all of the ways that gender might be
operating in a classroom and in discussions can be missed. Just as it is
important to recognize that being Cree is relevant to reading many of the
characters in Mikomosis, it is also pertinent to see, from the beginning, gender as
part of the characters’ identities.

Concerning the problem of treating gender as a topic that is reserved for women
– all citizens are shaped and impacted (in different ways) by perceptions about
gender. For example, violence against women is often treated as a ‘woman’s
issue,’ but this approach ignores the responsibility of men in challenging and
changing this social problem, and overlooks that all gendered citizens should be
concerned with violence. The graphic novel touches on difficult questions about

15
 harm and gender, and it might be useful for some instructors and facilitators to
invite guests to the classroom who are comfortable with facilitating these
discussions.

Indigenous feminists make it very clear in their work and activism that sexism
and gendered conflict cannot be addressed or dealt with if it is not talked about.
It is vital to discuss how sexism can be perpetuated through Indigenous laws (as
with state laws) and to also understand Indigenous laws as important resources
for challenging and talking about gendered conflicts.

16
The Gender Binary

The gender binary purports that there are only two genders – men and
women. It is claimed that these two genders ‘naturally’ stem from two
sexed bodies – male bodies and females bodies. Gender can be
described as the way that one performs or acts out their sex. Thus, the
gender binary dictates that those with male bodies should act ‘like
men’ (wear ‘men’s clothes,’ be assertive, be ‘tough,’ etc.) and those with
female bodies should act ‘like women’ (wear ‘women’s clothes,’ be
‘ladylike,’ sit with their legs crossed, nurture others). Moreover it is
argued that men and women should only be sexually attracted to
people of the ‘opposite’ sex. It is crucial to recognize that both gender
and sex are socially constructed – meaning that they are not naturally
occurring categories; rather, these ideas are human interpretations
about bodies, and how people with certain bodies should behave. This
is not to suggest that there are not physical differences between sexed
bodies, but these differences are interpreted and these interpretations
can be influenced by social and cultural norms. There are more than
two ways of enacting gender. There are more than two types of sexed
bodies. And sexual attraction certainly exists well beyond heterosexual
relationships. Gender and sexuality are fluid and the gender binary can
perpetuate oppression when it demands that people have to act in
particular ways because of the bodies that they have.

What is explained above is one interpretation of the gender binary, and

there is much discussion that can be had about this interpretation. We
encourage educators and facilitators to discuss the gender binary with
the groups that they are working with. Questions about power are vital
in these conversations about gender, gender roles, and ideas about
complementarity.

17
 Reframing and Responding to Questions

Prepared by Lindsay Borrows and Emily Snyder

Reframing Questions

The AJR Research Coordinator, Hadley Friedland, explains that we may have to
make certain shifts in our thinking and perspectives in order to do the
necessary intellectual work with Indigenous legal traditions in order to move
from a philosophical view to a practical one:7

The first shift is a shift in assumptions, to move past stereotypes in materials.

1. Reasoning and Reasonable: Indigenous peoples were and are reasoning people
with reasonable social and legal orders.
2. Present Tense: Use present tense to talk about and consider Indigenous law – not
relegated to the past.
3. Particular: Think about Indigenous laws as a particular response to universal
human issues.

The second shift is a shift in our questions – to move from generalizations to

specifics.

From: To:
What is aboriginal justice? What are the legal concepts and
categories within this legal tradition?
7. This information about Friedland’s work can What are cultural values? What are the legal principles?
be found on the AJR website at What are the ‘culturally appropriate’ or What are the legitimate procedures for
http://indigenousbar.ca/indigenouslaw/project ‘traditional’ dispute resolution forms? collective decision‐making?
‐documents/, and is also discussed in more
detail in the following article: Hadley Friedland,
OVERALL SHIFT:
“Reflective Frameworks: Methods for Accessing, What are the rules? What are the legal principles and legal
Understanding and Applying Indigenous Laws” processes for reasoning through?
(2013) 11:2 Indigenous Law Journal 1. What are the answers? What are the issues?

18
These shifts are valuable to consider and Emily Snyder has expanded
Friedland’s approach into the area of gender to both complement Friedland’s
work and to bring in additional questions:

The first set of shifts would again, be a shifting of assumptions – moving past
stereotypes about gender and Indigenous law.

1. Gendered conflicts did and do happen: It is necessary to move beyond the

extreme stereotypes of Indigenous societies as being either entirely sexist and
oppressive, or as having entirely perfect gender relations. Gendered conflicts
happen in the present and we should not assume that, in the past, everyone
conformed to and accepted gender norms or that women were always and fully
respected anymore than we should assume that women were always and fully
subjugated.
2. People are gendered: Often, when people talk about Indigenous law, they do not
talk about gender. While this might be treated as a ‘gender neutral’ approach that
is inclusive, it is important to ask who people are actually imagining when they are
talking about Indigenous law. Whose experiences are being used to interpret law?
Whose ideas are being included? Too often discussions about Indigenous law are
actually about men’s ideas and experiences. Their experiences get treated as
universal, as though everyone engages with law in the same way. This is false. Men
thus (invisibly) appear as stand‐ins for everyone, and women are relegated to the
periphery.
3. Indigenous laws can perpetuate gendered oppression and can also challenge
it: By being attentive to questions about gender and power, the ways that
inequality might operate in Indigenous laws can be challenged and Indigenous
laws themselves can be interpreted as important resources for reasoning through
and addressing gendered oppression.
4. Conversations about gender and Indigenous law must be practically
oriented: A practical approach values the ideals and aspirations that exist in legal
principles but also recognizes when there is a disjuncture between what is wanted
for a society, and what is actually happening in people’s lives. This practical
approach means recognizing that law should be discussed and debated so that it is
relevant for addressing today’s challenging circumstances.

19
 Friedland then suggests some ways to shift the questions that we ask of
Indigenous law. This shift in questions is also necessary when thinking about
Indigenous laws and gender, and Snyder suggests the following approach to
gender:

From: To:
What are the ‘traditional’ gender roles in How do gendered power dynamics
a legal order? shape legal interpretations?
What are the cultural values concerning What are the legal principles concerning
gender? gender?
What are the ‘culturally appropriate’ What assumptions are being made
ways for women and men to engage about the ways that gendered subjects
with law? engage with law, and why?
OVERALL SHIFT:
What are the laws about gender? How are Indigenous laws gendered?
How can Indigenous people rebuild In what ways can a deliberative
their legal orders – to be as they were in approach to Indigenous law8 – which
the past – so as to promote gender includes discussion, debate, dissent, and
balance? change – help to promote anti‐
oppressive legal relations for everyone?

Responding to Common Questions

We have included this section to address various questions that people often
have about Indigenous law. The answers here are intended to help learners
move beyond underlying assumptions and hold‐ups that they may have in
seriously considering Indigenous law.

We acknowledge that there are many aspects of this material that will be
completely new for educators and learners alike. It may be uncomfortable for
8. John Borrows, Canada’s Indigenous people to engage in discussions of law, Indigenous law, or gender when they do
Constitution (Toronto: University of Toronto not feel expert on these topics. As educators we value classroom harmony and
Press, 2010) at page 35. new topics that contain difficult though important issues may bring unpredict‐

20
able discussions. We believe this is where true learning happens – in the
uncomfortable, unpredictable, new areas. We want to encourage you to look
through these materials to feel confident in your ability to help yourself and
class members gain new insights in these previously unknown ideas. The
teaching guide is intended to prepare you to seriously engage with Indigenous
law, not to make anyone feel bad that they don’t have deeper knowledge on any
given subject.

What happens when Indigenous peoples disagree over their laws? In

Mikomosis, the various characters do not always readily agree with each other.
These differences in opinion reflect reality. Law in any tradition, Canadian
common and civil law included, are founded on differences of opinions. It would
be wrong to allow the ambiguity inherent in the subject of law to shut off
Indigenous peoples from participating in legal discussions about their own
laws. Buffalo Woman, Loon Woman, and Following Sun each came from
different legal orders and oral traditions. The character named Authentic is a
figure who wants to maintain power, and prefers originalism to living tree
conceptions of justice (see John Borrows, “[Ab]Originalism and Canada’s
Constitution”9). These disagreements do not detract from Indigenous laws, but
can enhance their vitality.

What happens when non­Indigenous peoples disagree with Indigenous

laws? Indigenous laws are often different from Canadian laws. Those who are
unfamiliar with Indigenous law are fearful these laws are based on spirituality,
ancient custom, or some other underlying philosophy they wholly disagree
with. They may wonder how Indigenous law can be held accountable to
fundamental human rights and international law. We believe indigenous law is
subject to just as much scrutiny as any other form of law. Of course there is a
danger in this because historically it has been subjected to destructive colonial
notions, but this does not exempt Indigenous law from the system of checks and
9. John Borrows, “(Ab)Originalism and Canada’s
balances that are in place on an international scale either. Constitution” (2012) 58 Supreme Court Law
Review 351.

21
 How do decentralized legal orders work? Indigenous legal orders are often
described as decentralized. This means there is not one person or body of
people in power that make all of the decisions, nor is there a centralized legal
institution like the justice system in Canadian law. Decentralized legal orders
are a more dialogical, relational or localized way of decision‐making with
incredible ability for responding to the specificity of situations. Decentralized
does not mean without order. Also, while Indigenous people might use their
laws (though in limited ways) in relation to Chief and Council structures, it is
important to remember that these particular structures are state imposed and
Chief and Council governance is constrained by state policies.

Are elders in charge of Indigenous legal orders? Elders are important

authoritative figures in many Indigenous societies; but they are not the only
decision‐makers. In the Cree legal synthesis (in Section Three of this teaching
guide) for example, additional authoritative decision‐makers include medicine
people, family members, and the larger group/community effected. This list
might change depending on the conflict, situation, and most certainly depending
on the legal order being examined. As noted above, in decentralized legal
orders, no one person or body of people is ‘in charge’ of law. Elders can and do
bring important insights and knowledge to discussions about law. While it is
important to be respectful of their contributions (along with the contributions
of other citizens), it is crucial to also keep in mind that not all elders believe the
same thing, and that we should engage with what elders say. It is too commonly
stated that one cannot question elders. People should be able to raise questions,
and engage in respectful debate in all legal orders.

When you talk about Indigenous laws, are you referring to sentencing
circles? Sentencing circles are one form of legal process that some Indigenous
groups may or may not decide to use to address particular conflicts. Too often
people conflate Indigenous law with sentencing circles and restorative justice
approaches. However, as the graphic novel and the Cree legal synthesis in

22
Section Three begin to demonstrate, legal processes are much more varied and
complex than this.

Can you tell me, in just a few sentences, what Indigenous laws are? When
people ask this question, they often seem to be assuming that Indigenous laws
are really simple and are thus easily summarized, and/or that law is only about
rules and institutions and that once a person knows these, they can recognize
‘law.’ Indigenous laws (as with Canadian laws) are complex, however, and law
involves thinking, debate, and legal reasoning – it is not just rules. It is
important to frame how one is approaching Indigenous laws – for example, that
we are referring to Indigenous peoples’ own legal orders, traditions, and modes
of governance. However, it is unfair to expect that Indigenous law can be fully
explained in a few sentences. We encourage educators to push learners to think
about some of the questions that they might ask about Indigenous laws, and if
they would ask the same questions about Canadian law. Would, for example, it
seem a reasonable question to ask someone to explain Canadian law in a few
sentences? There is no way that a person would come away with anything close
to an adequate understanding of the complexity of Canadian law, and this is also
true when this question is asked of Indigenous laws. Further, it is important,
when you can and when it makes sense, to talk about specific legal orders (e.g.,
Cree law, Métis law, Inuit law).

What happens when Indigenous laws are written down, and adapted to a
framework so completely different from where they originally operated?
Laws change over time. It has happened with the common law, and has
happened with Indigenous law. The purpose of law is to help us respond to the
current world. If it cannot change, it is irrelevant. Much work needs to be done
to ensure Indigenous laws can function in today’s world, without compromising
their validity.

23
 Why do we need to talk about gender? Don’t Indigenous peoples need to
decolonize and revitalize their legal orders first, and then they will be able
to return to harmonious gender relations? This question idealizes and
romanticizes pre‐contact gender relations, which is an extreme stereotype that
is not useful for actually addressing gendered conflict. This question also treats
law as though it is static and unchanging, rather than something that is
interpreted and worked with in the present. The dynamics of gendered
oppression today cannot be addressed if they are not talked about. Taking an
approach that is attentive to questions about gender and power necessitates
asking how sexism can play out in decolonization10 and revitalization politics.
When it is asserted that sexism should not be talked about, or that it is an
irrelevant issue, we should ask why this is being claimed and who is benefitting
from such an approach.11

What is a fundamentalist approach to Indigenous law? Wouldn’t it be unfair

to describe Indigenous law as fundamentalist? It is unfair to describe
‘Indigenous law’ as fundamentalist. However, sometimes some interpretations of
Indigenous laws can be described as fundamentalist. A fundamentalist approach
to law (be it Indigenous law or Canadian law) involves making rigid assertions
about law, culture, and peoples. With a fundamentalist approach there is only
room for one interpretation of law (as opposed to a deliberative approach in
which debate and discussion are vital). Further, it is often claimed that there is
only one ‘right’ way of being – for example one way of being Cree, and one way
10. Kiera Ladner, “Gendering Decolonisation, to use Cree law. What happens then is that law gets limited and gets equated
Decolonising Gender” (2009) 13 Australian
Indigenous Law Review 62. with rules and behaviour, rather than approaching law as something that is
11. These questions are central to indigenous dynamic, contested, and changing, and something that people think about,
feminist politics. See for example, the important interpret, and debate.
work done in the following collection: Joyce
Green, ed, Making Space for Indigenous Feminism
(Winnipeg: Fernwood, 2007).

