Understanding Disenfranchised Grief in Indigenous Communities

Disenfranchised grief has played a considerable role in my life, and I felt honoured when the First Nations Telehealth Network invited me to present a workshop on disenfranchised grief in Indigenous communities. While I have lived experience with it, I also recognize the complexity of offering this workshop as a white settler with privilege. The counselling field is shaped by colonization, and progress towards decolonizing the field often feels painfully slow. I have the impression that it is usually driven more by individual efforts than by structural changes within the field.

As a settler mental health professional, I acknowledge my responsibility to critically reflect on and actively decolonize my practice. I am also aware that my privilege allows me to choose how quickly or deeply I engage in this work, while Indigenous peoples experience ongoing harm. While I was grateful to be invited into this space, I am mindful of the tension that arises if someone from the dominant group speaks about grief that is so often caused by colonial systems. I hope that the webinar created a space of acknowledgement and healing, and I am also open to feedback if it didn’t.

Suppose you are a settler engaging with this topic. In that case, I gently invite you to reflect on your position, privilege, and the ways we may unknowingly perpetuate the invalidation of grief in communities most impacted by systemic injustice.

What is disenfranchised grief?

Grief is a fundamental part of our human experience. Yet, not all forms of grief are treated equally. While the death of a partner in a heterosexual relationship or the loss of a close family member is socially recognized, many losses are seen as socially unacceptable, stigmatized, or deemed insignificant.

Disenfranchised grief, a concept introduced by Kenneth J. Doka, refers to grief that is not recognized, validated, or supported by society, the dominant group, other communities or even within one’s own community. It may arise from the loss of a same sex partner, a chronic illness, the loss of a friendship, death by suicide or substance use, or broader social losses like climate change.

For many, the mourning process, which is the outward expression of grief, is constrained or silenced due to social stigma. The grief remains, but it is often invalidated, unseen, and unsupported.

Disenfranchised grief in Indigenous communities due to colonization

In the context of colonization, disenfranchised grief is a lived reality for many Indigenous individuals and communities. The tangible and intangible losses shaped by colonization, intergenerational trauma and ongoing systemic injustices may also increase disenfranchised grief. These losses are often invalidated or unrecognized by settlers and dominant systems.

Trauma from Residential Schools, the impact of the Sixties Scoop, ongoing anti-Indigenous racism, the crisis around Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and police violence may all contribute to disenfranchised grief. While these losses have a profound impact on Indigenous peoples, they are too often ignored or dismissed by mainstream society.

Webinar “Navigating Disenfranchised Grief in Indigenous Communities”

A recording of the webinar is available to the public through the First Nations Telehealth Network. It may be helpful for:

• Individuals who navigate disenfranchised grief
• Social workers, counsellors and mental health professionals who work with Indigenous clients.

In the webinar, we explore:

• What is disenfranchised grief?
  
  How this form of grief differs from more “recognized” losses, and why it’s often overlooked in dominant culture.
• Disenfranchised grief due to the impact of colonization
  
  How intergenerational trauma, systemic racism, and cultural loss contribute to disenfranchised grief in Indigenous communities.
• Connecting grief to lived experiences
  
  Recognizing how disenfranchised grief shows up in personal and community stories.
• Healing and support strategies
  
  Trauma-informed practices to process disenfranchised grief.

I hope this webinar offers a space to deepen your understanding about disenfranchised grief. While it is mainly for individuals who experience disenfranchised grief and can also be helpful for mental health professionals.

Access the session here: Navigating Disenfranchised Grief in Indigenous Communities

If you are Indigenous and I said something in the webinar that felt racist, harmful or disrespectful, I welcome your feedback. You can share it anonymously using this form. I promise to reflect on it with care and do the work to change my behaviour.

Sources and influences