English - Ontario Association of Children's Aid Societies

A key tool that is often used to help Aboriginal families
is the circle. Through the circle, each person can
address his/her full self, see connections between
themselves and others and explore how to regain his/
her balance. In the circle, individuals must face the
impact their behaviours have on other people when
they are not in balance, and the impact others have
on individuals. Individuals must also recognize their
interconnectedness with one another.
There are many different types of circles, but they all
follow specific protocols. All circles are intended to
ensure that all members of the circle are heard and
listened to, that there is safety in the circle, that
historical knowledge and traditions are followed and
respected. It is important that the Creator and spirit
world is part of the circle, protecting each person as
s/he explores difficult life experiences.
The circles have been described in four levels, each
with healing properties:
> > Level one is the talking circle where people
become aware of the original hurts
> > Level two is the sharing circle where a high
degree of trust is formed and individuals begin
to express painful emotions
> > Level three is the healing circle, where people
work through memories of painful experiences
and develop trust in the intuitive and spiritual
messages they receive
> > Level four is the spiritual circle, where
individuals reclaim and strengthen their
spiritual gifts and integrate cultural teachings
and practices in their healing processes and
lives
In addition to family circles and extended family circles,
there are community circles that can engage the full
community in addressing issues in one family and that
recognize the impact on all members of the community.
Storytelling: The professional practice of asking
directive questions may not get the full story from a
family member. In particular, women who have
experienced violence are not likely to provide you with the full story until they trust
you.
Planting seed-thoughts (e.g., “what if” statements) provides a way for someone to
understand that you can be trusted so that they can tell his/her story or answer your
questions.
The man who comes before the court on a charge
of domestic assault is almost certainly not only
guilty of a single incident, but of
orchestrating a regime of terror, abuse and
domination that has caused enormous
post-traumatic stress related damage to his
victims, as well as “collateral damage” to the
children who have witnessed the abuse. In so
doing, this man is contributing to an
ever-worsening probability that his community
will soon manifest a culture of violence and
abuse, if it has not already done so.
However, this same man, while responsible for his
abusive actions and the patterns he perpetuates
through them, was shaped by his own childhood
experiences. Merely punishing him for wrongdoing
will not end the cycle of abuse. Clearly, this
man needs healing and so do his family members
and victims. Beyond all of them, however, lies a
complex set of community dynamics that have
allowed this man to become an abuser and to
pass on his patterns of abuse to the next
generation. - Bopp, Bopp & Lane, 2003
In our teachings of our traditional ways, families
never inflicted violence towards each other or
the children. Our people believe that the children
are gifts from the Creator, and we are not the
“owners” but the caretakers of them. We were
given these children to teach them, to be good
role models for them, and to bring forth harmony,
peace and understanding. We have expressed
to our children all the teachings we have been
given by our experiences in life. Children must
be taught the “good” ways and must be shown to
them by their families. All children are cared for
by other members of the family.
- www.kanawayhitowin.ca
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