24
How To Use This Teaching Guide

The purpose of this teaching guide is to help educators in both post‐secondary,

youth and community teaching positions to engage students in helpful,
challenging, and varied ways according to the needs of their students. The guide
provides a significant source of background readings for educators surrounding
the topics of law (Indigenous and non‐Indigenous) and feminism (Indigenous
and non‐Indigenous). The guide provides lesson plans aimed towards use in
both post‐secondary and secondary institutions with suggestions for
adaptations. There are also interactive lesson activities with accompanying
worksheets that can be utilized. It is expected that the educator will adapt,
combine and teach according to the variation in class experience, interest, size,
location, purpose, etc. We encourage people from a multitude of backgrounds to
use this graphic novel. For post‐secondary learners and educators, we envision
the disciplines of law; Indigenous studies; governance programs; women’s,
gender and sexuality studies; sociology; political science; anthropology; English;
and education to find the novel and accompanying lesson plan particularly
useful.

We gave careful consideration to the terminology of post‐secondary,

community, and youth/adult learners. We recognize that there is overlap in
how students in a university course may engage with the graphic novel
material, and adult learners or community learners. We hope the different
levels the lesson plans are aimed at are used creatively by teachers, and
sometimes a lesson plan we have labeled as appropriate for youth, may be
engaging for adults as well (and vice versa).

The first lesson plan focuses on an introduction to Indigenous laws for youth
learners. The second lesson plan is designed to teach the same material to post‐
secondary and adult community learners. The third and fourth lesson plans are
focused on gender and Indigenous law, with the third targeting post‐secondary
learners and the fourth targeting youth. The fifth lesson plan is designed to help
25
 post‐secondary students explore inter‐societal understandings of law. The sixth
lesson plan is about how to draw law out of stories and is aimed at youth and
community learners. Lastly, short discussions on actively reading visual
content, as well as additional activities that can be done with a Cree legal
synthesis are included.

Because of the overlap in these lesson plans, there will be some repetition.
Some educators, depending on the context in which you are using Mikomosis,
might be interested in background readings for themselves and/or their class.
With some of the lesson plans we have included particularly pertinent
suggested background readings, though we encourage you to also check out the
full list in the Supplemental Resources section. This teaching guide is developed
based on our own work and approaches to Indigenous law, however we hope
that the graphic novel, the lesson plans, and the suggested readings encourage
engaging discussion and debate.

26
Pronunciation Guide and Glossary

For Cree words, as written phonetically in the glossary.

This pronunciation guide and glossary may be photocopied and distributed to

students for reference while reading the graphic novel.

‐a – like in ‘cat’ ‐es – like in ‘west’

‐aw – like in ‘cow’ ‐i – like in ‘pit’
‐ay – like in ‘hay’ ‐o – like in ‘go’
‐ee – like in ‘bee’ ‐oo – like in ‘bamboo’

Cree Words:

Kokum (Cookum) Grandmother.

Mikomosis (Mik­o­mo­sis) One of the main characters in the graphic novel.

Mistainninew (Mis­tay­ni­noo) A healer in the novel, referred to as “Fancyman.”

Nehiyaw (Nay­hee­yaw) A Cree person. The Cree are one of largest Indigenous
groups in Canada. Cree territories extended from Quebec in the east and to
western Alberta.

Sap­was­te (Sap­wes­tay) One of the main characters in the graphic novel,

named “for the light which once shone from her eyes.”

Wetiko (Wee­ti­go) Wetiko is a Cree and Anishinaabek legal concept to describe

someone who is harmful to themselves and others in socially prohibited ways.
In the past, a wetiko has been commonly described as a ‘cannibal’ or, by outside
researchers, as a culturally specific ‘psychosis’ or ‘hysteria.’

27
 Definitions (Non­Cree Specific):

Bannock Also commonly known as fry bread, though it can be baked.

Case Brief A way of writing out and organizing the main issues, facts,
responses, reasoning and principles in a story for the purpose of legal analysis.
This method is commonly used in law school to analyze cases, however it is also
useful for thinking about stories (see Lesson Plan 6: How to Draw Law out of
Stories in this guide).

Elder The definition of elder varies between communities. Generally, it is

someone who is older, who can share wisdom about life and cultural teachings.

Gitksan Gitksan communities and traditional territories are located in the

interior and northwestern parts of British Columbia.

Indigenous ‘Indigenous,’ ‘Aboriginal,’ and ‘First Nation’ each have specific

connotations and cannot always be used interchangeably. ‘Aboriginal’ includes
First Nations, Métis and Inuit, and is often a term used to when referring to state
policies (the Canadian government uses this term, in addition to ‘Indian’). ‘First
Nation’ does not include Métis, or Inuit. We have chosen to use ‘Indigenous’
because it is inclusive and is often used in international contexts.

Indigenous Feminism A theory to address the marginalization of Indigenous

women (i.e., as women within their own nation/within the larger nation, and
being Indigenous) that fosters more harmonious living among everyone.

Law A way of responding to human problems. Law often involves contestation

and is related to the management of both individuals and large groups. Too
often law is thought of as just rules and we encourage people engaging with the
graphic novel, and with Indigenous laws more generally, in a way that also pays
attention to legal actors, legal process, and legal debates and interpretations.

28
Rights We acknowledge that approaches to understanding and defining ‘rights’
varies widely. We have not found it helpful to further elaborate specifically on
this discourse for our purposes.

Substantive versus Procedural Rights Substantive rights deal with the legal
relationship (rights and duties) between people, or the people and the state.
Procedural rights refer to the rules of how the laws are to be enforced. (i.e., ‘you
have the right to eat ice cream’ could be a substantive right, as opposed to ‘if
someone is denied the right to eat ice cream, the time allowed for one party to
sue the other,’ which could be a procedural right.)

Trickster This is a character common across many Indigenous societies around

the world. Trickster stories act as a way of teaching people as they analogize
and distinguish trickster’s unpredictable behaviour.

Vuntut Gwich’in This is a First Nation located in the northern Yukon.

29
 Lesson Plan 1: Introduction to Indigenous Laws

For Youth Learners

This lesson plan, which was created by Hadley Friedland, is intended to be used
for educators and facilitators working with youth. We have also included an
adapted version of it for adult learners (community and post‐secondary) in
Lesson Plan 2. While these introductory lesson plans could stand alone, and will
generate important discussion, they can also be used with the other lesson
plans and activities in this guide for more focused discussion on particular
subjects.

Objectives

This lesson plan is designed to encourage students to question pervasive

societal stereotypes and assumptions about Indigenous laws, and to begin
imagining law as something more than just ‘rules’ or ‘force.’ The suggested
questions are also designed to encourage students to engage with the concepts
and questions that the graphic novel raises in a critical and thoughtful way, and
to make connections to both the impact of the historical dismissal of Indigenous
laws and to issues that occur today.

Background Reading: Please ensure that you have read Chapter 1 of this
teaching guide before beginning.

Pre­Reading Discussion Questions: What is Law?

1. When did you first hear the word, ‘law’?

2. What do you think of, or picture, when you hear this word?
[common answers are police, judges, rules]
32
 3. When did you first hear of ‘Indigenous laws’? [often answer is ‐
today]
4. What do you think of, or picture, when you hear this concept?
5. What questions do you have about Indigenous laws?
6. When did ‘law’ start existing in Canada? [Students are still taught
in schools that the North West Mounted Police (NWMP) brought
the law to the lawless west]
7. Groups of people lived here for thousands of years before this.
What was here then?
8. How did the NWMP bring the law? In their pockets? Those are
some magical pockets!
9. Why did the NWMP think that their law needed to be brought to
the west?

Short Lesson: What are we talking about when we talk about Law?

We say that, wherever people live together for generations, organized into
groups, there is law. Law is present in the ways groups of people:

• Solve problems,
• Resolve conflicts,
• Make collective decisions,
• Create safety,
• Maintain or repair relationships, and
• Act on their responsibilities to each other.

Law includes things like police, judges, lawyers and courts. BUT it is not limited
to them. If Cree people had law before these things, then it includes other things
as well…

33
 Like what?

Resources for learning and passing down Cree laws:

• Earth, land, nature – lessons from and observations of land,

plants, animals, water,
• Language – we can find principles in language itself,
• Songs, dances, art,
• Ceremonies, dreams,
• Elders, medicine people, knowledgeable people in the community,
• How we live our lives – the ‘way’ we do things, and
• Stories

Read the graphic novel, Mikomosis

• This is a new story about many stories,

• Re‐telling a story in different forms – Who says law has to be in
law textbooks? Why not a graphic novel?
• Creating new stories about how we talk and think about Cree law
and Canadian state law – building a more respectful relationship
between legal orders.

Post­Reading Discussion Questions: Connections

1. What does the graphic novel make you think about?

2. What part made the most sense to you, or did you relate to the
most?
3. What part made the least sense to you, or felt the most
uncomfortable?
4. If you were a character in the graphic novel, who would you be?
Who would you most want to sit down and talk with? What would
you ask that character?
34
Critical Thinking:
1. Read the quote from the Cree elder from the Cree Legal Traditions
Report, on pages 11 to 12 above. How do you reconcile this Cree
elder’s point with Mikomosis’ actions in the graphic novel?
2. Can you think of principles in Canadian law that seem to point in
opposite directions at times (e.g., sentencing principles –
rehabilitation or deterrence/denunciation?)
3. Why might it be functional or beneficial for any legal system to have
many different principled responses to draw on, depending on the
situation?
4. In the current Canadian justice system – what could law do to
respond to a situation of someone acting like Sap‐was‐te?
5. In the current Canadian justice system, who would be in a role most
similar to the one Mikomosis held in his community?
6. What do you think would happen if we couldn’t forcibly separate
anyone from society today (e.g., put them in jail), no matter how
dangerous they were to others and even if they could not be healed
(or rehabilitated)?
7. What do you think would happen if today we couldn’t access
Canadian legal responses or if people performing those roles were
punished for doing so? Would we still have ‘law’? Would you trust
the law?
8. Why do you think one of the lawyers in the graphic novel is in charge
of specifically asking questions about women’s experiences? Does
this happen today?
9. What would the story look like if told from Sap‐was‐te’s perspective?
10. What would you do if you disagreed with the way that law was being
interpreted and used?
11. Who are the wetikos today?
12. From what you read in the graphic novel, do you see ways in which
Cree and Canadian law are gendered?
13. What other questions does the graphic novel raise for you?

35
 Lesson Plan 2: Introduction to Indigenous Laws12

For Adult Learners (Community and Post­Secondary)

This lesson plan provides an introduction to Indigenous laws and while it can
stand alone and will generate much discussion, it can also be used with other
lesson plans and activities in this guide for more focused discussion on
particular subjects.

Objectives

This discussion guide is designed to encourage learners to question pervasive

societal stereotypes and assumptions about Indigenous laws, and to begin
imagining law as something more than just ‘rules’ or ‘force.’ The suggested
questions are also designed to encourage learners to engage with the concepts
and questions that the graphic novel raises in a critical and thoughtful way, and
to make connections to both the impact of the historical dismissal of Indigenous
laws and to issues that occur today.

Background Reading: Please ensure that you have read Chapter 1 of this
teaching guide before beginning.

Recommended Readings to Accompany this Lesson Plan:

• Val Napoleon & Hadley Friedland, “An Inside Job: Engaging with
Indigenous Legal Traditions Through Stories” in Tony Lucero & Dale
Turner, eds, Oxford Handbook on Indigenous Peoples’ Politics (Oxford:
Oxford University Press, forthcoming 2014).
• Val Napoleon & Hadley Friedland, “From Roots to Renaissance,” in
Markus Dubber, ed, Oxford Handbook of Criminal Law (Oxford:
12. This lesson plan is an adapted version of a Oxford University Press, forthcoming 2014).
lesson plan done by Hadley Friedland.

36
Introductory Discussion Questions: What is Law?

These questions could be discussed in pairs and then get reported back to the
group, or this could be a larger class discussion in which answers are written on
a board or flipchart sheet.

1. When did you first hear the word, ‘law’?

2. What people, institutions, and structures did you first think of
when you think of ‘law’?
3. Groups of people lived here for thousands of years before now.
What was here then?
4. When did you first hear about ‘Indigenous law’?
5. Do you recall learning or hearing anything about ‘Indigenous law’
in your schooling? In your community?
6. When you hear ‘Indigenous law,’ what comes to mind?
7. What questions do you have about Indigenous law?

