Defining Culture: Identity and Healing for Indigenous People
by Broden Halcrow-Ducharme

Culture is like a drumbeat; steady, grounding, and alive. It connects generations through rhythm and memory, reminding us that healing begins when we can hear the sound of our own heartbeat. 

 

Culture is a foundation of identity and wellness for Indigenous peoples. It is dynamic, living, and central to healing. Culture encompasses the languages, laws, governance systems, spirituality, and relationships that define how people live and interact with one another and with the land.  

 

Culture is the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual, and emotional features of a society or group. It includes arts, literature, lifestyles, value systems, traditions, and beliefs. Culture functions as a framework for understanding identity, health, and collective well-being. Within Indigenous contexts, culture is not static or limited to historical tradition; it is a living system that shapes community relationships, decision-making, and resilience.​

 

The Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls defines culture as both a protective factor and a foundation for healing.​

 

Residential schools, bans on ceremony, and the forced removal of people from their lands broke apart community structures and identity. Starting in the late 1800s and lasting well into the 1990s, these policies aimed to erase languages, spiritual practices, and traditional ways of life. The Indian Act and other government laws restricted ceremony, governance, and movement, leaving deep scars that continue through generations. The loss of culture and language has been tied to higher risks of violence and a breakdown in social connection. Yet, through oral history, gatherings, and adaptation, Indigenous peoples have kept their cultures alive. This resilience continues to show the strength and self-determination that have always existed within Indigenous communities.​

 

In healing from intergenerational trauma, culture plays a vital role in restoring balance and belonging. It reconnects people to systems of knowledge and values that teach accountability, respect, and harmony within community and self. Through cultural practices, language, and ceremony, many are finding new ways to heal from old wounds and rebuild identity. 

 

Culture supports healing in three connected ways: 

 

Identity: Strengthens when language, traditions, and belonging are celebrated. 

 

Practice: Grows through ceremony, art, and land-based learning, helping to restore spiritual and communal balance. 

 

Connection: Deepens when relationships with family, community, and between people and the land. 

 

Together, these elements form an understanding of wellness that sees emotional, physical, and spiritual health as parts of the same whole. 

 

Recognizing culture as a part of healing means it needs to be included in policies and programs that shape daily life. When governments, schools, and organizations support Indigenous-led cultural initiatives, they create stronger outcomes for health, education, and community well-being. These efforts work best when they are guided by the people who carry the knowledge, rather than imposed through outside systems. 

 

Some provinces and federal programs have started to include cultural safety and traditional knowledge in health, education, and social services. This is a positive step, but long-term success depends on consistent investment and community leadership. Supporting culture should never be a short-term goal or a symbolic gesture; it has to be a lasting commitment to Indigenous self-determination and cultural continuity. 

 

Embedding culture into policy is not only about reconciliation; it is about creating environments where people can live with dignity, connection, and belonging. When cultural identity is respected and upheld, communities become stronger, safer, and more resilient.​

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