Michelle Latimer, director of Inconvenient Indian and showrunner for Trickster, has weighed in on allegations over her credentials on being Indigenous. Latimer published a rather extensive response on Medium.com.
As a settler, I know I do not have the status for nuanced questions and what qualifies someone in that world. I do have a general curiosity as someone who has been intrigued by Indigenous works in Canadian television and Canadian film. These questions are intended to learn more and are not designed to offend anyone's sensibilities on the topic.
In the autumn of 2020, the producers who had invited me to direct Inconvenient Indian asked me to be specific about my community affiliation for the launch of the film.¹³ I named Kitigan Zibi. It was what I had been told was the closest historic connection to a “legally established” or non-flooded and non-forcibly dispersed Algonquin nation that represented that side of my ancestry.
It was never my intention to be perceived as a “registered/enrolled member” or “status- Indian” of Kitigan Zibi First Nation. The intention behind my recent naming of Kitigan Zibi was to geographically situate my identity, as I am verifiably connected to the complicated historical and cultural reality of the “Algonquin halfbreed” or Métis population of the Gatineau Valley. This complexity has been painted as though I was attempting to fabricate or appropriate a false identity for personal gain.¹⁴ This is simply not true.
Assuming Latimer's explanation in the essay is precise, does her explanation satisfy people in the community? Does her response make sense as to how she felt about where and how she qualified? Are the producers for Inconvenient Indian and Trickster qualified enough to establish her status?
Can someone who is not a "registered/enrolled member" or "status-Indian" still be Indigenous? Would that person be allowed/encouraged to tell the stories of Indigenous people?
My response to the CBC exposé written by @Kanhehsiio & @JorgeBarrera about Michelle Latimer’s Indigenous ancestry: pic.twitter.com/V3xAanCQuL
— Devery Jacobs (@kdeveryjacobs) December 18, 2020
Contrary to what the media has publicised, in all of my 22 years of professional artistic practice, I have never wavered from self-identifying as mixed blood (Métis) of Algonquin and French Canadian ancestry. I have always been transparent about what I know of my Algonquin/French Canadian roots and, until the fall of 2020, I’d never once been asked to provide “proof”. Therefore, when I was asked to provide a specific community of origin, I named the most well-known community where my family stories come from. When this was challenged by a community representative, I began a detailed process of inquiry that included reaching out to the community directly, and stepping back from my work and responsibilities in order to enquire further. I trusted I would be given the time to do this work. This didn’t happen. Instead, after CBC published an article that questioned my identity on December 17, 2020, the allegations blew up into in a relentless media storm: “questions” about my identity quickly became a declaration that I was a “fake” Indigenous person, with devastating consequences.
Latimer is quick to blame the CBC investigation for her downfall. We aren't fans of "blame the messenger." There were issues and concerns about her background. The CBC investigation was a necessary piece of journalism; to say otherwise would be to diminish the importance of the issue. If Latimer is correct in her take and the community accepts this, the investigation was all the more important. This is May, the story ran in December.
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Back in the time, Latimer focused on stories her grandfather told about her ancestry. Knowing how important what one's background is in that community, why didn't Latimer do this research long before now? She noted that the producers of the film asked about her status but wasn't asked about "proof" until the fall of 2020.
There is a considerable amount of research Latimer provides in the essay. If she had all or some that information, the controversy might have not been a big deal.
Flipping that argument: did the community jump to a hasty conclusion based on what we knew in December. If the question was asked about Jeff Barnaby, Alanis Obomsawin, Tracey Deer, Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers, or Loretta Todd, would their answers be more succinct and easily accepted? (To be clear, we are not going after anyone's credentials. These examples are Indigenous filmmakers whose work we know.)
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Latimer could have drifted into the background and not even given a response. She chose to do the research and provided a response. There are 26 footnotes. As extensive as the essay is, she might not have answered questions some people have about her background.
Will we know if this worked or accomplished more of an understanding? Will this mean people will get to see Inconvenient Indian and another season of Trickster? Will her explanation change the impact of her past work? When those projects came out, there was a consensus that they were strong, earnest presentations of Indigenous stories. If the community accepts and verifies her story, does that apply to those projects and/or any future work?
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"Genetic ancestry does not prove Indigenous affiliation." Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers wrote those words in December. In reading Latimer's essay, read Tailfeathers' essay and Kawennáhere Devery Jacobs' words (above). Whether you agree with Latimer's take or not, this shouldn't be the end of the conversation. If you are qualified to weigh in, and you disagree with Latimer, help us understand why or why not. This should be part of a dialogue. Your humble narrator is not qualified to be in the conversation but wants to know the results.
photo credit: Trickster/CBC
Twitter capture: @kdeveryjacobs
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