Short Lesson: What are we talking about when we talk about Law?

We say that, wherever people live together for generations, organized into
groups, there is law. Law is present in the ways groups of people:

• Solve problems,
• Resolve conflicts,
• Make collective decisions,
• Create safety,
• Maintain or repair relationships, and
• Act on their responsibilities to each other.

37
 Law includes things like police, judges, lawyers and courts. BUT it is not limited
to them. If Cree people had law before these things, then it includes other things
as well…

Like what?

Resources for learning and passing down Cree laws:

• Earth, land, nature – lessons from and observations of land,

plants, animals, water,
• Language – we can find principles in language itself,
• Songs, dances, art,
• Procedures, ceremonies, dreams,
• Elders, medicine people, knowledgeable people in the community,
• How we live our lives – the ‘way’ we do things, and
• Stories.

Sources of Law:

In his book Canada’s Indigenous Constitution, John Borrows describes the

various sources of Indigenous law including sacred law, natural law,
deliberative law, positivistic law and customary law. He says, “Canada could be
characterized as a juridically pluralistic state because it draws on many sources
of law to sustain order…For example, Indigenous peoples are diverse and their
laws flow from many sources. Understanding their communities’ legal
foundations can lead to a better appreciation of their contemporary potential,
including how they might be recognized, interpreted, enforced, and
implemented.”13 He goes on to describe each source of law in detail.

13. John Borrows, Canada’s Indigenous Sacred laws are those that “stem from the Creator, creation stories or revered as
Constitution (Toronto: University of Toronto
Press, 2010) at page 23. ancient teachings that have withstood the test of time.”14 Natural laws come
14. Page 24. from observations of the physical world – “[w]hen considering laws from this
38
source, it is often necessary to understand how the earth maintains functions
that benefit us and all other beings.”15 Borrows says “[d]eliberative law is an
especially broad source of Indigenous legal tradition and is formed through
processes of persuasion, deliberation, council, and discussion.”16 “Positivistic
law can be found in the proclamations, rules, regulations, codes, teachings, and
axioms that are regarded as binding or regulating people’s behaviour”17 and
“[c]ustomary law can be defined as those practices developed through
repetitive patterns of social interaction that are accepted as binding on those
who participate in them.”18

What is a Legal Order?

A legal order is a system of authority for regulating disputes and making

decisions. Any legal order could consist of several legal traditions. Alternatively,
one legal tradition may constitute a single legal order.

Shifts in Assumptions:

Hadley Friedland has developed a useful approach for raising questions and
shifting assumptions. This information is included in Chapter 1 of the teaching
guide, on page 18. We encourage you to take a look at this discussion about
shifts, as it might be useful to you when facilitating discussions, but you might
also find it interesting to present these ideas to the group that you are working
with, to see what they think about the shifts.

Mikomosis:

If students have not read Mikomosis prior to your session, provide them with
some time to read the graphic novel before proceeding.
15. Page 28.
16. Page 35.
17. Page 46.
18. Page 51.

39
 Post­Reading Discussion Questions:

Ask students to turn to the person next to them, or to discuss the following
questions in small groups. Students can then report back some of their answers
to the whole group.

Connections:

1. What does the graphic novel make you think about?

2. What part made the most sense to you, or did you relate to the
most?
3. What part made the least sense to you, or felt the most
uncomfortable?
4. If you were a character in the graphic novel, who would you be?
Who would you most want to sit down and talk with? What would
you ask that character?

40
Critical Thinking:
1. Read the quote from the Cree elder from the Cree Legal Traditions
Report, on pages 11 to 12 above. How do you reconcile this Cree
elder’s point with Mikomosis’ actions in the graphic novel?
2. Can you think of principles in Canadian law that seem to point in
opposite directions at times (e.g., sentencing principles –
rehabilitation or deterrence/denunciation?)
3. Why might it be functional or beneficial for any legal system to have
many different principled responses to draw on, depending on the
situation?
4. In the current Canadian justice system – what could law do to
respond to a situation of someone acting like Sap‐was‐te?
5. In the current Canadian justice system, who would be in a role most
similar to the one Mikomosis held in his community?
6. What do you think would happen if we couldn’t forcibly separate
anyone from society today (e.g., put them in jail), no matter how
dangerous they were to others and even if they could not be healed
(or rehabilitated)?
7. What do you think would happen if today we couldn’t access
Canadian legal responses or if people performing those roles were
punished for doing so? Would we still have ‘law’? Would you trust
the law?
8. Why do you think one of the lawyers in the graphic novel is in
charge of specifically asking questions about women’s experiences?
Does this happen today?
9. What would the story look like if told from Sap‐was‐te’s
perspective?
10. What would you do if you disagreed with the way that law was
being interpreted and used?
11. Who are the wetikos today?
12. From what you read in the graphic novel, do you see ways in which
Cree and Canadian law are gendered?
13. What other questions does the graphic novel raise for you?

41
 Lesson Plan 3: Gender and Indigenous Law19

For Post­Secondary Learners

On the very first page of Mikomosis, one of the main characters, Headache Cho,
is described as “a new trickster born of international Indigenous feminist
consciousness.” This lesson plan focuses on understanding Indigenous laws as
gendered. While gender and power should be talked about in all of the
discussions about Mikomosis and should always be a part of thinking about law,
it is important to also devote a lesson plan to a gendered analysis of the graphic
narrative. Mikomosis encourages readers to think about the complex
relationship between gender, sexuality, power, and Indigenous law. We suggest
that educators also read Chapter 1 of the teaching guide before beginning,
particularly the sections Gender and Indigenous Law and Reframing the
Questions.

The term ‘Indigenous feminism’ (and ‘feminism’ more broadly) is varied and
debated. While some Indigenous and non‐Indigenous people use the term, there
are likewise people who critique and reject it. There are many ways to talk
about gender and Indigenous laws, and what is laid out in this lesson plan is just
one way. This lesson plan focuses on and takes Indigenous feminism seriously.
It is a perspective taken up by one of the main characters, and Indigenous
feminist perspectives are also an important part of the legal debate and
discussion. Educators and students will no doubt have varied opinions about
Indigenous feminisms and how best to talk about gender. It is imperative that
multiple perspectives and interpretations are a part of the conversations about
Indigenous law. These debates can be the source of productive, ongoing
discussions.

Objectives
19. This lesson plan was prepared by
Emily Snyder. • Show the significance of analyzing Indigenous laws as gendered;
42
• Encourage critical analyses of Indigenous law that are attentive to
gendered power dynamics;
• Familiarize students with Indigenous feminisms and Indigenous feminist
legal theory;
• Critically engage with common discourses about gender and Indigenous
law;
• Talk about stereotypes about feminism and Indigenous feminism;
• Introduce students to one framework for approaching Indigenous laws
as gendered;
• Analyze gender as it operates in Mikomosis.

Recommended Further Background Readings:

• Emily Snyder, “Indigenous Feminist Legal Theory” (forthcoming,
2014) 26:2 Canadian Journal of Women and the Law.
• Joyce Green, “Taking Account of Aboriginal Feminism” in Joyce
Green, ed, Making Space for Indigenous Feminism (Winnipeg:
Fernwood Publishing) 20.
• Emily Snyder, Gender and Indigenous Law. A report prepared for the
Indigenous Law Research Unit, Indigenous Bar Association, Truth
and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, 13 March 2013. Available
at http://indigenousbar.ca/indigenouslaw/wp‐content/uploads/
2013/04/Gender‐and‐Indigenous‐Law‐report‐March‐31‐2013‐
ESnyder1.pdf.
• Val Napoleon, “Aboriginal Discourse: Gender, Identity and
Community” in Benjamin J Richardson, Shin Imai & Kent McNeil, eds,
Indigenous Peoples and the Law: Comparative and Critical
Perspectives (Oregon: Hart Publishing, 2009) 233.
• Verna St. Denis, “Feminism is for Everybody: Aboriginal Women,
Feminism and Diversity” in Joyce Green, ed, Making Space for
Indigenous Feminism (Winnipeg: Fernwood Publishing, 2007) 33.

43
 Teaching Suggestion!

Depending on the course that you are teaching, and the familiarity that
students have with feminist theory, you may need to skip some parts of
the lesson or bring in additional content.

The lesson plan is in two parts.

1) An introduction to Indigenous feminisms

2) An application section in which Indigenous feminism is applied to
Indigenous law so as to read Mikomosis and Indigenous laws through a
lens that is attentive to gendered power dynamics.

You could reverse parts 1 and 2 (i.e., go right into application then draw
out ideas about gender, power and Indigenous feminism) depending on
students’ needs.

Part 1: Introduction to Indigenous Feminisms

1) Pre­reading Discussion: Debunking Stereotypes about Feminism

Ask students to think of the most common assumptions (stereotypes) that

people make about ‘feminists.’ Write these answers on the board or on flip‐
chart paper.

Possible answers: man‐haters, bra‐burners, lesbians, white women, women that

look butch, women who are ‘unattractive,’ women who don’t shave their legs or
armpits, women who hate children, women who do not get married or have
children, feminists are only women.

44
Discuss the list:

• What assumptions are being made?

• What are the dangers in imagining feminism based on these
assumptions? What and who gets missed?
• Was anything included that seems positive or accurate?

It can be useful to remind students, even if you cannot go into detail that there
are many feminist frameworks and ways that people engage with feminism. For
example, in no particular order: radical feminism, liberal feminism, eco‐
feminism, Marxist feminism, material feminism, socialist feminism, maternal
feminism, feminist legal theory, post‐colonial feminism, post‐structural
feminism, post‐modern feminism, queer feminism, critical race feminism,
Chicana feminism, black feminism, and importantly to this discussion,
Indigenous feminism. Each of these perspectives is internally varied and
debated, and there are tensions between many of these viewpoints. Despite all
of this complexity and plurality of interpretations of feminism, it is important to
note to students that the women’s movement and feminist scholarship in
Canada (and in other settler states) have been, and in numerous ways still are,
dominated by white women. Significantly, there has been increased literature
on racism, colonialism, sexuality, and ability in feminist scholarship, however
the ways that privilege and power still operate in feminist scholarship and
activism should not be overlooked. It is therefore crucial to learn about, and
from, feminist frameworks that are anti‐oppressive, anti‐racist, anti‐colonial,
and to take up intersectional analysis. Indigenous feminism is an excellent
framework for doing this, though again, it is not the only way. Indigenous
women (and men) whether they take up this framework or not, have been and
continue to be strong activists and dynamic citizens.

45
 2) Introducing Indigenous Feminism

Ask students to discuss the following questions with a partner, and then have
students report back to the entire class:

• What do you think ‘Indigenous feminism’ is/means?

• Who might call themselves an ‘Indigenous feminist’ or use Indigenous
feminist theory?
• What stereotypes do you think exist about Indigenous feminism?
• What questions do you have about Indigenous feminism?
• Who or what gets missed in these answers? What positive ideas
emerged?

Some common stereotypes or misconceptions about Indigenous

feminists include: many of the general ideas noted above (i.e., man‐
hating), Indigenous women who are feminists are harmful to Indigenous
politics and nations, they are colonized, they are like white women, they
want to be like white men, they are concerned only with themselves
rather than the collective. It would be useful to read Joyce Green’s article
noted at the start of this lesson plan so as to productively engage with
ideas about Indigenous feminism, tradition, and politics, as they arise.

Begin to discuss the answers – though many of the questions and issues raised
(especially concerning questions that they might have about Indigenous
feminism) can be returned to in the discussion about Mikomosis. The point of
this exercise is to get assumptions and questions out in the open and to then
work with them throughout the discussion. The above questions are also meant
to show that students will have different ideas about what Indigenous feminism
is and means.

46
There is no one way of describing Indigenous feminism, however there are
some key tenets. For example, intersectional analysis is a vital aspect of this
framework. Approaching issues from an intersectional lens means that the
multitude of social constructs and realities that are operating need to be
accounted for together. Sexist, racist, colonialist, imperialist, and
heteronormative oppression for instance, are forms of marginalization that
operate together and work to sustain one another. Further, sexism exists both
in settler society and in Indigenous communities.20 Subjects cannot be
understood as just women or just Indigenous. While Indigenous people share
many similar experiences and challenges, these experiences can vary along the
lines of how one is gendered, sexed, and depending on class, and ability. Critical
approaches to Indigenous feminism push for engagement with questions about
power, oppression, and privilege as they operate in complex ways.
Decolonization, Indigenous politics, and as discussed below, Indigenous laws,
need to be understood as gendered. This type of analysis should not be thought
of as being just about women and girls, rather it should be understood as
something that is beneficial to all citizens, regardless of how they enact their
gender, as Indigenous feminism promotes respectful, anti‐oppressive relations.

Part 2: Application

This section of the discussion guide builds on the discussions in Part 1, and
applies a feminist framework to Indigenous law, and to analyzing Mikomosis.
Again, if it makes sense for your students, you could have them read Mikomosis
and the Wetiko first, then use the graphic novel to help draw out ideas on how
law is gendered and to draw out ideas on what Indigenous feminism might
mean. In other words, start with this section (Part 2).

