Indigenous-Mennonite Encounters in Time and Place (2022)

Conrad Grebel University College is situated on the traditional territory of the Attawandaron (Neutral), Anishinaabeg and Haudenosaunee peoples. The College, and the University of Waterloo, was built on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted in 1784 to the Six Nations that includes 10 kilometres on each side of the Grand River from its source in Dundalk to its mouth at Lake Erie.

Read Conrad Grebel University College's full land acknowledgement

This description is a direct copy of the original description provided to event participants.

“Indigenous-Mennonite Encounters in Time and Place,” an academic conference and community education event, will offer stories and analyses of encounters and relationships between Indigenous peoples and Mennonite settlers from point of contact through to the present. A virtual, preview video was created to mark the original conference date of May 2021.

In October 2000, the “History of Aboriginal-Mennonite Relations Conference” was held at the University of Winnipeg; conference proceedings were published in the Journal of Mennonite Studies in 2001. Nearly two decades have passed since this event, and much has happened in Indigenous-settler relations: the Truth and Reconciliation Commission brought awareness of the impact of residential schools; the Idle No More movement raised environmental concerns; the Sixties Scoop was identified as part of the current child welfare system; and efforts towards Indigenization in post-secondary institutions began, to name a few. Mennonite organizations, churches, and individuals are working to establish new relationships with Indigenous communities, reconsider their settler narratives, and assess their roles in past injustices.

The intent of this event is to advance understanding, on the part of Mennonites and other interested participants, of their colonial histories, and is an effort to advance reconciliation and bring justice to Indigenous-settler relations. The event will comprise academic presentations, community storytelling, artistic offerings, and both Indigenous and Mennonite ceremony. The organizers anticipate an event full of listening, hearing, conversation, and silence.

Selected papers will be published in the Journal of Mennonite Studies. The Journal has priority of publication for presentations stemming from the conference. Invitations to submit will be sent out shortly after the conference concludes.

The gathering will take place at Conrad Grebel University College, situated on the Haldimand Tract, granted by proclamation to the Haudenosaunee / Six Nations in 1784 as land protected from settlement, in order to ensure the maintenance of their way of life. It is also the traditional territory of the Attawandaron, Huron-Wendat, and Anishinaabeg Peoples. Mennonites were the first European settlers on Block No. 2 of the Tract (now the cities of Waterloo, Kitchener, and part of Cambridge), arriving in the early 19th century. Nearby is the Niagara Peninsula, where Mennonites first settled in Canada, and Six Nations of the Grand River, the largest First Nations reserve in Canada. The topics to be explored, however, will also be international, given that Mennonites have a long migratory history that saw them settle in many parts of the world over the past three centuries, during which they encountered Indigenous peoples across the globe.

• Christy Anderson (PhD student University of Saskatchewan) is Anishinaabekwe from Pinaymootang First Nation in Treaty Two Territory and of Mennonite settler descent.
• Lori Campbell Lori Campbell is Two-Spirit nēhiýaw āpihtāwikosisān and is a band member of Montreal Lake First Nation, Treaty 6 territory. She is Associate Vice-President, Indigenous Engagement at University of Regina.
• Kelly Fran Davis is Haudenosaunee/Six Nations from the Grand River Territory, Cayuga Nation, Wolf Clan.
• Marlene Epp is Professor of History and Peace & Conflict Studies at Conrad Grebel University College and has Russian Mennonite ancestry.
• Laureen Harder-Gissing is Archivist-Librarian at Conrad Grebel University College and is descended from Russian Mennonite immigrants.
• Emma Martin is a co-op undergraduate student with Swiss Mennonite ancestry, and is studying Psychology with Indigenous Studies and Peace and Conflict Studies minors at the University of Waterloo.
• David Neufeld is Visiting Assistant Professor of History at Conrad Grebel University College.
• Reina Neufeldt is Chair, Associate Professor of Peace & Conflict Studies, Conrad Grebel University College.  Her Russian Mennonite family settled in Treaty One and Treaty Six territory.
• Karen Sunabacka is Associate Professor of Music at Conrad Grebel University College. She grew up in Treaty 1 Territory and has Métis and mixed European heritage.

Our planning committee, collectively a mixed identity group of Indigenous and settler peoples, share an ongoing concern about fraudulent claims to Indigenous ancestry in academia. We recognize that Indigenous identities are complex and have been impacted by settler colonial invasion in Indigenous territories. We are ever mindful of Indigenous nationhood and the inherent sovereignty of the many nations across this land, and their right to determine who belongs to their communities. As universities evolve in their consultations with Indigenous peoples about identity and nationhood, so too will our means of identity recognition shift. Under the guidance of our Indigenous committee members, we respectfully denounce any claim of Indigenous identity that is not grounded in acceptance by a given community as their member, registration with a nation or through a band, or some other legitimate form of historical continuity that predates settler colonialism. Misidentification is harmful to reconciliation efforts and is considered an affront to many Indigenous nations, as well as to individual Indigenous peoples.

We request that all of our conference participants self-identify and recognize the Indigenous territory they call ‘home’ in their introductions.