The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation in Winnipeg. Photo: NCTR
The calls are growing for someone to be held accountable for the cutting of a First Nations Elder’s braids since the story of what happened to Dexter Adams first emerged.
Adams, 84, from Pasqua First Nation, died in May, just weeks after his long braids were cut off in Edmonton’s Royal Alexandra Hospital. His family believes the hair cutting shortened Adams’ life.
Jennifer Wood is the Unit lead for Commemorations and Community relations with the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation. She said the person responsible for the braid cutting didn’t know what they were doing and that a braid is more than just a hairstyle.
“We are braiding our mind, our body, our spirit, all as one. [Having it cut] probably caused the elder a lot of psychological stress,” Wood said.
“I believe when she cut his hair she probably broke his spirit, she took away his power, she took away his strength.”
On a recent appearance of APTN’s Truth and Politics news segment, Winnipeg Free Press columnist Niigaan Sinclair spoke to the spiritual significance of hair in First Nations culture.
“For instance, we don’t throw our hair away, we burn our hair because it’s a sacred part of us,” Sinclair said.
“When you cut it like in residential schools or in this case, you’re literally cutting us off from our very foundation of who we are, which is our connection with the land.”
Adams’ wife discovered the braids had been thrown in a garbage can, along with his bear grease and an eagle feather.
“The idea that you would just take someone’s items and toss them into a garbage bin-someone has to be held to account for that,” Sinclair said. “I mean that’s just human decency.”
Sinclair said during a recent trip, the cultural items he was travelling with were dealt with in a far different way when he was going through airport security.
“They changed their gloves and asked if they would be able to touch those items,” Sinclair said. “I was dealt with by a supervisor. They were very respectful and I felt very seen. I felt appreciated and they didn’t do anything inappropriate with my items.
“In fact, at the end, the supervisor asked me ‘is there a better way I could do this’? So, there’s lots of different ways this can be handled institutionally.”
Back on Pasqua First Nation, where Adams is a member, band council member and a relative of Dexter Adams, Roman Pasqua, said leaders there were shocked to hear what happened.
“For me personally, I was disgusted. How did this happen? Why did this happen? I’m not going to lie, it brought a little bit of anger to me,” Pasqua told APTN news.
“The first thing I thought of was residential school. Stories my dad, my uncles told me of when they would cut off their long hair. They didn’t have a say. In today’s society how does this happen?”
Wood said Canada needs to “wake up” and not let things like this happen again.
“I hope the institution out in Edmonton does a public apology to all Indigenous people,” Wood said. “We have to call it what it is, and not use flowery words anymore. And we should proceed with the punishments that are of the day, that should be enforced, that should be applied.”
Dexter Adams’ widow, Eve Adams, has filed a complaint with the Edmonton police.
