Manoomin

by Derek Nicholas

The 2019 Indigenous Farming Conference was an eye opening experience. Here at the conference there were a few central themes. Those being; food sovereignty, language revitalization, and seed keeping. They are all considered to be connected to a traditional food - manoomin (wild rice). Elders at the conference spoke on manoomin as being a part of the spirit. Manoomin was introduced to Anishinaabeg culture during the Great Migration. Believed to be a gift handed down from the creator, the manoomin took a role within the community as being at the heart of sustenance and nutrition within tribal communities. Not only a source of nourishment, manoomin became centerpiece for ceremonies, feast, and other daily life usage. Manoomin’s literal translation is “good berry”, a suiting name for something that has always done good for Native people by bringing sustenance. Manoomin is becoming endangered due largely to water pollution, and the loss of wild rice has large ramifications on the Native people.

The ramifications of the loss of wild rice would drastically subdue Natives. The loss of wild rice to their communities would mean a loss of sustenance. Not only does manoomin bring Native people the culturally appropriate food/nutrients they need, but it also provides sustenance in income. Ricers can respectfully sell wild rice product to buyers within and outside tribal communities. Loss of language is parallel to the loss of wild rice fields. If Natives cannot rice, the language/songs/ceremony around ricing will not be passed down to the next generations. Without future generations to continue and carry traditions, Native people cannot be successful in revitalizing their story and culture in “today’s world”.

I believe each tribal community should regulate the ricing season to ensure a healthy and fair harvest. It is important for ricers to know the aftermath of over harvesting and respecting the rice year round. Action to protect our waters is a priority. Traditionally, woman are water protectors, but everybody needs to step up to raise awareness of the damage done to our water from pollution by large corporations and everyday citizens.

All in all, manoomin is a key part in the Anishinaabe way of life. To put manoomin at risk is to put the people at risk. The loss of manoomin would mean a loss of story, spirit, language, and sustenance. Manoomin is what makes the Anishinaabe unique; it’s a gift given from the creator. Steps I will take within my own community to prevent this are, leading by example in my garden by properly composting, using water appropriately and cleaning up trash. Additionally, I will lobby against corporations who pollute and dump into waters, spread awareness, and act at a local level to protect water and manoomin. The ricing fields and spirit can be restored back to its glory with everyone’s help.