October 12/2020: In Honour of Indigenous Peoples Day

Did you know that Indigenous folx in so-called Canada were banned from smudging from 1876 until 1951? Herbs like white sage are sacred; smudging is a closed practice used in traditional ceremonies, and it has been culturally appropriated by wellness and Paganism trends. It is unfair for non-Native folx to profit off of a ritual that many Indigenous people died for. I have made mistakes of burning Palo Santo or smudging when it was not appropriate to do so because I was ignorant of the history behind this practice and it is important to educate and correct ourselves when presented w this information. I think wellness is wonderful, but we should not be appropriating Indigenous culture to do so. If you did not know before, now you do! Let’s make more conscious decisions from here on out — the next photo (thank you, @saltytowntarot) is a list of what is acceptable to burn if you are not Indigenous, and what practices are closed.

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Vibrations operates on K’jipuktuk, the unceded ancestral land of the Mi’kma’ki. Please visit the link in my bio to support Mi’kmaq fishermen whose inherent rights to hunt, fish, and trade for a moderate livelihood in Treaty 1752 are under attack by racist commercial fishermen. Last week, an Indigenous fishing boat was destroyed in Comeauville, NS, and non-Native fishermen have been putting up blockades, cutting lines + traps, destroying property, and being downright racist pigs. The 1752 Peace and Friendship Treaty is a fundamental law that came before colonial constitutions + institutions. You should be wondering, why aren’t these government agencies upholding the law? It’s incontestable; silence is violence. Contact your ministers, support however you can, and learn.