As part of our union’s commitment to learn from the experiences and celebrate the successes of Indigenous, Black and racialized CUPE members, CUPE is profiling members of the National Indigenous Council and National Racial Justice Committee. This month, meet National Indigenous Council member Jennifer Smith.
For Jennifer Smith, there’s before WILD, and there’s after WILD. Being part of CUPE Ontario’s first Women in Leadership Development program in 2022 transformed her and the other participants.
“When we joined, we were quiet. When we left, we were loud,” she says.
Jennifer worked as a community nurse specializing in wound care and palliative care for 20 years. She didn’t have a union until she moved in 2020 to Group Health Centre in Sault Ste. Marie, where she is a Registered Practical Nurse and a CUPE 894 member.
Two days after she was hired, Jennifer volunteered to fill the vacant role of CUPE 894 vice-president, a position she still holds. She also serves as vice-president of the Sault Ste. Marie & District CUPE Council. She is in her first term as a member of CUPE’s National Indigenous Council, and also sits on CUPE Ontario’s Indigenous Council and the Ontario Federation of Labour’s First Nations, Métis and Inuit Circle.
Between WILD and her first term on CUPE’s National Indigenous Council, Jennifer has found her people.
“It’s funny how you can go into a room of like-minded people and all of a sudden you’ve known them forever,” she says of joining the council.
“We all come from different areas of Canada. We all come from different tribes. We all come from different reserves. Everyone’s going to have different views, different cultural events, different trains of thought. But we all come from that same spot, Turtle Island.”
Stepping into her power
Jennifer says her response to a difficult situation used to be “sit back and bite my tongue.”
“I always thought of myself as a powerful person, but I was also very self-conscious about what other people thought,” she says.
WILD changed all that.
“Now, if I have a problem, I’m going to let you know. We’re going to sit down and we’re going to figure it out.”
After WILD, Jennifer spoke for the first time at a division convention – and got a standing ovation. She also wore ribbon skirts at the convention, which encouraged other Indigenous women to start wearing theirs and sharing their culture at CUPE events. “I looked at that as an opportunity to make space for other people,” she says.
Jennifer grew up just outside Sault Ste. Marie in the community of Goulais River. A member of the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians through her mother, Jennifer and her family have close ties with Indigenous folks in her community. She is the mother of three girls who are 20, 18 and 13.
“My kids all dance on the powwow circuit and I do all their regalia and make their ribbon skirts and do their beading.”
Bringing Indigenous culture into her workplace
Jennifer advocated to wear ribbon skirts at the health centre where she provides one-on-one patient care. At first, management said no. But when there was a change in leadership, Jennifer raised it again at a labour relations meeting.
“I told them it’s part of my culture and the culture of the Indigenous peoples who live in this area. We have three major reserves that surround our town. Having Indigenous culture represented in our workplace is huge,” she says.
“We wear ribbon skirts in honour of the children who couldn’t take part in their culture. A ribbon skirt represents our resilience,” says Jennifer. “People know we won’t let the past be forgotten, but we’re also moving forward. And we’re taking up space. You can’t make us go away.”
Jennifer says having that visibility in her workplace is one way of building understanding and creating a safer environment for Indigenous patients.
“I’m going to understand that you’re not going to want to take off your medicine pouch. I’m going to understand that you may not want to be alone in the room, you might want the door open. You might not want to be in a small space. What you need, I’m willing to do, and I’m willing to make sure everyone follows it,” she says.
Jennifer pushes back at work against racist stereotypes that affect how an Indigenous person gets treated in the health care system. “It’s no different if a Caucasian person walked off the street and was having issues. I’m going to treat you the same way. You deserve respect,” she says.
Raising awareness in CUPE
Jennifer is excited about the Indigenous council’s collaboration with CUPE’s Union Education branch on an Indigenous cultural safety workshop.
The full-day workshop will raise awareness about racism impacting Indigenous members and the unique challenges Indigenous workers face in Canada. The workshop will have concrete suggestions for how union members can make workplaces safer with the goal of helping build a safer union and safer workplaces for all Indigenous CUPE members.
“It was big to have an organization understand the importance of recognizing our group’s need for safety, and how intergenerational trauma has stopped that trust. It takes a long time to build it,” she says. “We have to be accountable for our actions and improve our systems. We have to be the improvement.”
Jennifer is also thrilled that WILD is becoming a national program. She looks back at her fellow WILD participants and sees them taking their place in CUPE.
“Most of our group is now sitting in a position of power in CUPE somewhere. Either they’re a committee chair, or they’re vice-president or president of their local. They’re standing up and sharing what we do.”
As an Indigenous woman, that makes her very proud. “Indigenous people are very matriarchal. We look to our aunties and grandmas and kookums. They know everything. So we’re bringing a bit of that power into CUPE now.”
Jennifer has one piece of advice for an Indigenous, Black or racialized CUPE member who isn’t sure about getting involved.
“Just do it. I’m notorious for telling my girls ‘Put your rain boots on and jump in the puddle. Just go on in – two feet, jump.’ The sky’s the limit. I went from not being represented for 20 years, no union representation, to for the last five years being involved in an organization that has become my heart,” she says.
“Jumping in is bettering our next seven generations, and that is our ultimate goal. And if you’re nervous, you can find me. I’m around. I’ll come stand beside you.”
Learn more about CUPE’s Anti-Racism Strategy including Goal 4, which focuses on highlighting the lived experiences of Indigenous, Black and racialized members and celebrating their successes, at cupe.ca/cupes-anti-racism-strategy. And check out these tips for putting the strategy into action in your local.