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Logan Morsillo, who identifies as a member of the Ojibway Nation, graduated in Social Science in the fall 2024 semester. On National Indigenous Languages Day, he has generously agreed to share some insights from a research paper rooted in both academic inquiry and personal experience, which he conducted under the supervision of history teacher Thomas Welham. In this text, he discusses both the intergenerational effects of language loss and the importance of language revitalization.

Here, Logan is pictured with his grandmother and great-grandmother

The focus of my final semester integrative activity research paper was to explore how attempts to suppress Indigenous culture and identity by the Canadian federal government have impacted the Indigenous community’s outlook on themselves and their mental health. I was interested in researching the topic as I am passionate about history and wanted to explore my own ancestry. I had the unique opportunity to explore this topic through personal interviews with my grandma and great grandma as they are both Ojibway. These interviews provided insight into the personal impact of past injustices such as blood quantum, which was the practice of limiting those who could have Indigenous status in often arbitrary ways, with the purpose of legislatively eliminating Indigenous status through assimilation.

Blood quantum policies posed a challenge to my great grandparent's identity and heritage based on who she married, which went as far as making her ineligible to live on the reserve (the term used in the Indian Act) or access services for people with status. Both my grandma and great grandma expressed a notable sensitivity about their own lack of fluency in Ojibwe: whereas they were fluent to varying degrees when they were younger, this fluency began to fade once they grew older in predominantly English and French-speaking environments, until today, where they can both comprehend the language but not speak it.

They vouched for the importance of properly teaching Ojibwe to younger generations as language is a cornerstone of Indigenous identity and a way for current generations to anchor themselves in their culture and to their ancestors in reclaiming their identity. The impact on individuals of Indigenous languages becoming severely endangered is evident, as communities that possess lower rates of fluency tend to experience higher rates of mental health struggles across the board.

Despite attempts at erasure, the resilience of Indigenous culture is inspiring. There are movements to bring back Indigenous languages to Indigenous communities, and both my grandma and great grandma expressed their interest in taking Ojibwe language classes so they may brush up on their Ojibwe. With programs aimed at bringing back languages and consistent long-term work of linguists in reviving previously extinct languages, the future for Indigenous languages is hopeful, though more work is needed to secure that future.