Rita Arcand said she's seen a lot of people who have struggled with drugs and alcohol over the years. A registered social worker and Alexander resident, she's worked with many people at Poundmaker's Lodge who want to escape their addictions.
"The drugs are getting worse," she said. "It's getting to our young people and our children … we need to train as many people as possible to combat this problem."
Arcand was one of about 67 people who were at Poundmaker's Saturday for the 38th annual Nechi Institute graduation ceremony. It was the first ceremony in the institute's history to feature a powwow.
Dressed in orange, white, yellow or, in Arcand's case, purple caps and gowns, the proud graduates marched onto the lodge's powwow grounds surrounded by smiling well-wishers and a small blizzard of poplar fluff as a group of drummers pounded and bellowed out an honour song.
About 100 powwow dancers in full regalia accompanied the graduates onto the grounds for an afternoon of competitive dancing.
Aboriginal culture is big on ceremony, said Josephine Auger, CEO of Nechi, so this year, they decided to hold a powwow in addition to the usual cap-and-diploma ceremonies.
"We wanted to challenge the weather," she joked, referring to the heavy rains of last week.
Social challenge
About 14 per cent of Canadians are considered high-risk drinkers, according to a 2004 study by the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse. One quarter and one third of Canadians report that they have socially or physically harmed by their own or someone else's drinking.
Addictions have a disproportionate impact on aboriginals, said Gabor Maté, a renowned addictions physician and author who spoke at the grad ceremony. But to blame this on genetics or individual choice, as some do, ignores reality.
Aboriginals have endured about 400 years of repression and racism, he noted, including near cultural annihilation at the hands of residential schools.
"That trauma is now being passed onto our children," he said, resulting in child abuse. On-reserve kids also continue to get less government support for education than off-reserve ones.
Drug addiction is one of the biggest problems facing aboriginal communities today, said Ovide Mercredi, a former national chief of the Assembly of First Nations and a speaker at the grad ceremony. Addictions lead to higher school dropout rates, more people on welfare and higher health-care costs.
"People who are good fishermen stop fishing. People who have jobs don't show up for work," he said.
Places like Nechi use traditional knowledge and beliefs to help addicts heal themselves, Mercredi said.
"We have a spirit … and you have to nurture that spirituality or you're incomplete."
Spirituality is very important when it comes to young addicts, as they are often searching for their identity, said Dawn Rae, a St. Albert resident and one of the grads at the ceremony.
"They're not dumb. They're just trying to fill the void," she said.
Aboriginal communities have a lot of work to do, Mercredi said, and Nechi graduates will be a big help in doing it.
"Poundmaker's heals people," he said. "Nechi trains people to heal people."
Arcand, who works at Nechi, said she wanted to continue her studies into addictions treatment to help her hometown.
"As I train and learn more about myself and teaching, I want to go back and help my community of Alexander," she said.
There were 175 people in this year's graduating class, Auger said.
