This Work Was Never Meant to Rest on Indigenous Shoulders Alone
- Kim Trottier
- Jul 31
- 3 min read
A conversation with Len Pierre (Pelikul), Coast Salish, Katzie & Musqueam First Nations
Len Pierre's ancestral name is Pelikul. He is Coast Salish, from Katzie First Nation on his father's side and Musqueam First Nation on his mother's side, and he is the CEO of Len Pierre Consulting. He has been a mentor, advocate, and steady presence in the Culturally Committed community for years.
In a recent conversation recorded at the Longhouse Experiential Workshop, Len said something we have been sitting with ever since.
"This work was never intended to be solely resting on our shoulders as First Nations, Métis, and Inuit people across Turtle Island."
A lot of non-Indigenous people come to this work carrying a particular kind of hesitation: Who am I to be here? Is this even my place? And beneath that hesitation, sometimes without noticing it, is an assumption that reconciliation belongs to Indigenous people to carry, to teach, to hold, and that everyone else is a guest in someone else's process.
Len named that assumption directly and invited something different.
What Picking Up This Work Looks Like
Len described what it looks like when non-Indigenous people genuinely pick up this work: not just in their own private learning, but inside their teams, their organizations, and across the communities they represent. Professionals. Parents. Aunties. Uncles. Community members coming together for the spirit of learning and reconciliation.
Not as performance. Not as a one-time training to check a box. As an ongoing practice that spreads outward.
"We need more and more non-Indigenous Canadians to hold space, to create space for other non-Indigenous professionals, moms, dads, aunties, uncles, community members to come together for the spirit of learning, for the spirit of reconciliation."
Cultural safety, Len reminded us, is not a destination. It is the ongoing practice of systemic transformation, which means it requires people at every level of a community, organization, or household to keep choosing it.
Cousin Organizations: Len Pierre Consulting and Culturally Committed
Len also spoke about the relationship between Len Pierre Consulting and Culturally Committed. He calls them cousin organizations.
"When you think about the word cousin, we are related. We have some common purpose, some common orientation, some common place that we are coming from, and we happen to be going in the same direction."
They do not do the same work. But the essence and energy behind both organizations, holding space for courageous conversations and systemic change, comes from the same place. And Len named why that kind of relationship is so important: so that no one doing this work ever has to do it alone.
"I never want any of our friends, relatives, and allies at Culturally Committed to ever feel alone in this work."
This is something we think about often at Culturally Committed. The people who show up here are not just taking a course. They are choosing to be part of a community of practice, a group of people committed to keeping each other going.
The Essence of Indigenous Communities
Near the end of his reflection, Len offered something to return to.
"That's the essence of Indigenous communities: coming together, being together, learning from one another, and holding each other up to keep each other going."
Coming together. Being together. Learning from one another. Holding each other up.
These four things do not require a certification or a perfect vocabulary. They require showing up, again and again, with your whole self and your willingness to keep learning.
That is what this community is grounded in. And it is what Len keeps coming back to contribute to, to feast, to share teachings, to learn alongside the people in this circle.
Join the Circle
If you have been thinking about this work and are not sure where to start, our monthly workshops are a safe place to begin. Led by Indigenous facilitators, they are live, experiential, and made for people who are ready to ask the questions they have been sitting on.
You can also explore the Active Ally Membership for ongoing learning and community, or join Teachings Tuesday, our free weekly newsletter rooted in Indigenous teachings and reflection.
We are glad you are here.
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