Merinda Dutton
By the Guest Editor: Disrupting the Colonial Narrative
This edition of The Circular was curated by Merinda Dutton. To close, we share her essay on writing as a means for First Nations individuals to reclaim sovereignty. She also observes that settlers should do more than merely consume First Nations writing; they should take meaningful action in response.
The future is as yet undetermined: it will be shaped by our actions and ideas – here, now. And whatever reality we ultimately manifest will have been formed in our dreams and imaginings first. That First Nations peoples have tested and are testing the limits of our existence is not only an exercise in truth-telling but also in futurism...Through writing and storytelling we illuminate aspects of history that have remained invisible and are able to envision ourselves as our sovereign, whole selves.
Whether there is a place for settlers themselves in First Nations futures remains to be seen.