Wasáse: Indigenous Pathways of Action and Freedom

by Taiaiake Alfred

The word Wasáse is the Kanienkeha (Mohawk) word for the ancient war dance ceremony of unity, strength, and commitment to action. The author notes, "This book traces the journey of those Indigenous people who have found a way to transcend the colonial identities which are the legacy of our history and live as Onkwehonwe, original people. It is dialogue and reflection on the process of transcending colonialism in a personal and collective sense: making meaningful change in our lives and transforming society by recreating our personalities, regenerating our cultures, and surging against forces that keep us bound to our colonial past."

Genres: Indigenous, Nonfiction, Politics, History, Race, Canada, Indigenous History

320 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2005

About the author

Taiaiake Alfred is a Kahnawà:ke Mohawk philosopher, writer, and political strategist with more than three decades of experience in First Nations governance, politics and cultural restoration and environmental impact assessment. After a 25 year academic career during which he founded Concordia University’s Centre for Native Education and the University of Victoria’s Indigenous Governance Program, and originated and developed Indigenous Resurgence as an intellectual paradigm, he left academia to devote himself to working directly with his own and other Indigenous people at the community level to breathe life into ancestral visions of nationhood. Taiaiake holds a Ph.D. from Cornell University and is the author of three books: Heeding the Voices of Our Ancestors and Peace, Power, Righteousness from Oxford University Press, and Wasáse: Indigenous Pathways of Action and Freedom, and IT'S ALL ABOUT THE LAND from the University of Toronto Press.

Reviews

[Starleigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

The highlight of this book is without a doubt the interviews. Taiaiake's choice to highlight the voices of community centered leaders was exactly what we needed. If you are a young Indigenous academic trying to figure out your path in life in terms of how to best use your talents towards decolonization, and looking for voices of leadership and experience about possible ways forward, than this is the book for you.

[Clivemichael · Rating 5 out of 5]

A survival manual. Encouraging. Constructive arguments for transformation.
"Considering the longview and true facts, the Indian Problem becomes a question of the struggle for right and wrong, for justice in its most basic form. Something was stolen, lies were told, and they've never been made right. That, I believe, is the crux of the problem. We must shift away from the pacifying discourse and reframe people’s perception of the problem so that it is not a question of how to reconcile with the colonialism that faces us. Instead, we must think of restitution as the first step towards creating justice and a moral society out of the immoral racism that is the foundation and core of all colonial countries….
Restitution is purification. It is a ritual of disclosure and confession in which there is acknowledgment and acceptance of one's harmful actions and a genuine demonstration of sorrow and regret, constituted in reality by putting forward a promise to never again do harm by redirecting one’s actions to benefit the one who has been wronged."

[Luna · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Wasáse, Taiaiake Alfred tackles the enormous subject of active decolonization, drawing on indigenous movements for autonomy throughout history and in various spaces. He approaches decolonization by analyzing the violence of colonial states (the United States, Canada, British and Spanish colonies abroad) and different approaches toward creating indigenous autonomy, and the many voices he brings into the book are very valuable. Alfred spends a large portion of the book discussing resurgence, both in the internal spiritual sense of reclaiming indigenous lifeways and rejecting shame, but also in a collective sense of communities decolonizing their ways of life and values. I appreciated that Alfred respectfully explored tactics he himself might not use or advocate, and the way that he found value in many forms of struggle. I also appreciated his critical and insightful examination of politics of reconciliation and acknowledgement; these are popular concepts in "conflict resolution" approaches today, which grant states forgiveness for past atrocities without requiring restitution or changes in dynamics of power. I would encourage this book for anyone who is looking for anti-state approaches to decolonizing Turtle Island, but would encourage folks to also read some historical context about settler colonialism and the landscape of indigenous life prior to colonization, and/or works by other modern indigenous activists, without which this book might not be as useful.

[Gavin · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the first part of the book, the author draws from revolutionary thinkers and suggests revolutionary methods for undermining colonialism. I found this section bold yet pragmatic. The second part of the book contains interviews. I was impressed by the open-mindedness of the author in really listening and taking on-board the opinions of others, even where there was conflict with his own opinions.

[Linda · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not like the concepts of this book. I have read other books by him but was very dissapointed by this one. I actually know him and was suppose to go to his Indigenous Law program, but after reading this I choose to study abroad.

[Mills College Library]

305.89707 A392 2005