Deborah Saidero

As the world faces a terrible pandemic and global economies are crumbling, it is ever more urgent to radically rethink the ideological and cultural tenets on which our societies and economies are based. The devastating consequences of dominator attitudes over Nature that ecofeminists have warned us against are now more tangible than ever and it has become obvious that greedy capitalist interests need to be replaced by a more eco-sustainable economy and social relationships based on caring, solidarity, respect, altruism and partnership, if humanity wants to save the planet and itself. Precious in this crucial battle to heal the Earth are the teachings of those peoples who still preserve their ancestral ties with the land and value their earth-centered mythologies. This paper examines the narratives of Indigenous women of North America who teach us how to restore a renewed respect for Mother Earth and its creatures so as to re-establish an ethical relationship with the land and with each other. In particular, attention will be focused on econarratives such as whispering in shadows (2002) by Okanagan writer and land speaker Jeanette Armstrong and Celia’s Song (2014) by Salish/Cree writer and mythmaker Lee Maracle, which foreground the interdependency between women and the Earth and focus on how the shift away from the dominator model hinges on a re-evaluation of feminine principles which entails a relinquishing of violent behaviors against women and the Earth.