Some Knowledge is Sacred and Only Shared With Permission and/or in Certain Situations
“Exploring Indigenous knowledge in the classroom was challenged and struck down in the court case Servatius v. Alberni School District No. 70, where it was deemed that a smudging ceremony which took place in a Port Alberni, BC school was not a religious act but a cultural one.” (Jeremy O’Shea)
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(Nov 15, 2016) B.C. mother takes school district to court over Aboriginal spiritual ceremony
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-mother-takes-school-board-to-court-over-aboriginal-ceremony-1.3851838
- Candice Servatius, an evangelical Christian, [alleged] her children were forced to participate in an Aboriginal spirituality ceremony that she considers religious in nature.
- “This is contrary to the School Act [s.76] which expressly prohibits religion in the classroom, religious practices, and it is also contrary to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms,” Carpay said [president of Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF)]
- “The distinction here that the school board is not honouring is a difference between teaching about religion and actually practising religion by forcing kids to go through a religious ceremony,” Carpay said.
- However, the district does indicate in the letter that it could have made it more clear that participation in the cultural ceremonies was optional for students.
- The letter also said school districts in B.C. have a mandate to integrate “authentic Aboriginal content into the curriculum, including through the participation of Aboriginal Elders and other knowledgeable community members as guest speakers and presenters.”
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(Jan 8, 2020) B.C. mom loses court case arguing Indigenous ceremony at kids’ school infringed on religious freedom
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/mom-lose-case-indigenous-ceremony-school-religious-freedom-1.5420103
- Servatius “failed to establish that the Nuu-chah-nulth smudging in her children’s classrooms or the prayer said by the hoop dancer at the school assembly interfered with her or her children’s ability to act in accordance with their religious beliefs.”
- Judith Sayers, president of the Nuu-chah-nulth tribal council, said it’s not up to other people to define Nuu-chah-nulth practices as religious instead of cultural.
“We need to be able to define what is religion and what is culture,” she told On The Island host Gregor Craigie. “We have our spirituality, which is just totally different than the organized religions that we see today … the court saw that this was really an attempt to be teaching our culture to our children of all ages.”
- In his ruling, Thompson said the students, including Servatius’s children, observed a smudging ceremony and hoop dance. However, the judge said, “they did not hold cedar branches and were not smudged or otherwise cleansed.”
- “I conclude that proof on an objective basis of interference with the ability of the petitioner or her children to act in accordance with their religious beliefs requires more than the children being in the presence of an Elder demonstrating a custom with spiritual overtones or being in the presence of a dancer who said a brief prayer,” said the judge in his ruling.
- Servaitus’ counsel is not satisfied with the decision.
- “This is a disappointing decision for citizens from any religion or cultural background, each of whom has a constitutional right to be free from state-compelled spirituality,” stated Jay Cameron, Servatius’s counsel.
- “We are reviewing the decision with an eye to next steps.”
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(Dec 12, 2022) Mother who fought against smudging demonstration at Vancouver Island school loses appeal
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/mother-who-fought-against-smudging-demonstration-in-port-alberni-school-loses-appeal-1.6683235
- Court of Appeal also orders woman to pay the school district’s court costs
- [Original hearing found that] “Servatius would not have to pay the school district’s court costs because her family could not afford to”
- [Appeal Judge learned that Servatius] “did not disclose that her costs were being covered by the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, a non-profit which takes on Charter of Rights and Freedoms cases.”
- In a judgment written by Justice Susan Griffin, the court found there were no factual errors made in the initial ruling. Griffin wrote that the demonstrations were not religious ceremonies but public demonstrations for the purpose of community building.
- She cited the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), which B.C. adopted in 2019.
- Article 15 of UNDRIP says that Indigenous cultures and traditions should be reflected in education.