Indigenous Feminist Legal Theory

20. See Joyce Green, ed, Making Space for
For an extensive discussion on Indigenous feminist legal theory, see the article Indigenous Feminism (Winnipeg: Fernwood,
(by Emily Snyder) on Indigenous feminist legal theory noted at the start of this 2007).

47
 lesson plan. The summary here is based on that work.

Indigenous feminist legal theory is an analytic tool for critically engaging with
Indigenous laws as gendered. The key aspects of this approach include:

an understanding of indigenous laws and societies as gendered; a

commitment to intersectional analysis; an attentiveness to power
that includes examining how gendered power dynamics play out in
the meanings, perceptions, and practices of indigenous laws; an
approach that is anti‐essentialist and understands gender, sex, and
sexuality as plural and complex; a spirit of critique that challenges
rigid and romanticized notions about tradition, gender roles, and
law.21

Indigenous feminist legal theory is very focused on analyzing gendered power

dynamics. Not only can power imbalances and perceptions about gender
influence legal interpretations and practices, but connected to this, they can
influence the ways that people interpret tradition and culture. Because law
exists in relation to social context, and because sexism is a major social problem
in settler society and in Indigenous communities, Indigenous law must be
21. Emily Snyder, “Indigenous Feminist Legal understood as being capable of both perpetuating gender oppression and
Theory” (forthcoming, 2014) 26:2 Canadian
Journal of Women and the Law. challenging it. In Chapter 1 of this teaching guide, there is a section by Snyder
on shifting assumptions and questions pertaining to gender. These shifts aim to
move past discussions that get stuck in rigid, fundamentalist approaches to
gender and law, to more productive deliberative legal engagement. Indigenous
feminist legal theory values Indigenous laws and deliberative Indigenous legal
processes that support discussion, debate, and dissent – these are vital for being
able to address gendered oppression.

Too frequently gender is not talked about in discussions about Indigenous law.
Another common problem is that when it is talked about, this is often done in
relation to assertions about traditional gender roles and/or ‘women’s issues.’

48
The belief that gender only applies to women, or that the only issues that are of
relevance to women include reproduction, family, connections to the earth, and
violence, can seriously limit discussions. The questions below are not
necessarily intended to be used in your class (though they certainly could be),
but instead are included here to show what types of questions can emerge if we
are paying attention to the way that all citizens are gendered, and are imagining
all legal issues as relevant to women and all gendered legal subjects:

• Who is included in discussions about Indigenous law? Are women

present?
• Who is leading these discussions? What is the gender of the leaders
or of authoritative decision‐makers?
• Are there specific contexts in which men are considered
authoritative speakers and decisions‐makers? Specific contexts in
which women are?
• How are women and men involved in the legal process similarly
and/or differently? What are women talking about? What are men
talking about?
• Is gender talked about? If so, how is it talked about? Is the discussion
limited to two genders? How might the discussion change if gender
was discussed more fluidly?
• If legal decisions are made, are women and men impacted differently
by them? In the short‐term? In the long‐run?
• How are legal principles (for example, respect, reciprocity) talked
about? Is it possible that women and men are not held to these
principles in the same way? Do contradictions exist between what is
being said in principle, and what happens in reality? (see appendix
for Cree legal principle summary)
• What is missing? Does gendered conflict need to be acknowledged? If
it were, how might it change the discussion?

49
 • Are the specific gendered challenges that Indigenous women face
necessary to acknowledge in your analysis? How do you think they
relate (or not) to what you are analyzing?
• Are the legal processes, interpretations, and decisions empowering
for Indigenous women? Do they treat women as complex legal agents
who possess valuable knowledge and opinions?
• Is there space in the legal process for people to disagree with one
another? Is there space for women to challenge the process if need
be?22

Analyzing Mikomosis

If the students have not already read the graphic novel, then provide them with
some time to do so. Ask them to discuss the following questions in pairs or
small groups. Then ask everyone to report back to the larger group for a
collective discussion.

Questions about the graphic novel:

• What would the story look like if told from Sap‐was‐te’s perspective?
Or her daughter’s perspective? (see activity about rewriting story
from Sap‐was‐te’s perspective in Lesson Plan 4)
• In what ways do ideas about motherhood play out in the graphic
novel?
• What do you think about the visual way that gender is portrayed in
the graphic novel?
22. These questions are excerpted from the • What other endings to the story of Mikomosis can you imagine?
Gender and Indigenous Law report by Emily • What do you think about Buffalo Woman and the gender division of
Snyder (http://indigenousbar.ca/ the time travelling court that she represents?
indigenouslaw/wp‐content/uploads/
2013/04/Gender‐and‐Indigenous‐Law‐ • What would be lost in the graphic novel, if gender was not talked
report‐March‐31‐2013‐ESnyder1.pdf). about or addressed? What has been gained?

50
Questions about reading Indigenous law through the lens of Indigenous feminist
legal theory:

• What do you think about one of the main characters, Headache Cho,
being described as an Indigenous feminist trickster?
• Does the graphic novel challenge ideas that you had previously held
about Indigenous feminism? Or does it meet your expectations? How
would you go about writing gender into the story in the graphic
novel?
• Are Indigenous feminist tricksters – that is, figures who push us to
think critically about gender – important? Why or why not? Can you
think of historical and contemporary examples of Indigenous
feminist tricksters? (see box below)
• After all of this discussion and analysis, what do you think about
Indigenous feminism and Indigenous feminist legal theory? What do
you find useful about these frameworks? What troubles you? What
do you still have questions about? Would it be useful to move beyond
a general discussion about ‘Indigenous’ feminism to more specific
feminisms (e.g., articulations of Cree feminisms) so as to engage with
Cree law as gendered? Are there other methods that you would
prefer, and if so, what might these be?

Suggested additional activity:

Napoleon has written elsewhere about this Indigenous feminist trickster
named Headache. Have students read her short essay “My Grandmothers’
Skin,” alongside Mikomosis, to help expand the discussion about Indigenous
feminist tricksters.

Resource information: Val Napoleon, “My Grandmothers’ Skin” in Shari

Graydon, ed, I Feel Great about My Hands: And Other Unexpected Joys of Aging
(Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 2011) 81.

51
 Lesson Plan 4: Exploring Gender and Indigenous Law23

For Youth and Adult Community Learners

This lesson plan is a modified version of a lesson plan from Media Smarts
(http://mediasmarts.ca/sites/default/files/pdfs/lesson‐plan/Lesson_Comic_
Book_Characters.pdf). We have made adaptations, keeping some of the content,
structure, worksheet, and questions, while adding specific questions about
Mikomosis and Cree law.

Through this activity, students will look at how gender is depicted in Mikomosis.
Using the Graphic Novel Analysis Sheet below, students will record the
attributes of the female and male story characters. As a class/group, students
will record common attributes on a master sheet and discuss what messages
about men, women and law are reinforced.

In groups, students will then be asked to rewrite the story from a different
perspective based on their observations about gender (i.e., from Sap‐was‐te’s
perspective, or a Canadian woman who may have been present at the court
proceeding against Mikomosis, or what if Sap‐was‐te had been male, rewritten
from the perspective of Sap‐was‐te’s daughter, etc.)

Learning Outcomes

• Recognize that both Canadian and Cree law have improvements to

make regarding gender equality.
• Understand their own underlying gender perceptions.
• Explore what a less stereotypical, more equal, story/society would
23. Prepared by Lindsay Borrows. look like.

52
Preparation and Materials

• Ensure each student has a copy of Mikomosis (read before class)

• Photocopy the Graphic Novel Analysis Sheet. Make an master‐sheet
for the class, either on the board, paper, or PowerPoint.
• Teachers and facilitators should read Chapter 1 of this teaching guide,
especially the section on gender and reframing questions.

The Lesson

• Have students jot down the characters, their main activities and
some describing words on the Graphic Novel Analysis Sheet.
• Display your Graphic Novel Analysis master sheet. As a class, share
and discuss ideas and observations.

Referring to the group list, ask:

• Are there any similarities shared by female characters? (e.g., are any
of them 'victims' who need saving? Would you describe any of them
as 'sexy'?)
• Are there any similarities shared by male characters? (e.g., are any of
them involved in 'heroic' activities? Are any of them described as
'tough' or 'strong'? Does the portrayal of a character’s gender differ
based on whether they’re Cree or non‐Cree?)
• What is missing in the portrayal of gender in this graphic novel?
(Strong, heroic women? Peaceful, sensitive men? People who
challenge the gender binary?)
• What is the message about women, men and gender that you get
from this graphic novel?
• When thinking about your own gender, how do these portrayals of
people make you feel?

53
 Often in discussions about gender and Indigenous law,
assertions are made about gender roles and tradition. This can
sometimes come out as statements making claims to ‘the way
things are.’ For example, it is often stated that Indigenous
women’s primary way to engage with law is through
motherhood, and that this is an empowering, and traditional
role for women. Sometimes, claims are made about biology,
attesting that women are ‘naturally’ more nurturing than men
and thus it is best to imagine women as mothers and caretakers
of the next generations. However things are not so
straightforward. There are many different ways that
Indigenous women engage with their laws, besides through
motherhood. Also, not all women experience and perceive
motherhood in the same way, and not all women are interested
in mothering. There are also many different interpretations
about tradition. Further, it is really important to look at
assertions that idealize certain roles in society and the realities
that Indigenous women are actually facing.

It is crucial when talking about gender to ask questions about

power and interpretation. These discussions are challenging
and entail discussing what is valuable and useful about gender
roles, as well as where the limitations and constraints might be.
Some people enjoy and are empowered by commonly held
interpretations of gender, while others are marginalized by
dominant interpretations of gender. It is important to have
these discussions with the group that you are working with.

54
Activity (for youth)

Divide class into groups. Ask each group to rewrite a character or part of the
story from a different perspective based on their observations about gender
(i.e., from Sap‐was‐te’s perspective as a female, or perhaps if she had been male
what may have changed, or a non‐Cree woman present at the court proceeding
against Mikomosis, Sap‐was‐te’s daughter’s perspective etc.).

• Draw or paint a picture of your character.

• Identify what your character does.
• List the words that you would use to describe your character.
• Have students present their new character to the class.

55
Name Activities Describing word
Lesson Plan 5: Inter­Societal Understandings of Law24

For Post­Secondary Learners

Mikomosis explores inter‐societal legal realities through its examination of Cree

law and Canadian law in relation to responding to those who are harmful. We
live in a society in which law needs to be understood in the plural – there are a
multitude of legal orders that operate simultaneously in this territory referred
to as Canada. The focus of this discussion guide is on inter‐societal
understandings of law.

Objectives

• To encourage students to think about legal pluralism and what it

means to live in a multi‐juridical society.25
• To push discussion that works with the complexities and tensions
between legal interpretations. The point of the discussion is not to
determine who should ‘win’ in Mikomosis or whose legal
interpretation is correct. Through a focus on multiple
interpretations though, questions should be raised about power,
jurisdiction, legal authority, and participation.
• To encourage students to think about gender norms as they
operate in law and in inter‐societal legal relationships and conflicts.

Materials 24. This lesson plan is an adapted version of a

lesson plan done by Gillian Calder, combined
• Graphic novel for each student. with additional content from Val Napoleon,
Rebecca Johnson, Emily Snyder, and Lindsay
• Large sheets of paper (enough to have 2 for each group). Borrows.
• Markers for briefing exercise. 25. See John Borrows, Canada’s Indigenous
• Or, use the case‐brief template handout below. Constitution (Toronto: University of Toronto
Press, 2010).

57
 Suggested Readings:
• Val Napoleon and Hadley Friedland, “From Roots to
Renaissance,” in Markus Dubber, ed, Oxford Handbook of Criminal
Law (London: Oxford University Press) [forthcoming 2014].
• John Borrows, Canada’ Indigenous Constitution (Toronto:
University of Toronto Press, 2010), particularly chapters 4 & 5).
• Gordon Christie, “Indigenous Legal Theory: Some Initial
Considerations” in Benjamin J Richardson, Shin Imai and Kent
McNeil (Eds.) Indigenous Peoples and the Law: Comparative and
Critical Perspectives (Oregon: Hart Publishing, 2009) 195.

Background

In law we sometimes talk about the facts as if they are straight forward, but we
know they are actually contested. In this lesson plan focused on case‐briefing
and case analysis, the goal is to make visible the various possible
understandings of the story. The exercise here is one way to get at this by using
a source that is more visibly open to multiple readings. The point is also to help
students start thinking about how stories are shaped by the ways the facts are
organized and understood.

If your class has not already received an introduction to Indigenous law, it could
be worthwhile to build this case briefing lesson plan on Lesson Plan 2 in this
guide, which offers an introduction to Indigenous law. We also strongly suggest
that instructors look at and draw on Lesson Plan 3 in this guide, which focuses
on gender, as questions about gender and power are central to discussions
about Indigenous law and are central to the graphic novel and the questions
that it raises.

