Narrative outsider witnessing:

Responding to community conflict arising from land

rights issues

Laura Béres, Associate ProfessorSchool of Social WorkKing’s University College

Outline

Introduction - Social Worker/Narrative Practitioner

The context and background of this project Double listening The process of outsider-witnessing Ongoing ripple effects: Pen pal project Questions

Pre-preparation

Scot Cooper, resident of Caledonia and counsellor in a local mental health agency, contacts mayor

Local advisory group members consulted Long, long-distance telephone consultations Invited social workers from Caledonia and Six

Nations to meet Jim Duvall, Laura Béres and Michael White, the

only ones from “away”

Preparation

Newly developed team met at Bear’s Inn on Six Nations Reserve

Not everyone was familiar with narrative practices Michael talked about double listening and how any

response (to this conflict and tension) is an action . . . Ideas were shared as to who we should contact and

invite to an interview/consultation – important to have a wide range of representations from both communities

The fact that social workers from Ganokwasra were involved was absolutely necessary so that the key people in Six Nations were willing to meet with us and participate in the project

The absent but implicit . . . “double listening”

Vulnerability and tentativeness of language Derrida’s influence:

each word (signifier) that is used to describe or name something (the signified) contains the process of differentiating it from something else

(“black” contains the notion of its opposite: “white,” “sour” implies it isn’t “sweet”)

Even though we may think in binary opposites, these binaries/dualisms can offer possibilities when we “double listen” . . . and we can also break through those binaries, through “lines of flight” (Deleuze)

Don’t assume we understand one another – unpack and follow the traces of influence back (like the roots of a strawberry plant)

Foundations of Michael White’s “Absent but Implicit” Every expression of life is in relation to

something else (Michael White referring to Derrida’s work) – a reaction/emotion is an action

Thinking about the “absent but implicit” helps us not get drawn in to complaints of others - helps us focus on what is underlying the complaint

Assists in privileging values and preferences and so aids in movement to alternative storyline(s)

Outsider witness structure to community story telling The expression

As you listened to the story what did you hear that stood out to you?Were there particular words or expressions that caught your attention?

The imageDid any mental pictures come to mind as you listened to the story?What does it suggest about what might be important to you?What impression do you get about what matters to you?

ResonanceWhat is it in your own life/work that connects with these parts of the story that stood out to you?

TransportWhere have you been moved to or taken to in your thinking by what you have heard?What place might you be in right now that you were not in at the beginning of these conversations?

Consultations

Each person to be interviewed from Caledonia and Six Nations was interviewed by two team members

Each consulting pair from the team was made up of one Aboriginal person and one non-Aboriginal person

If the person being interviewed was Aboriginal then the Aboriginal team member took the lead and the other was an outsider witness to the conversation and vice versa

The second team member responded using the structure of an outsider witnessing map

Of course the initial person interviewed had the last say

Overall time frame and structure

We met one another the first evening We conducted twenty or more individual

interviews over the next two days On the third full day we met as a team to

review our notes, share stories and primarily document the process highlighting common themes

That evening Michael wrote up the document that was to be read and shared at two communitywide gatherings to be held on the fourth day

Two Structured Gatherings Afternoon gathering in Caledonia Evening gathering in Six Nations Everyone invited except the press Each gathering started with young person from

Six Nations and young person from Caledonia singing or reading a poem as opening ceremony

Document and themes described Large group divided into small groups along the

lines of themes – people chose which theme they wished to discuss further

Themes Developing understanding Extending our efforts The safety and security of our children Healing knowledges Restoring friendships and relationships

Further structure to gatherings

One or two team members were in each small group

When the small groups re-formed into on large circle, each team member who had been present in the small groups was interviewed by the facilitator again using an outsider witnessing map structure

Finally the whole group was invited to share their reactions and responses to the gathering

Community document

www.neighbouringcommunities.net After the fact, we applied for funding to support

this as a PAR project Documenting on going effects Pen pal project in particular

Pen pal gathering 2011 www.neighbouringcommunities.net Tree of peace sky art (7-8 minutes)

Susan Aglukark “O Siem” (to witness and to acknowledge: carry on and walk in a good way)

Consider the differences in the images between those initially presented in the media and these final images

Thank you

Questions and Comments