Reading Chelsea Vowel’s “âniskôhôcikan” Alongside Current Indigenous Language Revitalization Efforts

Abstract

The three versions of Chelsea Vowel’s (Métis) “âniskôhôcikan” contest settler colonial temporalities and grammar. I discuss how Cree/Métis epistemologies, queer and intergenerational kinship structures as well as language are integrated in the story. Both “âniskôhôcikan” and other current language revitalization efforts such as podcasts, language camps, or TV shows, can be understood as Indigenous futurisms. Prominently represented in the creative practices discussed in this article is land—the interconnection between languages and land, the kinship relations toward the land, and language revitalization taking place on the land. While language is the focus of “âniskôhôcikan,” Vowel also envisions queer and deaf future imaginaries. In consequence, the story addresses the role of language in community-building and shaping technology to be more reflective of diversity.