58
Lesson Activity

If the students have not read Mikomosis prior to class, provide them with some
time to read it. Then ask them to case brief Mikomosis. Case briefing is an
effective way to analyze and organize information, however we encourage you
and your students to think about additional methods for engaging in
substantive, practical analyses of Indigenous laws. A case brief includes pulling
out the following information:

• Issues
• Facts
• Resolutions/Decisions
• Reasons
• Bracket (information that you might have questions about but which
is not necessary to the overall focus of the case brief)

Students can be organized into groups of four or five. Three case briefs should
be done: 1) case brief from the perspective of Cree law, 2) case brief from the
perspective of Canadian state law, 3) case brief that accounts for an inter‐
societal perspective of law. Rather than asking each group to do three case
briefs, it might be more time effective to assign these different perspectives
amongst the groups. After the case briefing is complete, ask students to post
their case briefs on the wall (if using large sheets of paper) or to share their
answers with the class (if using the handout). This sharing should just be a
quick summary to illustrate to one another what emerges when the story is
examined from a different perspective.

Sample case briefs are included at the end of this lesson plan. Please note that
these are just examples to help guide facilitators and teachers. You and the
learners that you are working with might have different answers from these
samples.
59
 Large Group Discussion and Debrief

Below we have provided a list of questions to help lead a discussion. You could
use some or all of the questions, and certainly more questions could be added to
this list.

• What did you experience during this ‘briefing’ exercise?

• How did the main issues change? The relevant facts? How did the
solution change?
• What would happen if people fulfilling Canadian legal roles were
punished or killed for doing so? What would current Canadian law
look like if outsiders condemned the people, structures, and
institutions that were fulfilling legal responsibilities? Would we still
have law? Would you trust the law?
• Buffalo Woman, Loon Woman, and Following Sun were all from
different legal traditions,26 yet were engaging in a discussion about
26. These three characters also come from Cree and state law. Why do you think lawyers from three different
different oral histories: Buffalo Woman is
derived from the character Buffalo Child, though legal traditions were included? What do you think about this? Ask
her gender has been changed. Loon Woman is students to think about the importance of being open to other
from “The Origin of the Wolf Crest” story, and traditions when addressing harm, particularly when the people
Following Sun is from Bird Girl and the Man Who
Followed the Sun (his name was changed in the harming/being harmed are disconnected from their own traditions.
graphic novel). See “Ahtahkakoop Learns the • Debate and the recognition of various interpretations within a legal
Story of Buffalo Child” in Deanna Christensen, tradition are not only realities, but are crucial to the vibrancy and
Ahtahkakoop: The Epic Account of a Plains Cree
Head Chief, His People, and Their Struggle for practical relevance of any legal tradition. How we can begin to be
Survival 1816­1896 (Shell Lake, Sask.: more comfortable with expressions of dissent (working with others
Ahtahkakoop Publishing, 2000), pages 34‐46; even across differences)? In what ways do we need to be attentive
“The Origin of the Wolf Crest” by Mrs. Arthur
Wellington, Port Simpson, recorded by William to power dynamics when engaging in debate and considering
Beynan in 1915, see George F. MacDonald & multiple perspectives?
John J. Cove, Tsimshian Narratives 1: Tricksters, • It is also crucial that questions about gender and power be asked
Shamans, and Heroes (Ottawa: Canadian
Museum of Civilization, 1987), page 67; Velma when analyzing Mikomosis, and when thinking about Indigenous
Wallis, Bird Girl and the Man Who Followed the law more generally. Chapter 1 of the teaching guide and Lesson
Sun (HarperPerennial, New York, 1997). Plan 3 provide introductory resources for this type of discussion,
60
 however, included here are some questions to discuss with
students.
o General questions: What would the story look like if told
from the perspective of Sap‐was‐te? From the perspective
of Sap‐was‐te’s daughter? What do Buffalo Woman’s
arguments about gender bring to the discussion? What
would be lost in Mikomosis if gender was not talked about
or addressed? Why is it important when interpreting
stories, the past, and today’s legal realities, to examine
gendered power dynamics and conflicts within
Indigenous communities and legal orders?
o Questions about gender and inter‐societal legal conflicts:
Why is it important to examine gendered power
dynamics when examining inter‐societal relationships?
What tensions and possibilities exist when talking about
gender norms between cultures and legal orders? What
perceptions exist about motherhood in Cree society? In
Canadian society? In what ways might these ideas factor
into perceptions about Sap‐was‐te and the case of
Mikomosis? What questions about gender does the
graphic novel enable you to ask? What questions and
tensions remain?
• What troubled you about doing the case brief exercise? What do
you think became apparent from analyzing law from an inter‐
societal perspective? From using the case brief method? What
questions and tensions remain?
• It will also be important to draw out the various legal regimes and
social orders that emerge through the story, some of these themes
include: mental health, family law questions surrounding parenting,
criminal law, policing, democratic decision‐making, inter‐societal
law, colonialism and application of law, and the human problems.
61
 There are many more specific ways into discussions about the graphic novel.
Depending on the expertise of the instructor, more detailed discussion could
involve discussions about, for instance, family law, criminal law, policing, or
mental health. Pertaining to mental health, for instance, one could ask: what is
the responsibility of the community to the members struggling with mental or
physical health? Is this a story of post‐partum depression? There are infanticide
provisions in Canada’s Criminal Code, how do these provisions affect your
understanding of this story? In what ways is mental health gendered? What
perceptions and assumptions exist about women’s mental health?

62
Case Brief Template
STORY
SOURCE
ISSUES

FACTS
a) (story)

b) (main harms suffered)

RESOLUTION/DECISIONS

REASONS

BRACKET
CASE BRIEF: CREE LAW PERSPECTIVE
STORY Mikomosis and the Wetiko
SOURCE Mikomosis and the Wetiko, Indigenous Law Research Unit, 2013
ISSUES
• Was Sap‐was‐te treated appropriately? (i.e., was wetiko legal procedure followed properly?)
FACTS

Story:
• It was a cold, harsh winter with little food.
• Sap‐was‐te suffered greater than the others, and turned wetiko/dangerous.
• According to the law, Mikomosis released Sap‐was‐te’s spirit/killed her, so the community
would be safe.
• Canadians wanted to enforce their laws only across the country.
• The story of Mikomosis killing Sap‐was‐te was told and overheard by the RCMP at Fort
Edmonton.
• Mikomosis was arrested, charged with murder under Canadian law, and hanged.
Main harms suffered:
• All the Cree are hungry/cold/hurting.
• Sap‐was‐te shows signs of being a wetiko.
• Sap‐was‐te not helped earlier (i.e., could have recovered if intervention was earlier).
• Mikomosis was hurt in some way by having the responsibility of killing her (he knew he had
to, but wished he didn’t have to carry that with him forever).
• Canadian authorities’ law was violated by Mikomosis’ actions.
• Mikomosis hanged.
• Mikomosis’ family and community left without his skills and presence.

RESOLUTION/DECISIONS

• YES (one possible answer)

• NO (one possible answer)

REASONS

• Reasons for declaring Sap‐was‐te was treated fairly:

• They tried to help Sap‐was‐te from harming herself and others.
• She continued to show dangerous wetiko signs.
• Mikomosis followed procedure to kill her and used the birch bark and burn the body to
release her spirit in the proper way.
• Mikomosis carried the responsibility of that decision forward. He was chosen by her family
to perform the act.
• Reasons for declaring Sap‐was‐te was treated unfairly:
• Not enough was done to prevent Sap‐was‐te from turning wetiko.
• Questionable that enough elders were consulted before the decision took place.
• Gendered decision.

BRACKET
• What does the Cree legal summary have to say about how Mikomosis acted?
CASE BRIEF: CANADIAN LAW PERSPECTIVE
STORY Mikomosis and the Wetiko
SOURCE Mikomosis and the Wetiko, Indigenous Law Research Unit, 2013
ISSUES
 Was Mikomosis treated appropriately?
FACTS

Story:
 It was a cold, harsh winter with little food.
 Sap-was-te suffered greater than the others, and turned wetiko/dangerous.
 According to the law, Mikomosis released Sap-was-te’s spirit/killed her, so the community
would be safe.
 Canadians wanted to enforce their laws throughout the country.
 The story of Mikomosis killing Sap-was-te was told and overheard by the RCMP at Fort
Edmonton.
 Accordingly, Mikomosis was arrested, charged with murder under Canadian law, and
hanged.
Main harms suffered:
 All the Cree are hungry/cold/hurting.
 Sap-was-te shows signs of being a wetiko.
 Canadian authorities’ law was violated by Mikomosis’ actions.
 Mikomosis hanged.
 Mikomosis’ family and community left without his skills and presence.

RESOLUTION/DECISIONS

 YES (one possible answer)

 NO (one possible answer, see underlined reasons below)

REASONS

 Canadians have a duty to enforce their laws in order to provide a unified and fair justice
system in their new and growing country.
 (At the time) the charge for murder is to hang the murderer.
 Canadian law has a duty to consider the whole situation, and understand why the murder
occurred (i.e., defenses available).
 There is also a duty to consider the proportionality of the punishment. In this case it was no
proportional because Mikomosis’ community was left without his skills, input and for no just
reason according to Cree law.

BRACKET

 Would Canadian law today act similarly if Cree law were exercised? What may have
happened today since we don’t use capital punishment?
CASE BRIEF: INTER­SOCIETAL PERSPECTIVE
STORY Mikomosis and the Wetiko
SOURCE Mikomosis and the Wetiko, Indigenous Law Research Unit, 2013
ISSUES
• Did Cree and Canadian law work together to arrive at a fair decision regarding both Sap‐
was‐te and Mikomosis’ murders?
FACTS

Story:
• It was a cold, harsh winter with little food.
• Sap‐was‐te suffered greater than the others, and turned wetiko/dangerous.
• According to Cree law, Mikomosis released Sap‐was‐te’s spirit/killed her, so the community
would be safe.
• Canadians wanted to enforce their laws only across the country.
• The story of Mikomosis killing Sap‐was‐te was told and overheard by the RCMP at Fort
Edmonton.
• Mikomosis was arrested, charged with murder under Canadian law, and hanged.
• Clash between both legal systems.
Main harms suffered:
• All the Cree are hungry/cold/hurting.
• Sap‐was‐te shows signs of being a wetiko.
• Sap‐was‐te not helped earlier (i.e., could have recovered if intervention was earlier).
• Mikomosis was hurt in some way by having the responsibility of killing her (he knew he had
to, but wished he didn’t have to carry that with him forever).
• Canadian authorities’ law was violated by Mikomosis’ actions.
• Mikomosis hanged.
• Mikomosis’ family and community left without his skills and presence.

RESOLUTION/DECISIONS

• NO

REASONS

• Canadians didn’t consider Mikomosis’ actions by seriously looking into the laws he was
operating under.
• The two legal systems overlooked one another, to the primary detriment of the Cree
community involved.

BRACKET

• Do I agree whether the time travelling court helped remedy this gap between the two legal
systems? What about Authentic’s input?
 Lesson Plan 6: How to Draw Law out of Stories27

For Youth and Community Learners

Overview

In law school, students learn ways of reading stories/cases and drawing out the
law. A common method is called ‘the IRAC method.’ While reading the story,
students write down the main issues, facts, resolutions and conclusions.
Teaching the basics of case briefing to students, will allow them to look at the
graphic novel and consciously apply legal reasoning skills.

Learning Outcomes:

• Learn how to case brief.

• Understand one way of drawing law out of stories.
• Begin to articulate what law is in a more holistic way.
• Learn one way of understanding Indigenous legal processes and
reasoning.
• Demystify how Canadian law is learned in law schools.

Preparation and Materials:

• Provide each student with a copy of Mikomosis and the Wetiko (to
be read before the class).
• Print/photocopy and give the students a handout copy of the case
brief template (found in Lesson Plan 5).
• Have students fill out the case brief (issues, facts,
responses/resolutions, reasons, etc.) the best they can before
meeting as a group.
• Get giant pieces of paper for case briefing in groups.
27. Prepared by Lindsay Borrows.

68
Lesson Activity

• Ask the students – what comes to your mind when you think of
law? When was the first time you learned about ‘law’ generally?
• Explain that law can be thought of as a way of resolving disputes. It
is found not just in courts, or with lawyers and judges. In Cree law
for example (the legal tradition found in the graphic novel), law is
also found in song, dance, stories, language and hunting.
o See: Creating New Stories: Aseniwuche Winewak Nation
and the Accessing Justice and Reconciliation Project
Presents Indigenous Legal Traditions on Reconciliation
available at:
http://keegitah.wordpress.com/2014/04/02/awn‐gath
ered‐together‐at‐trc‐national‐conference‐edmonton/.
• Split up learners into groups of 3‐5.
• Have learners work together to write on the big pieces of paper,
and relying on their own work they did with the case briefing, to
collaborate and put down what they saw as the main issues, facts,
responses, and reasons. They will do this for the three perspectives
including Canadian law, Cree law, and Inter‐societal law.
• Bring the learners back together to present what they found
discussing, for example, what new things they learned, how they
found the process of seeing law in the stories, what was difficult or
easy, how did this change the way they read the story?
o Refer to Post‐Secondary Lesson Plan 5 to draw further
questions you think students will be responsive to.

