The impressive forests of the island. — MAXIME COQUARD/Destination Canada/dpa
Dancer Tracey Cleland is wearing an orange checked dress embroidered with bright patches and other ornaments.
She also sewed hundreds of silver bells onto the lapel and fabric, which jingle with each of her steps. Initially, the rhythmic jingling is quiet, but it soon grows louder.
Cleland moves faster and faster, pressing her moccasins into the grass as drummers whirl and sing in rhythmic tones.
The jingling of the bells becomes as loud as a waterfall and that is her intention. The resonant jingle dance aims to imitate water and its healing power.
Cleland belongs to the Anishinabe people and lives on Manitoulin Island, the largest freshwater island in the world. The Canadian island is located in Lake Huron, one of North America’s Great Lakes.
About half of the island’s inhabitants have Indigenous roots. In their language, Manitoulin Island translates to “Island of Spirits”.
For visitors, encounters with the Anishinabe are among the highlights of a trip. Guided hikes, dance events, culinary experiences or visits to a cultural centre offer opportunities to learn about the lifestyle and customs of Canada’s Indigenous people.
The Anishinabe see their island as a spiritual place where they preserve their cultural identity and defend it against the influences of modernity. We can see this on this sunny morning on the lush green lawn in Wikwemikong, a village in the north-east of the island.
Alongside Cleland, dozens of other female dancers have gathered.
The women are dancing in front of the ruins of a school that many residents were once forced to attend. The aim of these schools was to instil Western values and assimilate pupils into Canadian society.
For many Indigenous people, this was a painful experience. Not only did many lose their language, culture and identity, but some also lost their lives.
The Canadian Truth and Reconciliation Commission estimates that over 6,000 Indigenous children died in these institutions, often from disease and neglect, and sometimes due to loneliness and abuse. Many of the deceased children were buried anonymously, causing outrage worldwide.
Anishinabe dance performance on Manitoulin Island, where half of the people have Indigenous roots. — JAY R. MCDONALD/Destination Canada/dpa
With their jingle dance, the dancers are resisting this history. As if in a trance, they listen to the bells and, through them, to the cleansing power of water. They commemorate the victims of such schools and advocate for reconciliation.
“Every Child Matters” is written on an orange flag fluttering at the ruins.
In Canada, orange is considered the colour of reconciliation. Many visitors on this day are also wearing orange T-shirts, scarves or baseball caps. Visitors are explicitly welcome at Anishinabe events, such as on National Indigenous Peoples Day, celebrated in Canada on June 21. Canada also recognises June as “National Indigenous History Month”.
Poplar bark as sunscreen
“Tourism is an opportunity to tell the world our stories,” says tour guide Jack Rivers from Wikwemikong Tourism, a travel provider specialising in Indigenous experiences. Rivers leads a group of visitors along the Bebamikawe Memorial Trail, a 14km circular hike in the north of the island.
On the route, hikers experience Canada in miniature: the trail passes through aspen forests as far as the eye can see. Rivers frequently stops to pick herbs and leaves.
“Every plant has a use,” he explains. The Indigenous people use poplar bark to make sunscreen, while cedar needles serve as a remedy for colds.
“This forest provides us with almost everything we need,” says Rivers, stopping at a hilltop. From there, visitors have a fantastic view of Manitoulin Island’s natural landscapes: the dense mixed forests, the more than 100 lakes, the waterfalls and, in the distance, the cliffs, bays and beaches of Georgian Bay.
At a picnic area, chef Vince Manitowabi is waiting. The air is filled with smoke and the scent of freshly chopped wood.
Manitowabi places a few venison steaks on heated stones, the Indigenous way. The appetiser is smoked trout, followed by the steaks with sweet potatoes, wild rice and grilled squash.
Fresh berries complete the menu.
The waterfall is a spiritual place for Indigenous people on the island. — JORG MICHEL/dpa
Ancient knowledge
“We only take as much from the forest as we need to survive,” says tribal elder Craig Fox the next day. The father of eight is considered a keeper of traditional knowledge and introduces visitors to the island’s cultural centre.
Various artworks are displayed there – jewellery boxes made from porcupine quills, baskets woven from sweetgrass and carvings made from antlers.
A round meeting room with magnificent wall hangings serves the Anishinabe as a place of healing. “This is where we celebrate our spirituality,” Fox says.
Justice is also administered in this room. Instead of sending offenders to prison, the chiefs try to guide them back onto the right path through discussions and traditional ceremonies.
Meanwhile, drums can once again be heard in an open-air theatre in front of the cultural centre. Dancer Cleland is also present, today clad in a yellow jingle dress adorned with magnificent sunflowers.
She dances until she is exhausted - her way of thanking everyone who has come to Manitoulin Island. – JORG MICHEL/dpa
