Toward a creative-critical approach to narratives of student-to-student abuse in Canada’s Indian Residential School System

摘要

AbstractThere is a dearth of research on student-to-student abuse in Canada’s Indian Residential School System despite the fact that the legacy of this violence continues to negatively impact Indigenous communities. This paper proposes an approach to dealing with this difficult subject matter by using creative practice as a means of working collectively with community leaders, scholars, artists and students to develop shared understandings of the abuse and its continued legacy. This paper outlines the rationale for work in this area and the beginnings of the development of hybrid Indigenous and non-Indigenous methodology that brings survivors’ stories to audiences through a series of collectively authored theatrical performances that promote understanding and dialog. This paper is of interest to scholars, artists, playwrights, community leaders, and front line social workers who are working to bridge academic research and community engagement, particularly as it relates to artistic practice.