69
 Actively Reading Visual Content in Graphic Novels

For an introduction to active reading and graphic novels, we recommend that

facilitators and teachers take a look at Brian Kelley’s report entitled “Sequential
Art, Graphic Novels, & Comics” (in particular, his section on active reading
strategies).28 Kelley provides examples of strategies that can be deployed prior,
during, and after lessons with graphic novels. He also includes a list of
additional resources about graphic novels, which may be of interest to
educators and learners.29

A vital aspect of reading Mikomosis requires engaging not only with textual
content but with visual content as well. Actively reading the visual aspects of
Mikomosis can be done with all of the learner groups and can be incorporated
into any of the lesson plans in this teaching guide. The images could be analyzed
through group discussion or written responses, but can also be engaged with
visually. For example, Kelley notes that one activity that can be done includes
sketch responses. He explains, “[s]tudents can also sketch reactions to the book,
helping them to practice interpreting the text or conveying ideas by creating
images.”30 This type of activity would work well with many aspects of
Mikomosis – for instance:

• sketch a response to one particular image that stands out;

28. Brian Kelley, “Sequential Art, Graphic Novels, • consider if any of the images seem incomplete or need to be revised
& Comics,” a collaborative position paper co‐
sponsored the New Jersey Reading Association, (is something or someone missing? How would you draw character
state affiliate of the International Reading X?) and respond with a sketch;
Association and Science Fiction, Fantasy, and • when considering questions in the lesson plans about alternate
Graphic Novels Special Interest Group of the
International Reading Association (online at: endings to Mikomosis – ask them to visually represent an alternate
http://teachingliterature.pbworks.com ending.
/f/NJ_Graphic_Novel_Paper.pdf),
see pages 15‐17.
29. See pages 20‐21. The sketches that get created could be just that – rough/imperfect images – as
30. Page 16. the point of the exercise is focused on visual engagement and how this enables

70
one to think (or challenges one!). People can sometimes be shy about their art
and own artistic abilities, so we suggest that you ask learners to take up visual
activities, but to also give them the space to decide if they are comfortable
sharing their art or not. Regardless of whether learners show their art, you
could ask everyone to reflect on the process, what worked, what was
challenging, and what they learned. For post‐secondary students, art is often
not used in the classroom outside of art departments and you could engage in
discussion that encourages students to reflect on art as a mode of inquiry and
communication. For instance, you could ask: what is the relationship between
art and law? How can art be used to understand law? To challenge assumptions
and stereotypes? In what ways is art related to indigenous legal traditions? How
is/can art (and other creative means) be part of rebuilding indigenous legal
orders?

It can also be instructive to read the images in Mikomosis in relation to other

images – to create a visual conversation of sorts. We have included Val
Napoleon’s kokum ravens throughout this teaching guide, in addition to images
from the graphic novel, as we think that these grandmother indigenous feminist
tricksters provoke important discussion about indigenous law (see the Artists
Statement on page 103). There are countless ways that images can be read
alongside one another (for example, ask students to examine mainstream media
representations of indigenous peoples and law compared to the images found in
Mikomosis), and endless possibilities for using art to learn and provoke
discussion. We hope that this very brief introduction offers some ideas for
getting started.

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 Additional Activities Using the Cree Legal Synthesis Summary

For Post­Secondary Learners

In the supplemental materials section (on page 81) you will find the Cree Legal
Synthesis Summary, a document that was developed from the AJR research
project. That document is only a summary of a much larger report, however, it
is useful for engaging in additional activities with the graphic novel. There are
legal principles argued and acted on throughout the graphic novel. Some of
these appear in the summary document. These activities could be added or
incorporated into the post‐secondary lesson plans above.

Work with the person beside you. Look through the summary, at the ‘Legal
Responses’ category.

• Which principles can you identify being argued or implemented in

the graphic novel?
• Pick another category from the summary (e.g., ‘Legal Obligations’).
Which of these can be found or are implemented in the graphic
novel?

Expanding the Discussion:

Lesson Plan 3 includes information about the importance of approaching

Indigenous legal subjects and laws as gendered. Have students read the
questions on pages 49 to 50 of that lesson plan. Ask them to think about these
questions in relation to the legal processes, responses and resolutions, legal
obligations, legal rights, and legal principles.

72
For Youth and Community Learners

Using the Cree Legal Synthesis Summary, have learners apply Cree legal
principles to a new story. You could find one of your own (in the news, or some
other conflict students had studied about intra/inter community harms), and
have students act as legal counsel. They could act out their ideas similar to
Buffalo Woman, Following Sun, Loon Woman and Headache Cho, in the time
travelling court. Alternatively you could use another publicly available wetiko
story (for example see Basil Johnston’s Ojibway Heritage).

Another option is to have the learners consider what substantive and

procedural rights (see glossary) they would have under Cree law if they were
charged with causing harm.

These creative activities will allow learners to understand further how law is
made. They will gain a deeper appreciation of the argumentative and creative
skills necessary for creating a solid argument. It also fosters a deeper
understanding that every day we make decisions according to principles we
already have in our own heads largely according to what we’ve been taught.
When those principles differ, it can be interesting to see what new responses to
challenges may be available.

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 Additional Background Reading List

For additional resources see: http://indigenousbar.ca/indigenouslaw/project‐

documents/

The following resources are recommended for those interested in learning

more about this and other approaches to engaging with Indigenous legal
traditions:

Isabel Altamirano‐Jiménez, “Nunavut: Whose Homeland, Whose Voices?” in

Patricia A. Monture & Patricia D. McGuire, eds, First Voices: An Aboriginal
Women’s Reader (Toronto: Inanna Publications, 2009) 143.

Amnesty International, “No More Stolen Sisters: The Need For A Comprehensive
Response to Discrimination and Violence Against Indigenous Women in
Canada” (London, 2009, online: http://www.amnesty.ca/sites/default/files/
amr200122009enstolensistersupdate.pdf).

Raymond D. Austin, Navaho Courts and Navaho Common Law: A Tradition of

Tribal Self­Governance (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2009).

Joanne Barker, “Gender, Sovereignty, Rights: Native Women’s Activism against

Social Inequality and Violence in Canada” (2008) 60:2 American Quarterly 259.

CF Black, The Land is the Source of the Law: A Dialogic Encounter with
Indigenous Jurisprudence (New York: Routledge, 2011).

John Borrows, “Physical Philosophy: Mobility and the Future of Indigenous

Rights” in Benjamin J Richardson, Shin Imai & Kent McNeil, eds, Indigenous
Peoples and the Law: Comparative and Critical Perspectives (Oregon: Hart
Publishing, 2009) 403.

76
John Borrows, Canada’s Indigenous Constitution (Toronto: University of Toronto
Press, 2010).

John Borrows, Drawing Out Law (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2010).

John Borrows, “(Ab)Originalism and Canada’s Constitution” (2012) 58 Supreme

Court Law Review 351.

Gordon Christie, “Indigenous Legal Theory: Some Initial Considerations” in

Benjamin J Richardson, Shin Imai & Kent McNeil, eds, Indigenous Peoples and the
Law: Comparative and Critical Perspectives (Oregon: Hart Publishing, 2009) 195.

Aimée Craft, Breathing Life into the Stone Fort Treaty: An Anishinabe
Understanding of Treaty One (Saskatoon: Purich Publishing, 2013).

Matthew Fletcher, “Rethinking the Role of Custom in Tribal Court

Jurisprudence” (2007‐2008) 13 Michigan Journal of Race and Law 57.

Hadley Friedland, “Reflective Frameworks: Methods for Accessing,

Understanding and Applying Indigenous Laws” (2013) 11:2 Indigenous Law
Journal 1.

Hadley Friedland & Val Napoleon, “Gathering the Threads: Developing a

Methodology for Researching and Rebuilding Indigenous Legal Traditions”
(forthcoming).

Joyce Green, ed, Making Space for Indigenous Feminism (Winnipeg: Fernwood,
2007).

77
 Joyce Green, “Taking Account of Aboriginal Feminism” In Joyce Green, ed,
Making Space for Indigenous Feminism (Winnipeg: Fernwood Publishing, 2007)
20.

Kiera Ladner, “Gendering Decolonisation, Decolonising Gender” (2009) 13

Australian Indigenous Law Review 62.

Law Commission of Canada, Justice Within: Indigenous Legal Traditions, DVD

(Ottawa: Minister of Supply and Services Canada, 2006).

Renée McBeth, Revitalizing Indigenous Laws: Accessing Justice and

Reconciliation. A report prepared for the Indigenous Law Research Unit,
Indigenous Bar Association, Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada,
2013. Available online at http://indigenousbar.ca/indigenouslaw/wp‐
content/uploads/2013/04/RM‐Final‐Descriptive‐report‐Oct‐2012‐Laws‐
conf.pdf

Luke McNamara, “The Locus of Decision‐Making Authority in Circle Sentencing:

The Significance of Criteria and Guideline” (2000) 18 Windsor Yearbook of
Access to Justice 60.

Val Napoleon, “Aboriginal Discourse: Gender, Identity and Community” in

Benjamin J Richardson, Shin Imai & Kent McNeil, eds, Indigenous Peoples and the
Law: Comparative and Critical Perspectives (Oregon: Hart Publishing, 2009) 233.

Val Napoleon, “My Grandmothers’ Skin” in Shari Graydon, ed, I Feel Great about
My Hands: And Other Unexpected Joys of Aging (Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre,
2011) 81.

Val Napoleon, “Thinking About Indigenous Legal Orders” in René Provost &
Colleen Sheppard, eds, Dialogues on Human Rights and Legal Pluralism (New
York: Springer, 2013) 229.
78
Val Napoleon & Hadley Friedland, “An Inside Job: Engaging With Indigenous
Legal Traditions Through Stories” in Tony Lucero & Dale Turner, eds, Oxford
Handbook on Indigenous Peoples’ Politics (Oxford: Oxford University Press,
forthcoming 2014).

Val Napoleon & Hadley Friedland, “From Roots to Renaissance,” in Markus

Dubber, ed, Oxford Handbook of Criminal Law (Oxford: Oxford University Press,
forthcoming 2014).

Justin B. Richland, Arguing with Tradition: The Language of Law in Hopi Tribal
Court (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2008).

Rupert Ross, Returning to the Teachings: Exploring Aboriginal Justice (Toronto:

Penguin, 1996).

Pat Sekaquaptewa, “Key Concepts in the Finding, Definition and Consideration

of Custom Law in Tribal Lawmaking” (2007‐2008) 32 American Indian Law
Review 319.

Kerry Sloan, A Global Survey of Legal Education and Research. A report prepared
for the Indigenous Law Research Unit, Indigenous Bar Association, Truth and
Reconciliation Commission of Canada, 2013. Available online at
http://indigenousbar.ca/indigenouslaw/wp‐content/uploads/2013/04/KLS‐
World‐Indigenous‐Legal‐Education‐Complete.pdf

Emily Snyder, “Indigenous Feminist Legal Theory” (forthcoming 2014) 26:2

Canadian Journal of Women and the Law.

Emily Snyder, Gender and Indigenous Law. A report prepared for the Indigenous
Law Research Unit, Indigenous Bar Association, Truth and Reconciliation
Commission of Canada, 13 March 2013. Available at

79
 http://indigenousbar.ca/indigenouslaw/wp‐content/uploads/2013/04/Gen
der‐and‐Indigenous‐Law‐report‐March‐31‐2013‐ESnyder1.pdf

Verna St. Denis, “Feminism is for Everybody: Aboriginal Women, Feminism and
Diversity” in Joyce Green, ed, Making Space for Indigenous Feminism (Winnipeg:
Fernwood Publishing, 2007) 33.

Theses and Dissertations

Hadley Friedland, The Wetiko (Windigo) Legal Principles: Responding to

Harmful People in Cree, Anishinabek and Saulteaux Societies – Past,
Present and Future Uses, with a Focus on Contemporary Violence and Child
Victimization Concerns (LLM thesis, University of Alberta, 2009).

Tracey Lindberg, Critical Indigenous Legal Theory, (PhD dissertation,

University of Ottawa, 2007).

Val Napoleon, Gitksan Legal Order, Law, and Legal Theory (PhD
dissertation, University of Victoria, 2009).

Emily Snyder, Representations of Women in Cree Legal Educational

Resources: An Indigenous Feminist Theoretical Analysis (PhD dissertation,
University of Alberta, 2014).

Wetiko Case Law

R. v. Machekequonabe [1897] O.J. No. 98, 2 C.C.C. 138.

PAA Acc: 79.266/126 Box 1. Edmonton Supreme Court Files: R v. Michel

and Cecil Courtreille.

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Cree Legal Synthesis Summary

Cree Legal Synthesis: Examples of Some Legal Principles Applied to Harms

and Conflicts between Individuals within a Group Available online at:
http://indigenousbar.ca/indigenouslaw/wp‐content/uploads/2012/12/Cree‐
Summary‐of‐Legal‐Principles.pdf

1. Legal Processes: Characteristics of legitimate decision‐making/problem‐

solving processes

a. Authoritative Decision­Makers: Who had the final say?

