A Mind Spread Out on the Ground:” Urban Indigenous Experiences of Grief and Bereavement
Dublin Core
Title
A Mind Spread Out on the Ground:” Urban Indigenous Experiences of Grief and Bereavement
Subject
Indigenous peoples
Electronic Resource Item Type Metadata
Publication Date
2024
Publisher
University of Alberta
Document Type
Dissertation
Language
English
Region
Canada
Access
Open Access
View Source
Abstract
Of the 1.8 million Indigenous Peoples residing on the lands known as Canada, nearly half live in urban areas. Urban spaces themselves are built on traditional Indigenous territory. In some cases, Indigenous Peoples are born and raised in cities that exist on their territories, in other cases, Indigenous Peoples may have migrated to cities or were born there, away from their own
ancestral lands. Being an urban Indigenous Person often means that our ties to cultural
connection have been disrupted to some degree (Barker 2019). Studies have shown that
Indigenous People are overrepresented in several key mortality related measures, such as violent death and premature death. Given this information, this study examines urban Indigenous experiences of colonization, culture, and grief to determine what impacts colonization and culture have had on meaningful and culturally relevant healing experiences. The study collaboratively works with 15 self-identified urban Indigenous Peoples from age 21-84, located in or near amiskwaciwâskahikan (Edmonton). It uses qualitative and Indigenous methodologies to answer the following primary questions: how do urban Indigenous Peoples experience grief and what support systems exist for them, if any? Sub-questions that we addressed were: do people have access to culturally relevant grief support? If yes, what does that look like and if no, how can we enable it? Findings indicate that urban Indigenous experiences of grief are influenced in complex ways by colonization, unresolved trauma, and culture. Within the psychological and sociological literature on grief, the study shows how urban Indigenous experiences of grief can be understood as ‘disenfranchised,’ using Kenneth Doka’s concept of disenfranchised grief.
ancestral lands. Being an urban Indigenous Person often means that our ties to cultural
connection have been disrupted to some degree (Barker 2019). Studies have shown that
Indigenous People are overrepresented in several key mortality related measures, such as violent death and premature death. Given this information, this study examines urban Indigenous experiences of colonization, culture, and grief to determine what impacts colonization and culture have had on meaningful and culturally relevant healing experiences. The study collaboratively works with 15 self-identified urban Indigenous Peoples from age 21-84, located in or near amiskwaciwâskahikan (Edmonton). It uses qualitative and Indigenous methodologies to answer the following primary questions: how do urban Indigenous Peoples experience grief and what support systems exist for them, if any? Sub-questions that we addressed were: do people have access to culturally relevant grief support? If yes, what does that look like and if no, how can we enable it? Findings indicate that urban Indigenous experiences of grief are influenced in complex ways by colonization, unresolved trauma, and culture. Within the psychological and sociological literature on grief, the study shows how urban Indigenous experiences of grief can be understood as ‘disenfranchised,’ using Kenneth Doka’s concept of disenfranchised grief.
Cataloger
Jessica Alston
Collection
Citation
“A Mind Spread Out on the Ground:” Urban Indigenous Experiences of Grief and Bereavement,” ICMGLT Digital Library, accessed November 3, 2026, https://library.icmglt.org/items/show/734.