Metis Peoples Cosmology in Relation to Natural Resources - Assignment Example

Metis People’s Cosmology In Relation To Natural Resources It is amazing how despite different cultural backgrounds, human tend to express commitment for preservation of resources. Many times, irrespective of one’s racial affiliation, there is this passion to see resources maintained and expanded. However, some time it is not the passion for environment that creates this impetus; it is cultural beliefs about deity that push people to conserve resources. As time goes by, things keep changing and government laws are legislated afresh some of which tend to put cultures and the government on a collision course. In this paper, the focus is primarily on the Metis community in US where issue of forest conservation is highly advocated and the community’s response. Background The Metis people belong to the indigenous-people category of United States though it is in itself a term used in the reference if all the mixture of the people forming this group. The term is mainly used in the description of a mixture of the Aboriginal as well as the non-original people. Prior to the current usage of this term, it was used in describing the Anishaabe-Scottish-French mixture in the northern part of US. Before English-speaking communities populated United States, the Metis people were very significant in the politics of the day. In fact, a Congressman named Gabriel Richard was a direct beneficiary of the political muscle fronted by the Metis where the community used to have political dominance. While later the community was overwhelmed by the English-speakers and other communities, the US still prides itself having these people and North Dakota is an area hosting close to 10,000 people who identify as Metis (Barkwell, Dorion, and Hourie p. 23) The Metis community viewed forests as a sacred place and rituals were offered on the mountains especially to ward off unfriendly spirits. The community believed in a deity but also felt some spirits were out to haunt them. Consequently, mountains offered the solace to the people and thus were treated as sacred places (St-Onge, Podruchny, and Macdougall p.19). Due to the fact that there was no strict legislation barring the use of forest as places of worship then, the community treated these places with utmost respect. However, it is worth noting at this point that the period being talked about here is 1785 and above. The history of the Metis people cannot be completed without the mention the French and the British had on them. When the two countries sought to explore for resources, the Metis people were welcoming and the two combined well. As a result intermarriage became common between the Metis people and the two European countries. Mostly, the reason for this interaction was the trade that connected the two groups. Barkwell et al. (p.25) reported that the fur-trade was very common between these two. It is for that reason that some people even in Europe can claim to be of the Metis heritage As stated earlier, the emergence of other communities especially French, influenced the traditions of its community and some abandoned their cultural practices. That is not to say the culture is no longer existent; if anything, its heritage is rampant in US. The community’s cosmology is a rather complicated one but suffice to say, it serves the purpose of creation and the subsequent end of the world. Firstly, the creation came as a result of a diver getting some mud from water from which the world was created. The second myth about creation is one depicting a transformer who stole fire, food, light and mankind and then sets them all over in a bid to encourage multiplication (Barkwell et al. 31) While living, the Metis agree that humans ought to consume all the types of food and that it is recommendable to keep visiting the mountains for cleansing purposes. At times, the community practiced fasting, which included abstinence form sex in a ritual meant for purification purposes. Death is accepted as a norm for this community and it believed that whenever people died, they were only separated from the living. That is to say, they used to be nearly living but could not be seen. Occasionally, the community would seek protection of some of the relatives who left them to seek As illustrated by the above facts about the Metis people, the mountains played an important role to their culture and touching these features would be viewed as abomination. In today’s world, the preservation of forests and mountains is highly emphasized not only in US but also elsewhere. As a result, there seems there would be a collision between the environmental issue and the cosmology of the Metis people. However, contrary to this expectation, Macdougal (p.27) stated that the appearance of the Christian missionaries influenced the people and some sort of an alliance was formed. This alliance saw cooperation between the Catholics and the local people and meeting often became a norm. As time went by, a majority of the people converted to the catholic and somehow neglected their beliefs, though a handful of them maintained. As a result, the people no longer spent time in the forest trying to appease the gods. Moreover, at that time, there were no restrictions on how one was to worship or where and many communities had the freedom to choose. The issue of mountains was irrelevant unlike today where environment lobby groups are actively involved in ensuring no pollution. Contrary to other groups and a perception held by many regarding traditional groups, this community of indigenous tend to be supportive of environment. While one can attribute this action to influences of the current initiatives, Foster (p.22) reported that even before modernization, this group still viewed the preservation of environmental as essential to their livelihoods. Despite using mountains as their