IRP FOUNDATION
Insider/Outsider Research
Founding IRP comes directly as a result of my own experiences as a member of a diasporic, indigenous nation. I have lived through and studied the social and psychological impact of statelessness and indigenous marginalization. Stories shared by family and friends have been one of the only avenues I can access to connect with distant and unmet relatives.
Indeed, Oral Histories are without question the living echo of our families' ancestors and the legacy of our cultures.
As significant parts of my life have been informed by misidentification, displacement, and cultural suppression I have been given an insider perspective into some of the challenges indigenous groups face. Six years of higher education focused on global social injustice have given me the tools, theory, and ethical practices to partner with communities as a research facilitator providing the means to preserve and ...hopefully... bring their stories to life in new ways.
The Why: Rationale for IRP's Work
The modern geopolitical landscape inherently marginalizes First Peoples around the world as most native communities are stateless. This dynamic can compound each community’s struggle to sustain their growth, traditions, lifestyles, and even survival.
Oral history and folkloric music are of the oldest shared cultural traditions. They provide a window into the values and worldviews of all of our ancestors. Film and music production provide avenues for indigenous communities to teach others about their way of life while archiving their stories for preservation.
IRP partners with indigenous communities by facilitating the production and distribution of stories told by communities themselves. The research revealing these stories is supported by consistent, appropriate methodology and theory producing a database of qualitative, diverse samples.
Films and music produced by IRP and partner communities can help relieve these cultures from the obscurity that leads to marginalization. Furthermore, these mixed media productions will serve to provide financial support to the partner communities themselves. Proceeds from films and albums will return directly to communities served.
Click on each title for further resources regarding cultural preservation and safety of stateless peoples through artistic expression:
Voice of Witness - Voice of Witness (VOW) is an oral history nonprofit that advances human rights by amplifying the voices of people impacted by—and fighting against—injustice.
European Network on Statelessness - The ENS committed to ending statelessness and ensuring that everyone living in Europe without a nationality can access the rights they are entitled to under international law.
Humanizing Statelessness through an Artistic Approach - MD Mizanur Rahman's article is available for free on ResearchGate.
Research Highlights According to the Authors:
Community psychology can contribute to healing and cultural renewal for indigenous communities.
Storytelling through community arts practice is used to witness Elder stories.
Narrative inquiry shows the ongoing effects of colonisation and coloniality.
Narrative inquiry shows the various ways people resist and survive oppression.
Decolonial approaches are vital to the goals of critical community psychology.
This article "aims to contribute towards promoting performances of talk-story methodology by explaining how an indigenous paradigm enables analytical processes to be shared, thus exposing insights participants perceive to be silenced by Western Research Methodologies."
Images
Header: Cliff Palace at Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado, USA was constructed by the Pueblo people in the 13th century C.E.
Below Header: IRP President Samuel Tamo midway up the Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacan - "City of the Gods" according to the Aztecs. In the background, the Pyramid of the Moon can be seen aligned with its background silhouette of Cerro Gordo