User talk:Bellaseiko

Tracey Lindberg’s article in the Kimmel Anthology titled The Gendered Society Reader focuses on nine women as they share their experiences at law school. These stories have been compiled by Lindberg, and are in first person for presentation. Lindberg begins by discussing and summarizing her personal experiences which led her to law school. She describes a First Nation’s lady by the Grace Adam who had graduated from a residential school and became one of the first “Indian” women to earn a post-secondary degree. According to Lindberg, Adam was a woman who believed in both the traditional First Nations teachings and formal “English” education as being equally important,

Lindberg and the other women emphasize being a minority in a non-Indian and primarily male educational setting. These women provided a support network for each other that span to their schools and communities. Support systems can be a vital tool for persevering through anything from school to running a marathon to surviving the death of a loved one. Having those around you in the same or similar situation may help one relax and feel they are not alone. Six of the women listed their reasons for attending law school. One came on a dare, another for the career options a law degree opened. Another attended in hopes of changing views and stereotypes of Aboriginal people, and one because it had always been her dream to attend law school. The fifth notes that she attended because of her treatment by male figures in the justice system. The six attended law school being of a previous arrest while protesting at Indian Affairs; when questioning why she was being fingerprinted the officer replied “because you’ll be back,”. These reasons are not the only ones for attending law school. Why should Aboriginal men and women be any different than the next person when it comes to reasoning for attending law school? Education opens many doors for people no matter their background. One should consider the person and their intellectual abilities and not the stereotypes associated with their cultural background.

One of the women speaks of two student incitements with professors, both for presentations on Aboriginal issues where the student’s views differed from that of the professors,. In the eyes of the professor, he was the professor and therefore his view was the correct one. Noted later is the fact that there did not exist an Aboriginal faculty on staff; from this one can assume that professor was most likely a white male. This professor most likely had only textbook experience of Aboriginal struggles. Telling an Aboriginal person, or any person for that matter, that an issue can have only one view is not teaching the student anything other than to be successful in his class one must adopt his view and not stray.

The article wraps up with Lindberg saying that these women, including herself, will always be Aboriginal and they chose to remain true to their culture while pursuing higher education. She says “we continue to break the path initially walked by women like Grace Adam – our women,”. A statement like that is powerful; identifying that struggles lie ahead but they will not deter Aboriginal women from reaching their goals and dreams. This entire article is about perseverance, including both positive and negative experiences in law school.

Sources:

1. Kimmel, Michael, Amy Anderson, Amy Kaler. The Gendered Society Reader. Pages 223-231.Ontario: Oxford University Press, 2011. Print.