Voices from the Land: Indigenous Peoples Talk Language Revitalization - Errol Kinistino

The Legacy of Hope Foundation (LHF) is pleased to announce the release of episode 2 with Errol Kinistino. Errol is an adult Cree language learner, as well as an actor and singer from the Ochapowace Cree Nation in Saskatchewan. In this episode, Errol pays homage to the history of his community and the impact of the Residential School System on the transmission of the Cree and Michif languages in his family. Speaking to the damage caused from Indigenous languages and cultures being labelled pagan, Errol shares how really, the language speaks to the heart and is so beautiful and full of stories and lessons.

At 19 years old while travelling to Split Lake and Indian Lake, Erroll first heard the languages being spoken fluently. He had no previous knowledge that this was even possible and it made him realize the language was still alive. As a university student in the 1970’s, Errol took an evening language course and describes it as eye opening. He recalls at first being severely discouraged and angry. Angry that it was so difficult to learn and that he had lost the opportunity as a child to learn it. He knew he had to move past the anger and the discouragement to go forward. Errol describes his experiences travelling Northern Manitoba and how hearing the language there helped to deepen his learning. Errol says: “Speak it as much as you can and if you hear it, you'll come alive. It’s in our blood, it’s in our DNA and we just have to revive it.” Old friends Gordon and Errol, discuss the significance of Indigenous languages and what small efforts in community spaces can do to immerse the people in their cultural legacy.