My Mother's house: A story of haunting and colonial history
Billy-Ray Belcourt is a writer and academic from the Driftpile Cree Nation in northwest Alberta. His talk begins with his mother’s house – where the nuns who ran the local residential school once lived – in order to insist on new ways to make sense of the ongoing impacts of colonialism. In this talk, he will share some of his community's history, bridging the historical and the personal in addressing the question of how to tell the story of the afterlife of the twentieth century. Join us on November 18 in-person in the Malaspina Theatre or online.
VIU's Indigenous Speakers Series, delivered in partnership with CBC Radio's Ideas program, began in 2015 to mark the release of the final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. It is held every fall at the Nanaimo campus, on the traditional territory of the Snuneymuxw First Nation. Nahlah Ayed, host of Ideas, will emcee the event.
Details:
When: Saturday, November 18, 2025, 6:30 to 8 pm
Where: VIU's Malaspina Theatre, Nanaimo campus
Doors open at 6 pm, light refreshments will be available in the lobby after the event. View Nanaimo campus map.
