Elders ask why young Inuit don’t fear death

JENNIFER TILDEN
Special to Nunatsiaq News

YELLOWKNIFE ­ Amittuq MLA Mark Evaluarjuk wants to know what is causing young people to lose their fear of death.

He says that elders do not understand what is going on with the younger generation of Inuit. So it is not surprising that the elders find themselves unable to relate to what is happening today.

It was less than two generations ago that Inuit were living a traditional lifestyle, governed by their own laws and beliefs. Back then, it all made sense. Life was about survival. Sharing and sacrifice were of the utmost importance.

It was rare for a young person to commit suicide, but common among the very old and the sick, Evaloarjuk says.

Life was very hard and there was only so much food to go around at the best of times. The dogs had limited energy for pulling people. There were many children to feed.

Elders sacrificed themselves for survival of the group

If a person was no longer able to contribute to the welfare of the family, he or she would begin to see themselves as a burden. Others would too.

The Igloolik Research Centre has conducted interviews with elders about traditional life.

In one of the interviews, a man recalls a case in which a son took his elderly father hunting. When they reached an island the son said to his father, “I am going to leave you on this island.”

The old man replied very slowly, “yes.” His son took him out of the boat and left him behind.

Rhoda Karetak, an elder from Rankin Inlet, says that most of the suicides that took place were a form of euthanasia. There were no modern medicines or painkillers, and people with severe injury or illness would choose death over indefinite suffering.

Sometimes individuals with a mental illness would sometimes become violent towards others.

“Some people would realize the threat they posed to their loved ones and choose to kill themselves. Other times they would have to be killed or abandoned,” Karetak says.

This was a fact of life that was understood and accepted.

Inuit taught to fear death

From the time that they were children, Inuit were taught to fear death above all else. The environment in which they lived was unforgiving and it was necessary for children to understand that there was no room for taking risks.

Karetak remembers her grandfather saying, “Children that are too noisy meet an early death.”

They were told never to pretend or joke about death. There were many lectures and stories about death told to children by their parents and grandparents. These were used to convince the children to avoid dangerous situations.

Elisabeth Ootoova, an elder from Pond Inlet, also remembers what life was like back then.

“Even though our life was hard, and we would go through long periods without food, we never considered giving up the struggle to survive. We were very afraid of death,” Ootoova says.

This concept of death was one of many daily lessons taught to the children by their parents and grandparents. It was the parents’ responsibility to pass on their language, customs and beliefs to their children.

“People talked to each other… and Inuit looked after each other”

Rhoda Karetak recalls that there were problems, as in any society, but families were very close back then.

“I don’t ever remember having nothing to do, there was always something. We had to make the clothing for the family, clean the skins, cut up the meat and perform many more chores to ensure our survival. There was no television, radio or telephones back then, so people talked to each other. I remember when we had a good life. Our children were happy ” Karetak says.

Karetak also remembers when things began to change. It was when the RCMP, and government officials from the departments of health, education and justice started to arrive.

Inuit children forcibly abandoned?

Inuit lost their ability to determine their own future.

Although Karetak says that she recognizes the importance of education for young people, she believes that a lot of what is happening today with the younger generation, has been caused by this loss of self-determination.

“We were told that we were no longer responsible for our children after they reached the age of 16. The government told us that what we had to pass on to our children was less valuable than what the Qallunaaq education system had to offer,” Karetak says.

Some children were separated from their families and homes at the age of 10, when they were sent away to residential schools.

These schools taught Inuit children to forget their language, culture and beliefs. Now elders and young people have lost the ability to communicate with each other. There is so much that is no longer shared.

“We are no longer the teachers,” Karetak says.

Power to parent must be reclaimed

She believes that the power to parent was taken from Inuit and that this power needs to be reclaimed.

Elisapee Ootoova also says that schools have replaced parents as the primary educators. She remembers that children used to be told to spend their time outside. It was believed that it was bad for children to be inside for too long.

Now she says, “Children are inside schools all day. They have been taught that what they learn there is more important than what their parents have to teach them. So they don’t listen to us anymore.”

Ootoova thinks that the schools have a responsibility to talk to the students about their culture. She believes that the schools should instill a sense of pride and optimism in Inuit students.

Rhoda Karetak, Mark Evaloarjuk, Elisapee Ootoovak and many others care deeply about this issue. It is their children and grandchildren that are dying.

Don’t wait for government

They all want to know what can be done to stop young Inuit from killing themselves. Karetak says that we don’t have to wait for the government to come up with the money for programs; we don’t have to wait for plans to be put in place and people to be trained.

She says Inuit can start right now by reclaiming our role as parents and educators to our children.

“We are late, but we have to let them back into our lives, love them and take care of them,” Karetak says.

Please read the final part of Jennifer Tilden’s three-part series on suicide in Nunavut in the next issue of Nunatsiaq News.