General Re­Statements of Law:

Authoritative Decision­Makers include:
a. Medicine People:
• Medicine People who have specialized spiritual and medicine
knowledge are relied upon and sought out to use their power to
address harms and protect the community: Killing of a Wife; Anway;
Water Serpent; The Hairy Heart People; AWN Interview #2.31
b. Elders:
• When there is a risk of danger, or harm, if Elders have greater
knowledge, they may collectively act or direct action to prevent harm
and protect people: AWN Interview #2; Water Serpent; AWN Interview
#2; AWN Interview #3.
• Where there is an interpersonal conflict, but no immediate danger or
risk of harm to people, Elders take on a more persuasive role: AWN
31. See the full report online for further details
Interview #4. and full citations (http://indigenousbar.ca/
indigenouslaw/wp‐content/uploads/2012/12/
Cree‐Summary‐of‐Legal‐Principles.pdf).

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 c. Family Members:
• The family members of the person who has caused harm may act to
remedy the harm or to prevent further harm from occurring when
necessary: Indian Laws; Mistacayawis; Thunder Women.
• Family members may take a pro‐active role to prevent harm from
occurring: AWN Interview #2; AWN Interview #4.
• Family members take a persuasive role in resolving interpersonal
conflict: AWN Interview #4.
d. Group:
• Important decisions for community safety are made collectively by a
group: Mi­She­Shek­Kak; AWN Interview #3; AWN Interview #2; AWN
Interview #5.

b. Procedural Steps: What were the steps involved in determining a response

or action?

General Re­Statements of Law:

While the order of these steps is not rigid, and not every step is present in
every account, there are several steps that emerge as important for ensuring
a response or resolution is seen as legitimate and effective. These are:

1. Recognizing warning signals that harm may be developing or has

occurred: The Hairy Heart People; Mistacayawis; AWN Interview #2; Killing
of a Wife; AWN Anonymous Interview #5; AWN Interview: Marie McDonald.

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 2. Warning others of the potential harm and taking appropriate safety
precautions to keep people within the group as safe as possible: The Hairy
Heart People; Mi­She­Shek­Kak; Mistacayawis; AWN Interview #1; AWN
Interview: Marie McDonald; AWN Interview #2.
3. Seeking guidance from those with relevant understanding and expertise:
Indian Laws; Anway; The Water Serpent; The Thunder Women; The Hairy Heart
People; AWN Interview #1; AWN Interview #4; AWN Interview: Joe Karakuntie;
AWN Interview #2.
4. Observation and corroborating evidence: The Hairy Heart People; AWN
Interview #2; Killing of a Wife; Mistacayawis.
5. Public confrontation and deliberation by appropriate decision­makers
when possible: Indian Laws; Killing of a Wife; Mistacayawis; AWN Interview
#4; AWN Interview: Joe Karakuntie; Thunderwomen; AWN Interview #1; AWN
Interview#2.
6. The appropriate decision­makers are identified and implement a
response. This may be a pre­emptive response in some cases: Indian
Laws; Anway; The Water Serpent; Mi­She­Shek­Kak; Whitiko and the Weasel;
Mistacayawis; AWN Interview #2; AWN Interview: Joe Karakuntie.

2. Legal Responses and Resolutions: What principles govern appropriate

responses to legal/ human issue?

General Re­Statements of Law:

The Principle of Healing:

• When someone is becoming or has become harmful or dangerous to others,

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 the predominant and preferred response is healing of that person: The Hairy
Heart People; AWN Interview: Joe Karakuntie; AWN Interview #2.

The Principle of Avoidance or Separation:

• When healing is not possible, a group may respond to a harmful actor by
moving away from or actively avoiding him or her in order to maintain group
safety: The Giant Skunk; The Hairy Heart People; AWN Interview: Robert
Wanyandie; AWN Interview: Marie McDonald; AWN Interview: Joe Karakuntie.
• A person becoming harmful or causing harm may be temporarily separated
from the group to prevent harm to others: AWN Interview: Joe Karakuntie;
AWN Interview #2.
• After multiple interventions by multiple people fail to resolve the issue, active
avoidance of an individual, family or group may be used to deliberately send a
message of disagreement or of disapproval of inappropriate or harmful
behaviour: AWN Interview #4.
• Avoidance can be employed to avoid the escalation of conflicts, where the
conflict might cause more harm than the original concern: Indian Laws; AWN
Interview #2; AWN Interview #5; AWN Interview #4.

The Principle of Acknowledging Responsibility as Remedy:

• A wrong‐doer can remedy harms by taking responsibility, apologizing, and
seeking forgiveness directly from the person harmed: AWN Interview #1; AWN
Interview #4.
• A wrong‐doer, or their family, can remedy harms by paying compensation or
restitution directly to the person harmed, or to their family: Indian Laws; AWN
Interview #1.

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The Principle of Re­Integration:
• When possible and safe to do so, a person who has committed harms, even
grave harms, is integrated or reintegrated back into the community as a fully
functioning group member: The Hairy Heart People; Thunderbird Women; AWN
Interview: Joe Karakuntie; AWN Interview #2; AWN Interview #1.
• Re‐integration includes ongoing observation and monitoring the person for
warning signs he or she may be becoming harmful again: The Hairy Heart
People; AWN Interview #2.

The Principle of Natural or Spiritual Consequences:

• In some cases, the legitimate response to someone causing harm is to step
back and allow the person who caused the harm to experience the natural or
spiritual consequences of his or her action. These consequences are usually
proportionate to the harm caused, but may be quite severe: The Man who was
Bitten by Mosquitoes; Killing of a Wife; AWN Interview #1; AWN Interview #4.
• Individuals use their knowledge of this principle to guide their own actions,
and avoid causing or escalating harm: AWN Interview #5; AWN Interview:
Robert Wanyandie.
• However, in some cases, people may take action to facilitate these
consequences to respond to harms: AWN Interview #4.
• Natural and Spiritual Consequences for misuse or bad use of Medicine can also
fall on the wrongdoer’s family: AWN Interview #1; AWN Interview #5.

The Principle of Incapacitation:

• In older stories, or historically, in cases of extreme and ongoing harm, where
no other response could keep the group safe and prevent future harms, a
harmful agent would sometimes be have to be incapacitated (executed) as a
last resort: The Giant Skunk; Anway; The Hairy Heart People; Mistacayawis.

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 3. Legal Obligations: What principles govern individual and collective
responsibilities? Where are the “shoulds”?

General Re­Statements of Law:

Responsibility to Help:
• People are responsible to help when asked if they are capable of doing so, and
to ask for help when they are not: The Giant Skunk; Wasakeechaak Tricks the
Bear; Whitiko and the Weasel; Water Serpent; Anway; Killing of a Wife; Indian
Laws; The Hairy Heart People; The Thunder Women; AWN Interview #1; AWN
Interview #2; AWN Interview: Joe Karakuntie; AWN Interview #5.
• The responsibility to help extends to helping people from other groups as well:
The Hairy Heart People; AWN Interview: Marie McDonald; AWN Interview #1;
AWN Interview #3; AWN Interview #4.

Responsibility to Give Back:

• People are responsible to give back something for help they ask for or receive:
Whitikow and the Weasel; AWN Interview #1; AWN Interview: Joe Karakuntie;
AWN Interview #5; AWN Interview: Marie McDonald.

Responsibility to Prevent Future Harms:

• People are responsible to find ways to stop ongoing harms and prevent or
mitigate future harms when necessary: The Giant Skunk; The Water Serpent;
Anway; Mistacayawis; The Hairy Heart People; Indian Laws; The Thunder
Women.

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Responsibility to Warn:
• People are responsible to warn others once they are aware of a potential
danger or risk of harm: The Giant Skunk; The Hairy Heart People;
Mistacayawis; AWN Interview #1; AWN Interview #2; AWN Interview: Marie
McDonald; AWN Interview: Robert Wanyandie.

4. Legal Rights: What should people be able to expect from others?

a. Substantive

General Re­Statements of Law:

The Right to Protection/Safety:

• This right can be inferred from the inverse obligation to protect people
from future harms and to warn others of danger or potential harm (See –
Responsibility to Protect from Future Harms: The Giant Skunk; The Water
Serpent; Anway; Mistacayawis; The Hairy Heart People; Indian Laws; The
Thunder Women, and the Responsibility to Warn: The Giant Skunk; The
Hairy Heart People; Mistacayawis; AWN Interview #1; AWN Interview #2;
AWN Interview: Marie McDonald; AWN Interview: Robert Wanyandie).

The Right to be Helped when Incapable/Vulnerable:

• This right can be inferred from the inverse obligation to help those when
capable and to ask for help when incapable or vulnerable (See –
Responsibility to Help: The Giant Skunk; Wasakeechaak Tricks the Bear;
Whitiko and the Weasel; Water Serpent; Anway; Killing of a Wife; Indian
Laws; The Hairy Heart People; The Thunder Women; AWN Interview #1;
AWN Interview #2; AWN Interview: Joe Karakuntie; AWN Interview #5; The
Hairy Heart People; AWN Interview: Marie McDonald; AWN Interview #1;
AWN Interview #3).

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 b. Procedural

General Re­Statements of Law:

The Right to have warning signals corroborated by observation or evidence

before action is taken:
• In all cases, where people recognize warning signals that a person may be
becoming harmful, or may have committed harms, no action is taken unless
this is corroborated by observation and evidence: The Hairy Heart People;
Killing of a Wife; Mistacayawis; AWN Interview #2.

The Right to be Heard:

• People who have caused harm, people who have observed harm, and people
who have experienced harm have the opportunity to be heard whenever
possible prior to a response or resolution: Indian Laws; Killing of a Wife;
Thunder Women; AWN Interview#4; AWN Interview: Joe Karakuntie.
• Someone who has acknowledged their wrongdoing and is sincerely seeking
resolution, is given the opportunity to be heard: Indian Laws; Thunder Women;
AWN Interview #1.

The Right for decisions to be made through open collective deliberation guided
by appropriate consultation:
• In all cases where it is possible, decisions about responses or resolutions to
harm or conflict are made through an open deliberative process, guided by
appropriate consultation with those with relevant knowledge or expertise: The
Giant Skunk; The Water Serpent; Anway; Mistacayawis; AWN Anonymous
Interview #2.

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5. General Underlying Principles: What underlying or recurrent themes
emerge in the stories and interviews that might not be captured above?

General Re­Statements of Law:

The Principle of Fluid and Contextualized Responsiveness
The Principle of Acknowledging and Valuing Relationships
The Principle of Reciprocity and Interdependence

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 British Columbia Education Curricular Outcomes

Mikomosis and the Wetiko Graphic Novel and Teaching Guide may be connected
to the British Columbia Education curricular outcomes.

BC First Nations Studies 12

https://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/pdfs/social_studies/2006bcfns12.pdf

Rationale: “The course provides an opportunity for BC students to acquire

knowledge and understanding of the traditions, history, and present realities of
BC Aboriginal peoples, as well as a chance to consider future challenges and
opportunities... It is intended to provide a conceptual foundation for all learners
to develop an appreciation and respect for the similarities among and
differences between the diverse cultures of the world. As such, it will help to
promote understanding of First Nations peoples among all students.” (p.3)

The curriculum guide focuses on Aboriginal cultures, values, beliefs, traditions,

history, languages, and land. The graphic novel sheds light on these topics and
gives students a sense of the leadership and self‐determination efforts that are
occurring today.

Civic Studies 11
https://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/pdfs/social_studies/2005civicstudies11.pdf

Unit 4: Culture, Language, Heritage and Community

“In this unit, students will research events related to the theme of culture,
language, and community; examine the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and its
reflection of the fundamental principles of democracy; and examine the history
of the Canadian social safety net. All of these activities will be done with a focus
on understanding how individual events can lead to the creation of a national
identity. From this work, students will formulate their own answers to the

90
question, ‘What does it mean to be a Canadian citizen?’” (p. 81)

Suggested lesson activities include allowing the students to define Aboriginal,

English Canadian, French Canadian, and women’s rights. (p.83)

English 10, 11 and 12: First Peoples

https://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/pdfs/english_language_arts/2010efp1011.pdf

This course “provides opportunities for all students to learn about and engage
with: indigenous creative expression” and “the worlds of First Peoples
provincially, nationally, and internationally. These courses focus on the
experiences, values, beliefs, and lived realities of First Peoples as evidenced in
various forms of text – including oral story, speech, poetry, dramatic work,
dance, song, film, and prose (fiction and non‐fiction).” (p.11)

Law 12
https://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/pdfs/social_studies/2006law12.pdf

“Citizens should know their legal rights and responsibilities. Knowledge of the
law is presupposed in our legal system, as illustrated by the maxim, ‘ignorance
of the law is no excuse.’ It follows that students should understand how laws are
applied and reviewed.

The relevance of legal studies extends beyond students’ need to know about the
legal system and content of law. Students also need to understand the role of
law and the benefits of the legal system. Legally literate students are more likely
to become active, informed, and productive citizens, and are better equipped to
participate effectively in a democratic society and recognize what conduct is
regulated by law.

