At a time when equity, social justice, and identity have never been more critical, Braided Identities challenges us with the question: "How do I define myself, and how does that influence my health and well-being?" Blending essays, poems, and visual art, the authors explore the many issues that affect the health and well-being of rural, remote, and urban communities and individuals across Canada. This collection provides new insights into the mutable, messy, beautiful, and strong identities held by the contributors and how they have resisted perspectives that strive to define, direct, and demean them. The book shows the ways in which lived experience and research can inform one another, and how creativity can illuminate inequities, inspire resilience, and ignite change. Primarily through first-person perspectives, this instructive and elegant book explores systemic inequities and inclusive healthcare in Canada, appealing to socially conscious readers, healthcare workers, policy makers, and activists.
Contributors: Terri Aldred, Christine Añonuevo, Reneltta Arluk, Wala Azimi, Zamina Aziz, Lisa Boivin, Thomsen Boniface D'Hont, Sarah de Leeuw, Norma Dunning, Marion Erickson, Max Ferguson, Margo Greenwood, Corrine Hunt, Audrey Kobayashi, Marc Lafrance, Roseann Larstone, Nicole Marie Lindsay, Sam Loppie, Vanessa Mitchell, Shane Neilson, Omolara Odulaja, Renee Priya Prasad, Salima Punjani, Margaret Robinson, Mark W. Rosenberg, Sana Z. Shahram, Miyawata Dion Stout, Julie Sutherland, Kimberley Thomas, Gilles Tremblay, Sarah Yi-Mei Tsiang, Ysabelle Vautour, thom vernon, and Wahsonti:io. Draws on multiple genres to explore questions of intersecting identities and raises awareness about the processes of power that perpetuate health inequities in Canada. Draws on multiple genres to explore questions of intersecting identities and raises awareness about the processes of power that perpetuate health inequities in Canada. "The art is amazing, the poetry says so much with few words. The book will find a wide audience due to the range of genres." Verna St Denis, University of Saskatchewan
"Timely, unique, raw, and honest, Braided Identities makes reading feel like an intimate conversation and a glimpse into a sacred space." Tracy Moniz, Mount Saint Vincent University 11 B&W images
• Dedication
• Acknowledgements
• Self-Care and Emotional Trigger Warning
• Introduction
• Part One: Experiencing Racism
• Chapter 1: A'niaqtuq (Sick) / Norma Dunning
• Chapter 2: An Educated Guess / Miyawata Dion Stout
• Chapter 3: Burden of Truth / Vanessa Mitchell
• Chapter 4: Growing Up Jewish / Mark W. Rosenberg
• Chapter 5: Identity / Sarah Yi-Mei Tsiang
• Part Two: Connecting with Others
• Chapter 6: Me Because of You / Renee Priya Prasad
• Chapter 7: Introducing Myself as Dakelh / Marion Erickson
• Chapter 8: Help I'm Alive: Supporting the Mentally Ill When the System Is Broken / Julie Sutherland
• Chapter 9: Hunting Medicine / Thomsen Boniface D'Hont
• Chapter 10: Ancestors / Wahsonti:io
• Chapter 11: The Most Incredible Transformation / Corrine Hunt
• Chapter 12: Heart Works / Reneltta Arluk
• Part Three: Knowing Oneself
• Chapter 13: Wild Ones / Margaret Robinson
• Chapter 14: The Radical Act of Anti-Oppressive Self-Identification / Kimberley Thomas
• Chapter 15: The Trouble with Identity / Terri Aldred
• Chapter 16: My Mere Presence / Wala Azimi
• Chapter 17: A Fish Out of Water / Omolara Odulaja
• Chapter 18: I Am / Ysabelle Vautour
• Chapter 19: Bi Coastal: The Changing Tide of Identity / Sam Loppie
• Chapter 20: I'm Fine. / Sana Z. Shahram
• Part Four: Living Diversity
• Chapter 21: Different Bodies / Zamina Aziz
• Chapter 22: A Double Bind / Shane Neilson
• Chapter 23: Walang Hiya (Without Shame) / Christine Añonuevo
• Chapter 24: Reflections on Fox Medicine / Lisa Boivin
• Chapter 25: Fro
