Laughing, learning, sharing in language class

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This article was published 10/01/2022 (1148 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Manitoba Indigenous Cultural Education Centre is doing its part to preserve and protect Indigenous languages.

Prior to the pandemic, the Winnipeg organization was a place to meet and it held weekly language tables to teach Cree and Ojibwe.

The language tables moved online in October and have reached a larger audience.

“We model the sessions as less of a class and more of a community drop-in space,” instructor Dené Sinclair said. “The virtual platform has helped us reach a larger group of people than we expected.”

The program meets every Tuesday and Thursday for one hour on Zoom and attendees can participate or just listen during each lesson.

The Ojibwe program garnered 212 participants while 104 people signed up for Cree lessons, Sinclair said.

Morgan Fontaine enrolled in the Ojibwe program to honour her late husband Theodore, who often spoke the language and was a residential school survivor.

“I’m really grateful they’ve offered this program and that it’s very enjoyable and effective,” she said. “It’s a great way to honour First Nations people and heritage.”

Fontaine said she learned a bit of the language during her 40-year marriage but wants to become fluent.

“I never learned the language in a way that I could converse with him and I regret that very much,” she said. “He used to go to the language tables in person and he really loved it.”

Fontaine said her husband was dedicated to the protection and retention of Indigenous languages due to his experiences in residential schools.

“They did everything to force him to forget his language and be ashamed of his culture,” she said. “Speaking his language was a powerful way for him to finally have his voice back.”

Jen Henry, who began attending the sessions in October while on maternity leave, was also drawn to the program for family reasons.

“I’ve always wanted to learn my language, but I never had the time or opportunity,” she said. “I would love to go home to the reserve and say, ‘these are who my grandparents were’ in the traditional language and make a connection with my homelands.”

Henry said she finds the sessions engaging and appreciates the fluid schedule since she is a new mother.

The one-hour sessions are also beneficial for Brian Chrupalo, who attends during his lunch break from work.

“It’s nice not to have to leave the office to attend, but even if they were in person, I would go out of my way to attend because I enjoy it that much,” he said. “They have a great, entertaining approach to teaching the program and it makes it fun and enjoyable.”

Some participants live in other provinces and even outside Canada.

Jennifer Lickers is an educator from the Detroit area who learned about the tables through Facebook.

Lickers, who said the Ojibwa language is popular in Michigan, called the sessions fun and empowering.

“It feels more like a healing session than a class,” she said. “When we’re together, there’s a lot of laughing, learning and sharing of stories.”

Lickers said she looks forward to taking more programs and wants to visit Manitoba for an in-person table one day.

The positive and powerful reviews have led the education centre to open an intermediate program.

Sinclair said more languages will be added. She invites people to register for language tables with open spots on the Manitoba Indigenous Cultural Education Centre Facebook page.

fpcity@freepress.mb.ca