USask Researcher With Prince Albert Roots Receives Honorary Research Chair

Dr. Robert (Bobby) Henry, PhD, a researcher at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) from Prince Albert, was awarded the Canadian Research Commission (CRC) on Indigenous Justice and Well-Being.

Henry’s work on Aboriginal street gangs and lifestyles has received international recognition. He was humbled by being chosen.

“It’s a really big honor to actually be able to hold one of these,” Henry said. These Canadian research committees are quite authoritative because they recognize their commitment and dedication.”

Only 2% of Canadian professors receive this honor.

“What’s important to me is to show the hard work I’ve put into this and the dedication and commitment of the community that continues to support me in trying to understand street gangs and the street lifestyle,” Henry explained.

Tier 2 CRCs, worth $120,000 annually over five years, are awarded by Canada’s three major funding agencies to outstanding emerging researchers who have the potential to become leaders in their field.

Henry is Assistant Professor of Indigenous Studies at USask’s College of Arts and Science and Executive Director of the Saskatchewan Network Environments of Indigenous Health Research (SK-NEIHR). Through community-engaging research, he aims to increase public understanding of his gang and lifestyle on the streets and to inform policies that can reduce the “excessive incarceration” of indigenous peoples.

His work is somewhat influenced by growing up in Prince Albert.

“I worked as a teaching assistant at Prince Albert, so I was interested in figuring this out,” he recalled. “What I saw from my kids, what I saw in the media, what the police were saying, what the state judiciary was saying made absolutely no sense.”

This prompted him to consider the subject more deeply.

“I am interested in understanding how young people are defined into gangs, what gang subcultures are, how people are involved in them, and the role of masculinity and masculine performance in the streets. I have,” he explained.

The subject was initially street gangs and lifestyle in general. Henry began by doing interviews, research, and ethnography, but the more he researched, the more he started using non-traditional approaches. This includes what he calls an “art-based and strength-based approach.” This is designed to give the people who live in those spaces the opportunity to show others what they are going through instead of just speaking.

Henry said he hopes to understand the complexities of gang involvement by looking through the lens of “survival,” a term that encompasses survival, resistance and resurrection.

He explained that this is a literary tool and he is trying to see if it can be applied to the real world, how people move in and out of street gangs.

Henry said that when individuals join gangs, it’s usually because they want to survive, and they have no choice but to do so. , Indigenous members also see gangs as a way to reclaim space within communities from which Indigenous people have been displaced.

As they begin to move away from the gangster lifestyle, an element of revival is introduced as they redefine who they are.

“When you enter a gang, you make a mask, and when you leave a gang, you take that mask off and redefine who you are,” Henry explained. “You are no longer an individual engaged in violence, addiction, etc., but you are redefining yourself into a new space, asking (ask) how to give back and how not to be a contributing member.” , (and) how do you live a lifestyle that is not centered around violence and the street economy?”

Henry, a Metis, works with non-profits STR8 UP in Saskatoon and Ogigeta Pimatisiwin Kinamatwin (OPK) in Winnipeg to “tapping on the shoulders” young people and adults with gang experiences to represent their gender and age. Establishing a community advisory. Committee.

“I’m a Metis from Prince Albert, so I’m taking an Indigenous approach to this research,” he said. “Growing up in Pennsylvania, you get to see all sorts of different things and all that.”

The CRC trains top talent (HQPs) from USask, but Henry says the main focus is on community advisory groups, informing him about local street politics and specific research needed by the community. .

He plans to use photovoice, digital storytelling and body mapping, which have proven effective in past research projects. He also intends to use interviews and focus his group to examine the life histories of gangs and indigenous peoples who engage in his street life.

Few community-involved studies have ever been conducted on indigenous gangs, so Henry said much of the speculation about these groups is based on street gangs in the United States. , says it is misleading. A big misconception is that people are in Indigenous gangs for the rest of their lives because most people are only there for a short period of time.

“If you look at people who are in or out of indigenous gangs, you can almost always find that a lot of people know their name and join gangs in a certain way. ‘ he explained.

Both men and women who engage in gangs exhibit masculinity and convey a tough, unemotional image that they believe society expects them to, he said. Henley said it is tied to the notion that it brings power, which brings money, and which brings respect.

He added that the idea that people join gangs because it gives them a sense of belonging is too simplistic. there are many people They want power, money, and respect.

This analysis also comes from the Prince Albert era.

“I had family members who were identified as part of a gang or deemed deviants just for the way they dressed, and I thought there must be more to it than that,” he said.

“That piqued my interest and I have just started looking at how schools and institutions define and utilize the term ‘gang’ as a resource. How do police and communities use terms to describe resources such as specific things,” he said.

Indigenous gangs are individual organizations that are often linked only by name, Henry said. I’m here.

Henry brings together community agencies from Saskatoon, Regina, Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton, and even Thunder Bay, Ontario, to share information and build strong Prairie Survival Networks to improve justice and the well-being of the entire community. We would like to support the formulation of effective regional policies to .

“By the end of 5 years, we hope to understand the street lifestyle from scratch and expand the Prairie network to other national and international partnerships, such as Australia and New Zealand, where we already have some work. ‘ he said. said in a press release.

michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca