It’s all about getting in the repetitions!

Good afternoon y’all, I hope your weeks have been treating you kindly.

Today, I wanted to give a quick TED-talk about how mentoring young Indigenous peoples (YIPs) is one of the best ways to usher in the change required for youth reconciliation.

Most YIPs have a passion for reconciliation but have no idea where to start. They hear things like “land-back, connection to culture and language” but are not taught about how to lead this change themselves.

So today, I want to dive into the benefits of mentorship and use myself as the case study for you to see the transformation.

If I may lead with some honesty, when I was 15, I started smoking cannabis regularly. I would watch videos about how cannabis was grown and sold illegally.

Eventually, I learned about the 1936 film Reefer Madness and the propaganda campaign about marijuana being a gateway drug.

Then, I learned about mass incarceration and the connection between cannabis charges disproportionately affecting minority groups in North America.

Then it was the private prison industry, how there is a vested interest in imprisoning people, and how some judges were giving harsh sentences for bribes.

This set me on a path of watching Michael Moore movies like Bowling for Columbine and Capitalism: A Love Story.

For me, I was learning about these nasty parts of society all because I began questioning the stereotypes I was being told about smoking reefer.

I feel this is a common path for YIPs to learn about policy; I used to talk to my peer group in high school about taxing marijuana and allocating it into the health care system, etc.

When I look back now, I wish I had someone to connect the dots for me because by not knowing how I could challenge the status quo in an organized way, I had a lot of misplaced passion.

I was advocating in places where it wasn’t needed, and even though I had smart things to say, I wasn’t communicating in a way people would want to listen to me.

I had found a stream of education through movies, videos, and articles online, but I knew nothing about how the Canadian government operates.

If I were mentoring 15-year-old Bailey, I would tell him that his frustration is valid, but he needs to formalize his understanding of policy systems and organize his thoughts.

It’s time to put down YouTube, Netflix and opinion pieces, open a House of Commons stream and read a book.

This is where we all come into the picture. We can engage these passionate 15-20-year-olds who are learning about colonization and onboard them into our sector(s).

When I reflect on the sources I learned from in my teens, I rarely listened to the opposition because I understood my opinion and that’s what mattered to me.

Now working in policy, I realize that understanding the opposition is key to the success of our advocacy, and there are clear opportunities to influence change.

But even with this new understanding, I lacked the hard skills to communicate in a way where my advocacy could shine. That’s where my mentors filled in the gaps for me.

I had to be resourceful, essentially just asking for dinners with people I respected and trying to politely pick their brains as much as pleasantries would allow me.

It took me years of trial and error, but I’m finally in a position where I’m leading Indigenous youth strategies that will drive organizational direction for years.

When I think back on my journey, I feel I could cut the time in half for myself to get to this position, and frankly, it doesn’t feel good. So now, I’m committed to designing mentorship programs for my peers.

In conclusion, I was a silly teenager watching videos about theories, full of passion for challenging the status quo through policy, yet I knew nothing about policy.

I feel everyone reading this has an opportunity to onboard a passionate YIP like 15-year-old Bailey into their sectors so that they can get sharp about driving change.

Reconciliation is a Canadian mandate and every sector requires young Indigenous leaders who will usher in the change for the next generation.

We can’t engage every young person out there, but we can support a leader to build their skills who can then bring their learnings to their peers. Then, everyone levels up.

Today’s Frayed Reflections:

1. YIPs are educating themselves about system failures without understanding the core system.

2. Resilience and passion are plentiful amongst YIPs, but the organization is not.

3. You don’t need to be a reconciliation expert to mentor a YIP; they will define youth reconciliation for you.

4. Don’t smoke weed in your teenage years or risk working in policy.

Peace out. ✌️