places of worship and offering sacrifices, the group did not destroy the resources. Instead, the plantation of trees was encouraged and carried out by every home since many believed that the environment was imperative to their livelihoods. The sovereignty of the Metis people was however, nor consumed by the religious defection when the Catholics took over. Currently, there are a number of organizations in US that regard themselves as sovereign nation. Obviously, this is not to be interpreted to mean it is a country on its own but rather sovereign as prescribed by the American Constitution. Some of these include Tecumseh and is currently in Michigan and ‘Metis Nation’ whose core aims is to extend the existence of the Metis culture in US and prove that the community still exists. In its cosmology, the community holds the view that it cannot be exterminated and that it has to ensure it spreads all over the world. Further, it viewed itself as a sovereign people who have the power to affect the world through various methods. It is for this reason that the community somehow merged with the French in trying to extend the issues to do with businesses. Additionally, it believed that its impact in the world was essential and that they are things the world will not achieve without them. As if to confirm this belief, the community played a significant role in the American politics- as already mentioned- before new communities appeared (Peters p.141). While mingling with other communities is allowed, this indigenous people view themselves as ones whose input is necessary in almost every aspect of life. On the other hand, the community has no problem with other communities leading so long as there is no oppression subjected to their members. It is for this reason that it was easier for this group to mix with the French but still remaining committed to the culture. In essence, it could be concluded that Metis people are peacemakers who are stubbornly committed to their cultures (Foster p33). As has been stated elsewhere, the Metis community is alive to the need of preserving the resources, in this case the trees. Whereas it may seem like a contradiction given that they viewed mountains as sacred places, the community’s response is that destruction of resources is against their belief. Consequently, the community tends to support such an initiative without complaining of harassment or victimization. As Macdougal (p.29) categorically stated, “identifying a society’s culture is more than just identifying its outward expression or obvious symbols” (p.6). Rather, it is through analyzing its close relationship with the surroundings including land, inhabitants, laws and taboos. In short, a culture’s commitment to environment is not more demonstrated by the public image it portrays. Instead, it is through the way in which these things are treated and in order to ascertain this, it is important to observe the community in its own surrounding. Looking at the Metis, one does not need to doubt their response to this issue. As already stated, the community is actively involved in the preservation yet some of the steps require they compromise on their beliefs. This community is also very conscious of the importance of land and some who are not engaged in the business normally do farming. The other category of people pursues business after they were influenced into it by the French. As a result of this diversity in this culture, there is cohesion within them and outsides people (Foster p.25). The Metis people’s value for land could be traced back in the early days where the community was engaged in working on farms. In addition, money was another factor that drove the people into preserving the environment. Therefore, it could be concluded here that the aboriginal people- as they are popularly referred to- are people with regard for the natural resources, specifically trees. While it formed part of their cultural ritual site, this was not seen as an opportunity to destroy the resources. Instead, the communities only used the environment for the purposes of worship and put much emphasis on the conservation, as they strongly believed it to be the source of food. Hence, one can authoritatively conclude that the Metis people’s response concerning environment-related issues have been cooperative and supportive. In conclusion, the Metis people have been spread not only across US but also in Europe; this because of the early trade-ties between them and two countries from Europe- Britain and Franc to be precise. Concerning the community’s view on the environment, especially forests, there is positive results. Apparently, the community is a firm believer of conservation as this is viewed as the source livelihood, and it is tightly connected to their cosmology. The community believes that after being created from the mud, which a diver collected form a sea, the world is now their place to live productively. It is not just the forest that this community values; the land in itself is a good place to reap by planting. Therefore, the community’s reaction to the environment issue is friendly, honest and worth commending. Works cited Barkwell, Lawrence J., Leah Dorion, and Audreen Hourie. Metis legacy Michif culture, heritage, and folkways. Metis legacy series, v. 2. Saskatoon, SK: Gabriel Dumont Institute, 2006. Foster, Martha Harroun. We Know Who We Are: Métis Identity in a Montana Community. Norman: U of Oklahoma, 2006. Print. Macdougall, Brenda. One of the Family: Metis Culture in Nineteenth-century Northwestern Saskatchewan. Vancouver: UBC, 2010. Print. Peters, Evelyn. "Geographies of Aboriginal People in Canada." Journal of Environment Studies 23.2 (2004): 138-44. Print. St-Onge, Nicole, Carolyn Podruchny, and Brenda Macdougall (eds.), Contours of a People: Metis Family, Mobility, and History. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2012. Read More