News
At the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
At the
United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
For the third
consecutive year, Wapikoni took part in the United Nations Permanent Forum on
Indigenous Issues. Represented by Darrell McBride, a participant hailing from
the community of Timiskaming First Nations and by Christian Morissette, Head of
Distribution and Market Development, the goal was to talk about Wapikoni’s
approach and its contribution to the fight against suicide and self-mutilation
by youth in the communities.
Given the huge
number of requests to give speeches, Darrell McBride was not able to take the
floor. However, the following speech was filed and registered with the Forum:
Speach before the Chairman
of the
14th United Nations
Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
Darrell McBride, Wapikoni mobile
Hello and
greetings to all the Nations under the sun, who gathered here today to engage
in dialogue, to help our original people of Planet Earth. I would also like to acknowledge
the memory of the Lenape people whose traditional territory we are meeting in
today.
My name is
Darrell McBride and I come from the Anishnabe community of Timiskaming First
Nation in Quebec, Canada. I am here representing Wapikoni mobile, a traveling
audio-visual training studio for First Nations youth that has been in activity
for the past ten years in 26 communities in Canada and 17 in South America.
Wapikoni combats
isolation and suicide among First Nations youth while developing artistic,
technical, social, and professional skills through cinema; a powerful tool
allowing First Nations youth voices to be heard, first in their communities and
then all around the world among many audiences.
Wapikoni’s
activities strongly focus on Suicide Preventive Factors. Our four week
workshops in the communities provide recreational time; develop a sense of
cultural identity, thus self-esteem. It also provides access to a network of
peers and social services professionals who offer attention and support to our
youth when they need it.
My home has 750
members living on reserve. We are a very small, very strong community and we
have managed to preserve our culture though we are completely assimilated to
modern convention. Our population from Youth to Elders have the same fight when
it comes to living in isolated regions and Wapikoni has given us the means to
express our views and artistic expressions on a world stage. I have begun a
project mirroring Wapikoni’s successful model to offer a full multimedia studio
to any community member who would like to express themselves through Film,
Theater, Music, Photography or Art. Investing in time with people on artistic
endeavours creates a bond, and once this bond is present a client in crisis can
be identified and hopefully reached. I have trained in Crisis and Trauma,
Suicide and medical first response and can offer assistance to clients in need
of professional services.
In 2014 Wapikoni
Mobile received the Intercultural Innovation Award from the United Nations
Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and the BMW Group making our organization one
of ten most innovative programs in the world. We have a collection of more than
750 short films made by indigenous youth. Among these films, many are part of a
specific program emphasising suicide issues and presented in the frame of
prevention workshops we are willing to share with all Indigenous
representatives here today as well as with any organizations that makes
indigenous youth wellness its priority.
I have faith
that with modern technology, and the priority to access it, the Indigenous
people of the World will have a chance to participate and share their
perspective with all nations under the Sun; the future is now and our youth are
the future.