‘Visibility to those otherwise made invisible’: How Journalists for Human Rights helped one Indigenous youth

Q: Describe your involvement in the JHR’s Indigenous Reporters Program (IRP):Emilee:  I was awarded JHR’s ‘Emerging Indigenous Journalist’ award in the new year and moved to unceded Coast Salish territories, otherwise known as Vancouver, in June. I worked for four months as a reporter for the Tyee, an awesome independent news organization. When I arrived at the Tyee, the editor asked me, “What do you want to do in your time here?” and I knew I wanted to do some kind of series that wrote about Indigenous peoples, cultures and communities, in a good way. When I was in grad school for journalism, I created and facilitated workshops around decolonizing journalism, after seeing a lot of harmful teachings and practices passed on. I saw how Indigenous peoples were historically misrepresented or underrepresented by mainstream media and I wanted to be the change in journalism that I longed to see.Q: Do you think it is important to have a program like IRP that offers scholarship and internship opportunities to emerging Indigenous reporters? Why?Emilee:  I do. Indigenous peoples are diverse and complex. What it means for me, as a Saulteaux Cree Métis woman who grew up disconnected from my Indigenous relatives and culture is completely unique to my story. How I find my way back to Indigenous teachings and methodologies is a personal story, but the fact that JHR recognized my work and supported it was a game-changer for me and I think it could be a game-changer for many Indigenous peoples. There are extremely talented and visionary Indigenous peoples, in isolated communities, in cities, spread all across the country. I think it’s important to seek out people who are less visible, but also to uphold people who are doing work that strengthens and empowers Indigenous peoples everywhere. Some people need the support because our societies are mismanaged and unequal, while other folks need support because the work they’re doing is isolated and daunting. We all have different reasons we need recognition and support, as Indigenous peoples, or as peoples committed to strengthening Indigenous realities and JHR is playing a significant role in restoring justice and healing.