Kelowna Museum Offers First Nation Language Course

[common_sense_guy]

So a thread about a course to learn a first nation language has turned into a first nation bashing thread ? Good job

It's sad how some people can find racism even when it's not there. Care to Enlighten us on what somebody said that was first nation bashing.
Some people are so easily triggered that they find things that aren't even there so they can get angry about something. A glass half empty type of person

[Jlabute]

So a thread about a course to learn a first nation language has turned into a first nation bashing thread ? Good job

it’s not just a course, it is an effort to:

help preserve nsyilxcen, the language spoken by syilx people

as stated in the first sentence of the article.

[Gone_Fishin]

You can find offence where none was intended. Good job.

That's the whole objective behind the dozens of FN threads that the OP starts.

The idea is to pee someone off with outlandish claims in an attempt to trigger a response that might be construed as anti-FN. It's a self-fulfilling prophesy that does nothing to advance the well-being of First Nations people, but rather to stoke the divide and take solace in being a "victim."

The First Nations people that I know hate this kind of thing. They know how destructive it is to their quest for equality and an end to racist divides. But, there's a segment of their membership that still pulls this stunt, a segment that doesn't understand the way forward.

[Jlabute]

I am not the type of person to bash, unless something is blatantly against the people. I would love to see Syilx endure forever, but that doesn't seem likely with 3000 other languages about to perish.

It comes down to existing population, whether or not they are having children, and what those children grow up doing. I can't imagine non-indigenous learning the Syilx language well enough, or understanding it well enough (because they are not "born in to the culture") to pass it on. No one wants to be accused of appropriation, and indigenous probably don't want non-indigenous saving their language by teaching it to their children. That is just a hunch.

So how will the language endure?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okanagan_language

About 50 deeply fluent first-language speakers of Colville-Okanagan Salish remain, the majority of whom live in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia. The language is currently moribund and has no first-language speakers younger than 50 years of age.

Looks as though the language is in deep trouble.

[Babba_not_Gump]

You can find offence where none was intended. Good job.

That's the whole objective behind the dozens of FN threads that the OP starts.

The idea is to pee someone off with outlandish claims in an attempt to trigger a response that might be construed as anti-FN. It's a self-fulfilling prophesy that does nothing to advance the well-being of First Nations people, but rather to stoke the divide and take solace in being a "victim."

The First Nations people that I know hate this kind of thing. They know how destructive it is to their quest for equality and an end to racist divides. But, there's a segment of their membership that still pulls this stunt, a segment that doesn't understand the way forward.

Thank you for clarifying things.

But this is what really defines politics in our country today,
to stoke the divide and take solace in being a "victim."

Never before has our country seen so much divisiveness.

[Nedroj]

So a thread about a course to learn a first nation language has turned into a first nation bashing thread? Good job

Snowflake alert!! Can't even handle an honest discussion about languages without calling people the R-word in an attempt to discredit and silence them.

This is a perfect example of why we cannot have honest discussions regarding serious issues in our society.

[Brass Monkey]

Snowflake alert!! Can't even handle an honest discussion about languages without calling people the R-word in an attempt to discredit and silence them.

This is a perfect example of why we cannot have honest discussions regarding serious issues in our society.

What reaction does one expect from people saying that the resurgence of an indigenous language is a waste of time? Or that indigenous people may not use the English alphabet to write down indigenous language?

[the truth]

So a thread about a course to learn a first nation language has turned into a first nation bashing thread ? Good job

your words-learning french is a waste of time- sounds like your the racist

[the truth]

So a thread about a course to learn a first nation language has turned into a first nation bashing thread? Good job

Snowflake alert!! Can't even handle an honest discussion about languages without calling people the R-word in an attempt to discredit and silence them.

This is a perfect example of why we cannot have honest discussions regarding serious issues in our society.

100% correct

[Nedroj]

Snowflake alert!! Can't even handle an honest discussion about languages without calling people the R-word in an attempt to discredit and silence them.

