The Resilience and Self-Determination of Native American Youth: Connecting to the Spirit and Ways of Knowing

Background & Purpose:  For many generations, Native people have experienced substantial oppression and injustice as a result of colonization and assimilation, leaving families and communities frustrated, depressed, full of anger, and hopeless.  With Native communities enduring the loss of land, cultural identity, high rates of poverty, limited employment opportunities, overcrowding and inadequate living conditions, weakened social structures, racism, and a lack of recognition by mainstream society, all contributing to demoralizing conditions.  Native communities have seen an increased in substance abuse, suicide and violence, and fatalities particularly high among their Native youth.  Recently in a northern Canadian Native community that has experienced over 100 suicide attempts and one death in seven months, 11 youth attempted suicide in one night.  While these issues and problems are a priority.  Little has been looked at regarding those Native youth who try to cultivate hope through agency in promoting awareness and healing from the issues in their community and for their People, when faced with crisis.

This research is centered in understanding the resiliency and activism of Native youth, and the impact one Native youth group known as ‘The Spirit of the Youth’ who travelled on foot through their ancestral lands (Canada and U.S.A) from 2005-2008, and 2011 to bringing awareness regarding the importance of cultural knowledge, language and sovereignty for their lives, as well for the future of their Peoples.  The research was guided by the following questions: 1) What are the Spirit of the Youth Unity Runs and why do they engage youth?  2)  How does participating in the Spirit of the Youth Unity Run(s) impact the identity and well-being of Native youth? and 3) Are Unity Runs a form of cultural activism, and what impact does this type of activism have on Native youth?

Methods: A qualitative Indigenous methodology was used to collect data from fourteen Haudenosaunee youth and five parents who participated on The Spirit of the Youth Unity Runs travelling through Canada and the United States.  The study also incorporates a quasi-ethnographic methodology by the researcher as she journeyed with a group of Native youth on their final journey in 2011 from Tennessee to B’dote (St. Paul) Minnesota.

Results: The findings present a theoretical model of Native youth development and the resilience from an Indigenous wholistic and cultural perspective highlighting the following areas: 1) Indigenous agency and mobilization; 2) Experiential learning; 3) Building Relationships; and 4) Personal growth and transformation.

Conclusion & Implications: Generations of historical trauma and colonization continue to oppress Native families and communities today leaving many Native youth in despair.  The knowledge gained from this research recognizes that efforts of decolonizing while incorporating Indigenous culture, knowledge and ways of knowing into a cultural praxis, empowers the resilience in Native youth in taking pride of their Native identity and nurturing their well-being through cultural approaches.  The implications from this research provide social work with an understanding of the importance of Indigenous knowledge and epistemology in the development and support of identity and overall well-being for Native youth.