Black to the Future: Making the Case for Indigenist Health Humanities

Abstract

This paper outlines the development of Indigenist Health Humanities as a new and innovative field of research building an intellectual collective capable of bridging the knowledge gap that hinders current efforts to close the gap in Indigenous health inequality. Bringing together health and the humanities through the particularity of Indigenous scholarship, a deeper understanding of the human experience of health will be developed alongside a greater understanding of the enablers to building a transdisciplinary collective of Indigenist researchers. The potential benefits include a more sustainable, relational, and ethical approach to advancing new knowledge, and health outcomes, for Indigenous people in its fullest sense.

The Health and Wellbeing of Indigenous and Tribal Peoples around the Globe: Ensuring and Promoting Best Practice in Research

“…Studies in the Special Issue arose in a variety of ways. Some were investigator-driven, based on the results of previous research and/or discussions with various stakeholders over many years [ 7 , 9 , 11 , 13 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 21 , 25 , 26 , 29 , 32 , 36 , 37 ]. Other studies reflected the priorities of government agencies, either through alignment with articulated strategies or through commissioned work [ 24 , 25 , 33 ].…”

“…Watego and colleagues [ 21 ] described their recently funded program of work to develop Indigenist Health Humanities as a new field of enquiry and research, one committed to Indigenous advancement with Indigenous intellectual sovereignty at its core. They argue that poor health must be seen as a function of ongoing colonisation rather than as a product of Indigenous deficit, and they highlight the critical importance of understanding how race operates in society and how the impacts of racism are embodied.…”

“…They argue that poor health must be seen as a function of ongoing colonisation rather than as a product of Indigenous deficit, and they highlight the critical importance of understanding how race operates in society and how the impacts of racism are embodied. They stress the need for researchers to ‘shift the gaze away from Indigenous incapability to consider how institutions, structures, systems, and processes operate to undermine Indigenous health and wellbeing’ [ 21 ] (p. 4).…”

“…The resulting Special Issue includes 31 papers in total, with 21 from Australia [ 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ], 4 from the United States [ 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 ], 3 from Aotearoa/New Zealand [ 32 , 33 , 34 ], 1 from Canada [ 35 ], and 2 from authors in multiple countries [ 36 , 37 ]. This represents a substantial body of research on the health and wellbeing of Indigenous and Tribal peoples, possibly the largest collection ever published.…”

Questioning the ethics of evidence-based practice for Indigenous health and social settings in Australia

“… 2 3 While Australian universities, as sites of racialised knowledges, have provided ‘evidence’ and the logics to government policy. 4 However, despite ongoing attempts to control Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ lives, many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals and organisations continue their long history of enacting sovereignty, actively resisting and asserting their rights, including the right to self-determination. 2 3 …”