Cecil King - The Boy from Buzwah - A Life in Indian Education

Advance Praise for

The Boy From Buzwah

This book chronicles the life and times of Cecil King from his humble beginnings on an Indian reserve to the giant of a man who paved the way for Indigenous control of education in Canada. Cecils story is one of perseverance, strength, and resiliency. This is a must-read for everyone. manley a. begay, jr. , Applied Indigenous Studies, Northern Arizona University

Indigenizing the academy begins here with Cecils vivid memoirs of a life lived Indigenizing the academies. marie battiste , author of Decolonizing Education and Honorary Officer of the Order of Canada

Dr. Cecil Kings memoir is a fascinating account of his childhood on Manitoulin Island during a time of transition where education controlled by residential schools run by religious orders was ending and his own education led him to becoming a warrior for the 1973 goal of Indian Control of Indian Education and the right to self-determination to include Indigenous languages, cultures, histories, and values into pedagogies and curriculums in training institutions he helped create. We owe him much thanks for his contributions in the continuing quest for Indigenous Control of Indigenous Education! russ diabo , Senior Indigenous Policy Analyst

Cecil Kings bookpresents an important perspective in the debate on educational change in the past half-century. His personal perspective and his use of Ojibwe as part of this history introduces a new qualitative dimension to this debate. keith goulet , former Minister of Northern Affairs for Saskatchewan

Cecil Kings memoir is an important contribution to Indigenous literature, documenting early life on the Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve, disclosing the enduring roots of Odawa tradition, chronicling the re-emergence of Anishnawbe culture and the rise of Indigenous activism, particularly in the important area of Indigenous education. the honourable leonard s. (tony) mandamin

The teacher, respected community leader, and post-secondary professor and administrator argues most convincingly for a system of First Nations education that incorporates fully Indigenous history, culture, and present-day realities. I love Cecils book! don smith , Professor Emeritus of History, University of Calgary

An essential account of an Indigenous scholars trailblazing and sweeping contributions towards restoring and inspiring Indigenous control of Indigenous education. verna st denis , Professor and Special Advisor to the President on Anti-Racism/Anti-Oppression, College of Education, University of Saskatchewan

Miigwetch Cecil King, for sharing your remarkable journey and life in this essential book, which educators and learners will treasure. This is a book of extraordinary generosity and humility, and one that provides both context and direction for the future of Indigenous education. jesse wente , Chair, Canada Council of the Arts

[ Dr. Cecil King] laid the grounds for the birth of what we now relish; namely Indigenous Education from [an] Indigenous perspective; a mindset that saw everything and everyone of great importance in his presence, not at all effaced by the colonial attitude nor structure put in place to do away with Indians. karla jessen williamson , College of Education, University of Saskatchewan

University of Regina Press designates one title each year that best exemplifies the guiding editorial and manuscript production principles of long-time senior editor Donna Grant.

2022 Cecil King

All rights reserved. No part of this work covered by the copyrights hereon may be reproduced or used in any form or by any meansgraphic, electronic, or mechanicalwithout the prior written permission of the publisher. Any request for photocopying, recording, taping or placement in information storage and retrieval systems of an y sort shall be directed in writing to Access Copyright.

Printed and bound in Canada at Imprimerie Gauvin. The text of this book is printed on % post-consumer recycled paper with earth-friendly vegetable-based inks.

cover photo: Cecil in a Mountie jacket taken from rummage provided by Garnier Residential School. Courtesy the author.

cover and book design: Duncan Campbell, University of Regina Press copy editor: Marionne Cronin proofreader: Kendra Ward indexer: Trish Furdek map : Weldon Hiebert

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

title: The boy from Buzwah : a life in Indian education / Cecil King.

names: King, Cecil O., 1932 - author.

description: Includes index.

identifiers: Canadiana (print) 20210360100 | Canadiana (ebook) 20210360178 | isbn 9780889778504 (softcover) | isbn 9780889778535 (hardcover) | isbn 9780889778511 ( pdf ) | isbn 9780889778528 ( epub )

subjects: lcsh : King, Cecil O., 1932 - | lcsh : TeachersCanadaBiography. | lcsh : Language teachersCanadaBiography. | csh : First NationsCanadaBiography. | csh : First NationsEducationCanada. | csh : First NationsCanadaResidential schools. | lcsh : Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve (Ont.)Biography. | lcgft : Autobiographies.

classification: lcc e99.o9 k56 2022 | ddc 371.10092 dc

University of Regina Press, University of Regina Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, s s a tel: ( ) - fax: ( ) - 4699 web :

We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts for our publishing program. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada. / Nous reconnaissons lappui financier du gouvernement du Canada. This publication was made possible with support from Creative Saskatchewans Book Publishing Production Grant Program.

To the Ancestors

Contents

Map of

Acknowledgements

A ahow!! Maatchta dahWenesh wok gah shkih keek mitt wah zin towgiyan?

Okay!! Lets start. Who was first in telling me about growing up? I wish to acknowledge all who have had something to do with my horizons and my life itself. Ill attempt to thank the many. I do owe you all special thank-yous.

As I launch into this I am awed as I see the scope of this undertaking and view you all to whom I owe your priceless time, patience, and visions of my prospects for success, as it is you, the individuals who undertook the hammering and shaping of one hapless Indian into what you may have believed was needed in this case. You have all been superheroes yourselves and again a kitchi miigwetch to all of you.

I acknowledge, firstly, my three septuagenarians, as they did set my beginnings and, of course, it has counted. Then I must acknowledge the four Ojibwe teachers of Buzwah Indian Day School and how significant life can be under such tutelage. These First Nations teachers mattered. So, thank you Christine, Clara, Rita, and Liza Jane. Life with you four was a slice through my elementary school years. You successfully entered me into the helter-skelter world of academe and the culture of my people.

The trail has been long and I suppose arduous, but as I think now it has been a happy trail. Thanks to you, John Sugden, for keeping me on track. Then, I have an army of stalwarts without whose interventions this day would not be. Thanks, Rodney Soonias, Smith Atimoyoo, Danny Umpherville, Art Blue, Adam Cuthand, Stan Cuthand, Danny Musqua, Ken Goodwill, Audie Dyer, Robert Surtees, Jerry Hammersmith, and Murray Scarf. No doubt there are many others equally deserving my thanks, such as Helen Hornbeck Tanner, Evelyn Moore-Eyman, Don Smith, and of course the Kirk (Dean Kirkpatrick).