On September 12, 24 law students and 12 faculty and staff members from U of T traveled to Mnjikaning (Chippewa of the Rama First Nation) for the Indigenous Law in Context program (Anishinaabe Law Camp). This intensive three-day program required participants to step out of their classroom comfort zone and on to the land to experience rich legal traditions steeped in Anishinaabe life ways. This year, the U of T participants joined students, faculty, and staff from Osgoode Hall Law School, TMU Lincoln Alexander School of Law, and the University of Victoria Law School. We camped out on a field adjacent to Lake Couchiching and had sessions around the site and one on the Rama Farm! The program offered us an introduction to Anishinaabe law through a land-based approach, where we received teachings on Anishinaabe law and legal traditions while also engaging in traditional practices and ceremonies.
A few of this year’s participants have generously shared some reflections on the experience of attending Anishinaabe Law Camp at Mnjikaning this year.
“Since the law camp, I have been thinking about the interplay of humility and leadership. Humility is often thought of as “not being too big.” However, we were taught this misses half of what it means to be humble. Taking up too little space, being “too small,” is just as arrogant as “being too big”. At the law camp, I struggled to identify myself as a camp leader. I was attending as a leader to help with logistics and organizing U of T students. I, as a settler Canadian, felt I could not use the label “leader” since I was not facilitating any sessions or any organizing on a camp-wide basis. I was not practicing humility; I was not acknowledging my role as a leader.
We also were taught about leadership in Anishinaabe governance. Leaders will step up to lead when the time is right, and then step away from leadership when their knowledge, skills, and kind of leadership are not right for the current situation. I struggled with this during the camp. I felt like I needed to be “on” as a leader at all times. I’m very grateful for pushing through those feelings and relaxing to have fun and make relationships. There is an interplay between humility and leadership, then. Leadership requires the humility to know when to step up, and when to step down” – Carson Cook
“After learning about Indigenous legal traditions at Mnjikaning, I am personally reflecting on the importance of incorporating Indigenous perspectives and law into the Canadian legal system. Anishinaabe law camp was an eye-opening experience, and I realized that understanding Indigenous law requires more than just formal knowledge that you learn in a conventional classroom; it’s about opening yourself up to emotional experiences and connecting with others on a deeper level. Drawing on my own experiences and reflections, I explored concepts of humility, interconnectedness, and the role of emotions in Anishinaabe law for my final paper in this course. I also spoke about the importance of community healing and collective responsibility in Indigenous legal traditions. It’s a personal exploration, but it also sheds light on how we can make the legal system more inclusive and equitable for everyone.” – Katherine Getler
“My reflections on the Indigenous law camp are undeniably shaped by my Jewish background. The opportunity to immerse myself in Anishinaabe law shed light on the ways in which we can embrace the narratives that locate our legal institutions. The entire camp was a celebration of renewal. As we learned about and shared in Anishinaabe traditions, I began to fully appreciate that, when we engage in shared practices, we are not merely following rules or studying stories, we are experiencing the possibility of a world in which the two coincide. This momentary glimpse enriches our communities and offers inspiration for legal revitalization. Everyone should participate in the law camp. We invite new legal worlds through the braiding of law, narrative and practice; and, by inviting conversation among diverse peoples who honour and engage in this weaving.” – Benjamin Beiles
“Coming into 2L, I had a bit more of an idea of what to expect in law school this year. I had no idea what to expect at Anishinaabe law camp. There, I learned not only about Anishinaabe law, but also how to learn the law. The teachings in nature, in a community of other students, professors, and community members taught me new skills. I learned to listen with more than a mind to take notes, critique and respond. Instead, our teachings directed us to use our heart-minds, to listen with a mind to absorb, feel and reflect. I learned that learning and practicing the law can be calm and unhurried – a revelation for a perpetually stressed-out law student in Toronto. Most importantly, Anishinaabe law camp highlighted the importance of humility (I highly recommend Dabaadendiziwin: Practices of Humility in a Multi-Juridical Legal Landscape by Lindsay Borrows to learn about humility). As lawyers we must be willing to acknowledge our limitations and put ourselves in situations where we don’t know everything, where we are uncomfortable. Only there can we learn from and rely on others to develop the law and further reconciliation. Everyone came to camp with such an open mind to learn, all of us being willing to step outside our comfort zones and immerse ourselves in a new legal order. Without that, I wouldn’t have had the same experience or learn as much as I did. I’m truly grateful for everyone who organized and participated in the camp; it was a unique and special experience and one I encourage everyone to apply for!” – Chloe Merritt
As these reflections show, every participant came away with unique and deeply personal learnings from the experience. This to me demonstrates the importance of immersing ourselves in a non-extractive, reciprocal relationship to the land and to the more-than-human world from which we draw legal principles.
I come away from this experience with many reflections of my own and as I continue to sit with the teachings, more learnings continue to reveal themselves. For one, over the course of the weekend I was struck by all the beautiful embodiments of Anishinaabe law and ways of being. Slowing down, relating to the land, and participating in ceremony allowed the law that exists in and around us to shine through. I saw it in the way we were welcomed to Rama with such generous hospitality. I saw it in the way the presenters shared their deeply personal journeys and relationships with their tradition and how that factors into their work across diverse disciplines. I saw it in the way students and faculty from all these schools came together and cared for one another. I saw it in the way we all felt called to the lake each afternoon. I saw it in the way Grandfather sun glowed fiery red, setting into the lake as we all oriented ourselves around the ceremonial fire to receive teachings. I saw it in the way healing was attained collectively as we all gathered to initiate and support the Sweat Lodge.
Having returned to the familiar law school setting, I strive to find ways to recognize the law imbued in all things, seen and unseen. When we’re here, it’s easy to forget that the law permeates the world both within and outside the four walls of this school. As someone who has felt alienated in the law school environment, being on the land and being encouraged to listen and accept with my heart-mind was restorative. I hope to bring this approach to living the law, exemplified by Indigenous legal orders, back to how I study law here at UofT and hopefully to how I will practice law in the future.
With gratitude,
Kabir Singh Dhillon