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 Law 12 fosters skills and attitudes that enhance students’ abilities to address
legal, social, and ethical issues, and reflect critically on the role of law in society.
The study of law also promotes the skills and abilities needed to clearly express
ideas, argue effectively and logically, and accurately interpret the written word.”
(p.3)

Social Justice 12:

https://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/pdfs/social_studies/2008socialjustice12.pdf

“The goals of Social Justice 12 are to enable students to

• acquire knowledge that allows them to recognize and understand the

causes of injustice
• apply critical thinking and ethical reasoning skills to a variety of social
justice issues
• develop an understanding of what it means to act in a socially just
manner
• become responsible agents of change, making positive contributions
toward a socially just world.” (p.11)

Visual Arts 11 and 12: Media Arts

https://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/pdfs/arts_education/1997visualarts1112_me
diaarts.pdf

“The art of image making is a unique and powerful human endeavour. In visual
arts, images give shape and meaning to ideas and feelings. Images take many
forms and transcend boundaries of time, culture, and language. Image
development involves students in a design process—a purposeful and inventive
artistic activity involving the use of a variety of materials, technologies, and
processes to organize visual elements according to principles of art and design.
Visual arts education in grades 11 and 12 builds on previous learning by
providing students with a range of opportunities in the visual arts and by
responding to each student’s particular needs and interests.” (p.1)

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Alberta Education Curricular Outcomes

The following information was originally gathered to accompany Lesson Plan 1

and was provided by: Dana Antaya‐Moore, Alberta Education; Margaretha
Ebbers, Alberta Education; Jaeda Feddama, Northlands School Division and
Heidi Kongsrud, Grande Yellowhead School Division.

Mikomosis and the Wetiko may be connected to the following Alberta Education
curricular outcomes:

Social Studies Kindergarten to Grade 12

Program Rationale and Philosophy

Values and Attitudes

Social studies provides learning opportunities for students to:

• value the diversity, respect the dignity and support the equality of all
human beings
• demonstrate social compassion, fairness and justice
• appreciate and respect how multiple perspectives, including Aboriginal
and Francophone, shape Canada’ s political, socio‐ economic, linguistic
and cultural realities
• honour and value the traditions, concepts and symbols that are the
expression of Canadian identity

Knowledge and Understanding

Social studies provides learning opportunities for students to:

• understand their rights and responsibilities in order to make informed

decisions and participate fully in society
• understand the unique nature of Canada and its land, history,
93
 complexities and current issues
• understand how knowledge of the history of Alberta, of Canada and of
the world, contributes to a better comprehension of contemporary
realities
• understand historic and contemporary issues, including controversial
issues, from multiple perspectives
• understand the diversity of Aboriginal traditions, values and attitudes
• understand contemporary challenges and contributions of Aboriginal
peoples in urban, rural, cultural and linguistic settings
• understand how political and economic distribution of power affects
individuals, communities and nations
• understand the role of social, political, economic and legal institutions
as they relate to individual and collective well‐being and a sustainable
society

Social Studies and Aboriginal Perspectives and Experiences

For historical and constitutional reasons, an understanding of Canada requires
an understanding:

• of Aboriginal perspectives
• of Aboriginal experiences
• that Aboriginal students have particular needs and requirements.

Central to Aboriginal identity are languages and cultures that link each group
with its physical world, worldviews and traditions. The role of Elders and
community leaders is essential in this linkage.

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The social studies program of studies provides learning opportunities that
contribute to the development of self‐esteem and identity in Aboriginal
students by:

• promoting and encouraging a balanced and holistic individual and

individual capacity
• strengthening, honouring and valuing the traditions, concepts and
symbols that are the expression of their identity
• providing opportunities for students to express who they are with
confidence as they interact and engage with others
• contributing to the development of active and responsible members of
groups and communities.

Pluralism: Diversity and Cohesion

Diversity contributes to the development of a vibrant democratic society.
Through the interactions of place and historical processes of change, diversity
has been an important asset in the evolution of Canadian society. Some key
manifestations of this diversity include:

• First Nations, Inuit and Métis cultures

General and Specific Outcomes:

Social Studies 4
General Outcome 4.2
The Stories, Histories and Peoples of Alberta

Students will demonstrate an understanding and appreciation of the role of

stories, history and culture in strengthening communities and contributing to
identity and a sense of belonging.

95
 4.2.2 assess, critically, how the cultural and linguistic heritage and
diversity of Alberta has evolved over time by exploring and reflecting
upon the following questions and issues:
• How did British institutions provide the structure for the settlement
of newcomers in Alberta (i.e., North West Mounted Police, schools,
lieutenant‐governor, Assembly of the Northwest Territories)? (GC, I,
PADM, TCC)

Social Studies 5
General Outcome 5.2
Histories and Stories of Ways of Life in Canada

Students will demonstrate an understanding of the people and stories of Canada

and their ways of life over time, and appreciate the diversity of Canada’s
heritage.

5.2.7 examine, critically, how the North West Mounted Police shaped the
ways of life in Canada by exploring and reflecting upon the following
questions and issues:
• What stories of the North West Mounted Police tells us about the
settlement and development of western and northern Canada? (LPP,
PADM)
• How have stories of the North West Mounted Police shaped the
identity in western and northern Canada? (I, TCC, PADM)

Social Studies 6
General Outcome
Students will demonstrate an understanding and appreciation of the dynamic
relationship between governments and citizens as they engage in the
democratic process.

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Specific Outcomes
Values and Attitudes
Students will
6.1.1 recognize how individuals and governments interact and bring
about change within their local and national communities.
• Value the role of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in
protecting individual and collective rights and freedoms
• Recognize the influence of historical events and legislation on
democratic decision making in Canada.

Knowledge and Understanding

6.1.6 analyze how individuals, groups and associations within a
community impact decision making of local and provincial governments
by exploring and reflecting up the following questions and issues:
• How can individuals, groups and associations within a community
participate in the decision‐making process regarding current events
or issues (i.e., lobbying, petitioning, organizing and attending local
meetings and rallies, contacting elected representatives)?
• How do associations do associations such as the Association
canadienne‐francaise de l’Alberta, the Métis Nation of Alberta
Association and the First Nations Authorities provide their members
with a voice, at local and provincial levels, exercising historical and
constitutional rights?
• In what ways do elected officials demonstrate their accountability to
the electorate (e.g., respond to constituents, participate in local events,
represent and express in government meetings the concerns of
constituents)?

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 Social Studies 7
General Outcome 7.2
Following Confederation: Canadian Expansions

Students will demonstrate an understanding and appreciation of how the

political, demographic, economic and social changes that have occurred since
Confederation have presented challenges and opportunities for individuals and
communities.

7.2.5 evaluate the impact of Confederation and of subsequent immigration

on Canada from 1867 to the First World War by exploring and reflecting
upon the following questions and issues:
• What was the role of the North West Mounted Police in the
development of western Canada? (PADM, TCC)

Social Studies 9
General Outcome 9.1
Issues for Canadians: Governance and Rights

Students will demonstrate an understanding and appreciation of how Canada’s

political processes impact citizenship and identity in an attempt to meet the
needs of all Canadians.

9.1.5 analyze the role that citizens and organizations play in Canada’s
justice system by exploring and reflecting upon the following questions
and issues:
• How do citizens and organizations participate in Canada’s justice
system (i.e., jury duty, knowing the law, advocacy, John Howard
Society, Elizabeth Fry Society)? (C, PADM)
• What are citizens’ legal roles and their responsibilities? (C, PADM)
• What is the intention of the Youth Criminal Justice Act? (C, PADM)

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Social Studies 30­1 and 30­2
Knowledge and Understanding
Students will:
1.3 explore factors that may influence individual and collective beliefs and
values (culture, language, media, relationship to land, environment,
gender, religion, spirituality, ideology) (I, C, LPP)
1.4 examine historic and contemporary expressions of individualism and
collectivism (I, C, LPP, TCC)
1.8 analyze collectivism as a foundation of ideology (principles of collectivism:
collective responsibility, collective interest, cooperation, economic
equality, adherence to collective norms, public property) (PADM, ER, C)

Aboriginal Studies

Aboriginal Studies 10
Theme III: Political and economic organization

General Outcome
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the political and economic
organization of Aboriginal peoples.

Specific Outcome
1. Demonstrate an understanding of the historical, political and economic
organization of the First Nations, Métis and Inuit people

Aboriginal Studies 30
Theme III: Aboriginal Peoples in Canadian Society

General Outcome
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the impact of colonialism
experienced by Aboriginal peoples in Alberta and Canada.

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 Specific Outcome
2. Demonstrate an understanding that there are differing roles that
individuals take in leadership:
• Research traditional stories for information related to cultural forms of
governance
• Analyze and compare the Aboriginal perspectives and the
European/Canadian perspective on leadership.

Legal Studies, CTS modules:

http://education.alberta.ca/media/2205606/lgs.pdf

Course LGS1020: Public Law:

Outcomes:
1. Explore various sources of protection for group and individual rights and
responsibilities

2. Discuss methods of protecting rights and responsibilities

2.2 describe the criminal law process from arrest to resolution in
simple case studies from the perspective of the:
2.2.1 accused
2.2.2 police
2.2.3 lawyer
2.2.4 court system; e.g., judge, jury
2.2.5 community; e.g., sentencing circle, victim offender
mediation, victim rights groups, media
5. Demonstrate basic competencies
5.1 demonstrate fundamental skills to:
5.1.1 communicate
5.1.2 manage information
5.1.4 think and solve problems

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Course LGS2040: Aboriginal Law

Outcomes: The student will:

2. Investigate the sources of Aboriginal law

2.1 describe the application of the following laws:
2.1.7 inherent rights; e.g., right to self‐determination

3. Examine Aboriginal case law and laws related to challenging issues

3.2 consider the laws related to one or more of the following challenging
issues and propose possible solutions, if applicable:
3.2.5 customary law; e.g., adoptions, elections, self‐government.

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Index

Accessing Justice and Reconciliation Project 3, 10, 69, 78 Indigenous Law Research Unit 3, 4
Art 34, 38, 70‐71, 92 Inter­societal Approach to Law 26, 57‐61, 67, 69
Assumptions 10‐13, 19‐20, 32, 36, 39, 44‐48, 62, 71 Judges 32, 33, 38, 69
Canadian Law 10‐11, 14, 21, 23‐24, 35, 41, 57, 60, 65‐ Language 34, 38, 69, 90, 92, 94, 99
69 Lawyers 33, 35, 38, 41, 60, 69, 100
Case Brief 28, 59, 61, 63, 65‐68 Legal Principles 10, 18‐20, 41, 49, 72, 73, 80‐86
Ceremonies 34, 38 Legal Process 4, 18, 22, 28, 39, 48‐50, 68, 69, 71, 72,
Colonialism 14‐15, 45, 61, 99 81‐83
Courts 9, 33, 38, 50, 52, 55, 69, 73, 76, 79, 100 Legal Response 11, 28, 35, 41, 69, 70, 72, 83‐85, 88
Cree/Nehiyaw 9, 11, 15, 24, 27, 33, 38, 53, 61, 65‐67 Medicine People 22, 34, 38, 81
Cree Law 8, 11, 23‐24, 34, 51‐52, 57, 59, 65‐67, 69, 73 Mental Health 61, 62
Criminal Law 61‐62, 100 Multi­juridical 57
Criminal Code 62 Narrative 42
Curricular Outcomes 90‐93 Police 11, 32, 33, 38, 96, 98, 100
Dances 34, 38, 69, 91 Procedural Rights 29, 73
Decision­makers 11, 22, 49, 81, 83 Rules 18, 22, 24, 28, 29, 32, 36, 39
Deliberative Approach to Law 20, 24, 38, 48, 88 Safety 33, 37, 82‐84, 87, 90
Democratic 61, 91, 95‐97 Songs 34, 38, 69, 91
Diversity 93‐96 Stereotypes 10, 11, 14, 18, 19, 23, 32, 36, 43, 44, 46, 71
Dreams 34, 38 Stories 26, 28, 29, 34, 38, 58, 68, 69
Earth/Land/Nature 34, 38, 39, 49, 90, 99 Substantive Rights 29, 73, 87
Elder 11, 12, 22, 28, 34, 35, 38, 65, 81, 94 Textual 70
Execution 9, 11, 12 Trickster 29, 42, 51, 71
Family Law 61, 62 Violence 11, 13‐15, 49
Feminism 25, 28, 42‐47, 51 Visual 26, 50, 70, 71, 92
Gender 4, 14‐17, 19, 20, 23, 25, 42‐44, 47‐58, 60‐62, 72, 99 Vuntut Gwich’in 29
Gitksan 28 Wetiko 9, 11, 12, 27, 35, 41, 65‐67
Historical 11, 12, 21, 32, 36, 51, 85, 94, 95, 97, 99
Indigenous Feminism 14, 23, 28, 42‐47, 51
Indigenous Law treating it seriously 10, 15, 20; what it is 8‐9,
18, 28, 36‐41; its importance 8‐13; responding to common
questions 20‐24; also see “Stereotypes.”
Indigenous Law Degree (JID) 4
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