This is a perfect example of why we cannot have honest discussions regarding serious issues in our society.

What reaction does one expect from people saying that the resurgence of an indigenous language is a waste of time? Or that indigenous people may not use the English alphabet to write down indigenous language?

Not at all what we are discussing. It is not a "resurgence" of an indigenous language that is the topic of this discussion. It is a Museum offering a First Nations language course in the hopes that people will learn it and carry it on. That is not our responsibility and nor should taxpayers' money go to fund something like this. And I would also say this for any language not just First Nations language.

What most of us are saying is, that we don't even want to learn French (Canada's second official Language) let alone a language native only to the Okanagan, that only 1000 people can speak and all of them are over the age of 50. To us, learning Cantonese or Mandarin would serve us better than learning First Nations.

[Brass Monkey]

Not at all what we are discussing. It is not a "resurgence" of an indigenous language that is the topic of this discussion. It is a Museum offering a First Nations language course in the hopes that people will learn it and carry it on.

Would this not be a resurgence of the language?

That is not our responsibility and nor should taxpayers' money go to fund something like this. And I would also say this for any language not just First Nations language.

Who says it’s your responsibility? Simply don’t take the course. If taxpayer money can fund 12 years of my biased, Eurocentric and mandatory public school education then a tiny fraction of that can fund a voluntary language course.

What most of us are saying is, that we don't even want to learn French (Canada's second official Language) let alone a language native only to the Okanagan, that only 1000 people can speak and all of them are over the age of 50. To us, learning Cantonese or Mandarin would serve us better than learning First Nations.

Then simply don’t take the course.

[Catsumi]

What reaction does one expect from people saying that the resurgence of an indigenous language is a waste of time? Or that indigenous people may not use the English alphabet to write down indigenous language?

Not at all what we are discussing. It is not a "resurgence" of an indigenous language that is the topic of this discussion. It is a Museum offering a First Nations language course in the hopes that people will learn it and carry it on. That is not our responsibility and nor should taxpayers' money go to fund something like this. And I would also say this for any language not just First Nations language.

What most of us are saying is, that we don't even want to learn French (Canada's second official Language) let alone a language native only to the Okanagan, that only 1000 people can speak and all of them are over the age of 50. To us, learning Cantonese or Mandarin would serve us better than learning First Nations.

Good post.

I dislike seeing languages die, as with that death, so goes the accumulated knowledge of the past contained within. (See Wade Davis’s books for a better description and why he says that]

On the other hand there is little reason to pass on a language that only a few speakers are around to converse with.

Although the statements above are contradictory it may be that those (tribes) who are losing their language to more popular ones, it is up to them to pass the history along to younger ones that are interested. It seems to me that there is a revival of sorts going on, so it’s on those who have a vested interest to do the passing within their own community. Imo.

The Quebecois have done this, even managing to make their dying lingo an official second language in Canada.

[seewood]

some that want to take this language course, go for it.
not going to harm anyone, it's not threatening so what'sthe big deal?
going to start a thread about a knitting course next?

[voice of reason]

its nice that they are making an effort to preserve the language but in reality what is it going to accomplish? thee are only like 500 members of the westbank band and 480 of them dont speak their native tongue . people will go to this course and learn some word and phrases but there is literally nobody who they can speak it with

[Brass Monkey]

its nice that they are making an effort to preserve the language but in reality what is it going to accomplish? thee are only like 500 members of the westbank band and 480 of them dont speak their native tongue . people will go to this course and learn some word and phrases but there is literally nobody who they can speak it with

WFN has 900 members and is one of 7 bands within the Okanagan Nation Alliance. In the US the Okanagan people, known as the Colville Confederated Tribes, come from 12 more tribes who’s traditional language is also Syilx. There’s about 5000 people within the Okanagan and another 10,000 in the Colville Confederated Tribes. If one should ever go to the Omak Stampede in Washington and visit the tipi grounds you can hear tons of Syilx being spoken, mostly bickering during stick games and bingo. I only remember the cuss words grandma would yell at us if we were being unruly.