Built on Genocide

Name: Built on Genocide
Start: 2021-10-13T19:30:00-04:00
End: 2021-10-13T20:00:00-04:00
Location: Ontario Square, Harbourfront Centre

Festival 2021

Built on Genocide

Date & Time

Opening September 22, 2021

Running until October 24, 2021

Luminato Online Experience
October 13, 2021, 7:30pm

Location

Ontario Square, Harbourfront Centre

235 Queens Quay W
Toronto, Ontario M5J 2G8 Canada + Google Map

https://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/

Accessibility

ASL Summary
Audio Description
Open Captions
Radio LUMI
Visual Story

Event Supporters

Built on Genocide is a large-scale installation by multidisciplinary Indigenous artist Jay Soule | CHIPPEWAR, reflecting the historical events and colonial policies throughout Canada’s history that have deliberately undermined and destroyed Indigenous livelihoods.

The work is influenced by the mass genocide of the buffalo as a result of the colonial railway expansion. The buffalo decimation is an underacknowledged but foundational aspect of “Canadian” history, with consequences that persist today.

Built on Genocide will address the direct correlation between the genocide of the buffalo and the genocide of Indigenous peoples in Canada.

Explore the Built on Genocide Audio Tour Here

Artist Jay Soule uses Toronto as a canvas for his Indigenous art and activismThe Globe and Mail Read More

Meet the Artist behind the anti-racism billboard on Spadina. Now MagazineNOW Read More

This Artist Recreated Famous Movie Posters with Indigenous PeopleVICE Read More

The work of Jay Soule | CHIPPEWAR

Built on Genocide artist Jay Soule | CHIPPEWAR poster based on the move Predator has a monster wearing a cross and holding a Bible. An Indigenous man is to the right of the monster looking angry. The title says Colonial Predators.

The best way to portray struggle is through imagery.
Jay Soule | CHIPPEWAR

Built on Genocide artist Jay Soule | CHIPPEWAR poster says 158 Years later and has a radio active symbol below a gasmask and headdress.

This event is part of Luminato 2021

Learn More

Is Canada built on genocide? Learn about Canada’s real history in the series below.

Not a “New World”: We Were Here
Aanii and welcome. I’m Mnawaate Gordon-Corbiere. I’m Anishinaabe and Cree from M’Chigeeng First Nation where I grew up, though I’ve spent most of my adult years in Toronto. I’ve recently graduated from U of T’s History and English programs. Since graduating, I’ve been working as a historian mainly in Indigenous history. I’ve teamed up here… Continue reading Not a “New World”: We Were Here
Who Wrote Canada’s History? The real story of first contact.
Hello everyone! In our first post, I covered a brief overview of the pre-contact years in North America all the way back to the end of the ice age. You have to have a basic understanding of the nations that lived here before we begin discussing Indigenous history in detail. Most important point: these lands… Continue reading Who Wrote Canada’s History? The real story of first contact.
Contact Continues: Clash and Blending of Cultures
Hello again and welcome. In the last post we talked about the Indigenous perspectives of first contact with Europeans, trade networks that existed before contact, and how much change the fur trade brought to the continent. The reality is that European and Indigenous ways of life clashed with each other because they were so different.… Continue reading Contact Continues: Clash and Blending of Cultures
Honour the Treaties
Hello again! Mnawaate welcoming you back for a little more real Indigenous history of Canada. Last week we looked at the effects of European contact on the Indigenous population in North America. This was a period of rapid change for Indigenous peoples. Over time, as Europeans decided to settle here, land agreements in the form… Continue reading Honour the Treaties
Land Acknowledgements and Land Back
Hello everyone! In my last post I talked about the treaties: what they are, how they began, and what treaties became when colonial powers got involved. Now let’s take a closer look at treaties in relation to the new trend of land acknowledgements. Yes, this week I’ll be discussing land acknowledgements. You’ve probably heard a few or even a lot by now. In recent years they seem to happen at every… Continue reading Land Acknowledgements and Land Back
Who’s Work is Reconciliation?
Hello readers! Welcome back. In the last post, we discussed land acknowledgements. Many non-Indigenous peoples see land acknowledgements as one small step towards reconciliation. But what is reconciliation? What does it actually mean? These are the issues I want to talk about today, with a particular focus on residential schools and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Given Canada’s real history, it’s not… Continue reading Who’s Work is Reconciliation?
Land Sovereignty Now
Welcome back. In the last post, I talked about residential schools, the harm they caused, and how the Truth and Reconciliation Commission sought to address and heal that trauma. If you’re just jumping into the conversation now I encourage you to read that and other previous posts. Though all the subjects I’ve covered in this… Continue reading Land Sovereignty Now
Don’t Drink the Water: Boil-Water Advisories and Sovereignty
In my last post I told you about land sovereignty and the strategies Indigenous nations are using to regain their sovereignty. Today we’ll be looking at water issues and access to safe drinking water, which you’ll quickly see are deeply related to land sovereignty. Clean, running water is something we often take for granted. If… Continue reading Don’t Drink the Water: Boil-Water Advisories and Sovereignty
IS CANADA BUILT ON GENOCIDE?
Welcome to the last post of this series. I’ve written them in the hope of sharing with you Canada’s real history with Indigenous peoples. And I have one more important reason for writing. I want you to understand Jay Soule, aka CHIPPEWAR’s installation Built on Genocide at the Harbourfront Centre. The theme of Soule’s installation is genocide. Yes, genocide.… Continue reading IS CANADA BUILT ON GENOCIDE?