Introduction
The understanding of colonialism was in different dimensions because many features are presented differently. Language is a major influence tool where different mechanisms represent specific agendas and responses (Flynn, 2017). The platforms invented for redefining the scope of studies made it relevant to understand the application of colonialism. The article by Darin Flynn, The S-Word: Just Stop Using It, analyzes the history of colonialism and how language was used to communicate specific issues. This paper analyzes how the article, The S-Word: Just Stop Using It, shows colonialism through the origin of the S-word, racism, and the use of force.
Relevant Connection
The Origin of the S-Word
Europeans in early Canada introduced adverse strategies in displacing and replacing the indigenous people. The perception of defining superiority indicated by Flynn is from different points. According to Flynn, the S-word originally meant ‘woman,’ and the significant traits of the Europeans were a good step in proving the point (Flynn, 2017). The word indicates weakness, where several points of need were aligned to the assumption of weakness. The European colonial administration believed in weak indigenous people who did not qualify to attain much. The administration provided the term ‘woman’ through different platforms, and only a little was allocated to the indigenous people (Mitchell & Arseneau, 2019). The term meant weakness that the Europeans attributed to the Canadians, and they believed in a system where there was sufficiency without the effort or needs of the people. The Indigenous people were treated as inferior in their land, and it was an indication of discrimination. According to the article, the term’s origin indicates weakness, unique sections, and definition steps. The Europeans gave the Canadians a different perception of the environment; every purpose they could feel was a weakness (Grimwood et al., 2019). The Europeans believed in a weak inhabitation and displaced every idea and physical settlement. The disparity and weakness attributed to the indigenous Canadians indicate the connection to the origin of the S-word. Language development is from a social point of view, where numerous ideas can be developed and advanced to ensure progress (Chartrand, 2019). Therefore, Flynn indicates a significant indication of colonialism by indicating the origin of the S-word.
Racism
The perception of racism from the article represents colonial administration that impacted the lives of the people negatively. Racism was depicted by the treatment given to the indigenous people as they were not handled with sufficient steps because of the feeling of superiority (Flynn, 2017). Racism made the feeling more direct and influential in a different way because the key steps were not followed and involved meeting all the relevant terms. The belief in a more stable and beneficial government could not be connected to the events witnessed by the Europeans. The administration system involved using the basic leadership systems and attaching the relevant outcomes by having and defining a different picture. All the relevant practices can be used to show a different and more redefined scope and strategy that cannot meet equality. The developing language was to create the right meaning out of different platforms and phenomena. Racism indicated a different way of addressing all the issues, and it gave the government the burden of making everything clear before proceeding with several schemes and directions (Van Sant et al., 2021). The colonial administration was more racial because there was an indication of different treatment. The article, poor treatment confirms the perception of differences incurred and the bent treatment that could not avail much help. Racism made it impossible to meet the required benefits, and every effort was met with a negative perception (Hutcheon & Lashewicz, 2020). The article indicates the colonialism of indigenous people in Canada by exploring the S-word and its implications. Colonialism in Canada was through settler farming and displacement, where the Europeans developed much room for ensuring their intended steps were followed (Mullen, 2021). For example, the Europeans offered education to define a different perception of how their selfish interests would be met. The article represents instances of colonialism through the sections of information. The influence of racism in colonialism merges with the challenges faced by the people. The environment was scary, and it confirms the information highlighted by Flynn. Therefore, through racism, the colonial administration’s language matches the one Flynn presented.
The Use of Force
The S-word represented a weakness that could be measured through several platforms and directions. The indicated path of progress was to redefine all systems and make them work according to the steps defined by the Europeans (Flynn, 2017). The direct use of force marked the ideas of weakness, and the environment gave in to support a different perception from the intended practices. The eventual facts indicate using force in all walks of life because the Europeans believed the environment required a better face. The use of force was proof that the actual system and steps required a transformation from the basic paths chosen by the indigenous people (Camfield, 2019). The Europeans used force in pushing for the ideas they believed were right, giving a separate way of addressing the paths created. Colonialism depicted the use of force differently, giving room for a different appearance and engagement channel (Harris, 2020). The belief in a good and more modified system was attached to applying forceful ways of achieving results. For example, there was forced labor and the adoption of Christianity that indicated a bent sphere of influence. Colonialism supports the ideas indicated by Flynn, and the current force of specific points of view depicts the European way of life (Dean & Failler, 2021). Abandoning the S-word is a good and more defined approach towards unity because it points out the bad steps and focuses on the good ways of life. Ongoing colonialism indicated unity because of the modification of perception and schools of thought towards more development strategies and advantages. Understanding better approaches gave the platforms for growth required, and every channel targeted better lives and responses. Using the redefined idea of state development, the wake for unity is an approach to ongoing colonialism (Mitchell & Arseneau, 2019). The unity depicted in the article presents the abandoning of the S-word, creating the alignment to a specific line of speech. Everything works in a more definite approach that can be reinforced to create more open and constructive platforms. The unity expressed by using a common language and following specific paths ensures that the best environment is depicted. Therefore, Flynn points to ongoing colonialism by encouraging better words that bridge unity.
Conclusion
The colonial administration involved a lot of features and steps that could be attributed to a different treatment. Racism and weakness could point to a different view by the Europeans about the indigenous people. The article by Flynn indicates a good understanding of every step and the required traits of bridging the gaps and ensuring better perception. The push for the right states requires the application of more extensive approaches that give light to a better future. Therefore, the article, The S-Word: Just Stop Using It, involves a detailed understanding of colonialism by the Europeans to the indigenous people of Canada.
References
Camfield, D. (2019). Settler colonialism and labor studies in Canada: A preliminary exploration. Labor, pp. 83, 147–172.
Chartrand, V. (2019). Unsettled times: Indigenous incarceration and the links between colonialism and the penitentiary in Canada. Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 61(3), 67-89.
Dean, A., & Failler, A. (2021). ‘An Amazing Gift’? Memory entrepreneurship, settler colonialism and the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. Memory Studies, 14(2), 451–465.
Flynn, D. (2017, September 4). The S-word: Just stop using it. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/the-s-word-just-stop-using-it-83198
Grimwood, B. S., Muldoon, M. L., & Stevens, Z. M. (2019). Settler colonialism, Indigenous cultures, and the promotional landscape of tourism in Ontario, Canada’s ‘near North.’ Journal of Heritage Tourism, 14(3), 233-248.
Harris, C. (2020). A bounded land: Reflections on settler colonialism in Canada. UBC Press.
Hutcheon, E. J., & Lashewicz, B. (2020). Tracing and troubling continuities between ableism and colonialism in Canada. Disability & Society, 35(5), 695–714.
Mitchell, T., & Arseneau, C. (2019). Colonial trauma: Complex, continuous, collective, cumulative, and compounding effects on the health of Indigenous peoples in Canada and beyond. International Journal of Indigenous Health, 14(2), 74–94.
Mullen, C. A. (2021, April). What does Indigenous Canadian literature impart about colonization and the future? In The Educational Forum (Vol. 85, No. 2, pp. 143-160). Routledge.
Van Sant, L., Milligan, R., & Mollett, S. (2021). Political ecologies of race: Settler colonialism and environmental racism in the United States and Canada. Antipode, 53(3), 629-642.
write