How to use food to fight effects of racism and colonization: CBC Asks Six Nations chef

Six Nations of the Grand River chef Aicha Smith-Belghaba is fighting the lingering, devastating effects of colonization one bite at a time.

She'll be our guest Friday at noon on Instagram and will talk with the CBC's Conrad Collaco about the importance of cooking traditional Indigenous food — something she describes as an act of resiliency. We'll talk with her about racism in Canada and about celebrations planned at Six Nations of the Grand River for National Indigenous Peoples Day on Sunday.

The day honours the contributions and history of First Nations, Inuit and Métis people.  

Here are a few ways to join in on the celebrations.

Celebrations include a screening of 6 Miles Deep, a portrait of a group of women who led the Six Nations of the Grand River Reserve in a historic blockade to protect their lands. Director Sara Roque will be there Sunday for the 7 p.m. showing, at the Woodland Cultural Centre in Brantford, to discuss the film.

Also, CBC's Up North program is hosting a special day of programming on Friday, June 19 between 4 – 6:00 p.m. to hear music, stories and traditions from Indigenous communities across Ontario. Broadcast from Thunder Bay and hosted by powwow emcee Todd Genno from Biigtigong Nishnaabeg. The program will also air in Sudbury, London and Windsor. You can find the show details here. 

At the Hamilton Public Library there a special encore performance of a concert featuring Rod Nettagog (Ojibwe, Bear Clan), Bradlee Henry (Onondaga Nation, Turtle Clan) and Kyle Laforme (Ojibwe,Turtle Clan) sing, dance and drum. You can watch the concert at this link.

Be a part of the conversation. What message do you have for Canada's Indigenous people as celebrations begin for National Indigenous Peoples Day on Sunday? 

Let us know in the comments section on this page, by email at Hamilton@cbc.ca or on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.