Métis Moon Time and Decolonizing Women's Body Image

Abstract

Indigenous women’s bodies have been studied and erased through Western scholarship. Métis womens’ bodies and knowledge around experiences with Métis moon time (menstruation) has received little to no attention. My research centers on Métis women and youth of the North Vermilion Settlement (Buttertown), Alberta and their embodied experiences with moon time (menstruation) concerning body confidence. I come to my research as a Métis community member and a researcher. My aunties expressed that we must share our stories to combat the colonial master narrative in the region. Therefore, this call to action grounded my research in ancestral Buttertown land. 

My project focuses upon: (1) the historical legacy of Western menstrual teachings and its effect on Indigenous women’s body images; (2) how Métis women’s teachings can create space for knowing, healing, and identity; and (3) how does body sovereignty connect to moon time and land sovereignty? The Métis method of Visiting fostered my research and reconnection journey back to my community. My methodology concentrates on the process of saskatoon berry picking that draws from my lived experiences in community and parallels them with my Indigenous research approach. This presentation guides us through my journey back home and focuses on Métis women and youth in my community past, present, and future. Through collective dreaming of Métis futurisms, my research re-centers women as the beating hearts of our communities and women’s teachings to re-establish body confidence for our youth and future generations.