Expereince Labrador: Application 2 of 2

Experience Labrador: Significant Misconceptions

I have been to Bloodvien and Flin Flon Manitoba, Pine Lake Saskatchewan, several places in northern Ontario, and the Decho region of the N.W.T. I have never been to Labrador. Neither have many islanders. I am originally from Calgary, and have been asking fellow MUN students, (some Labradoreans, some not), what they think are misconceptions about Labrador.

People who had never been to Labrador thought it was desolate; that the few people who live there rush to the store every time a plane drops off supplies. One of my friends couldn’t even imagine meeting a Labradorean; he just never thought it would never happen in St. John’s. Others mentioned the roads; made from dirt and no services for hundreds of kilometers, forcing drivers to carry EPIRBS (Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacons).There were hurtful stereotypes about substance abuse, yet there were also wondrous thoughts of caribou and bears. Some people, however, had no opinion at all.

I think the most significant misconception is that Labrador is a land without people. I asked a few Labradoreans, and they felt misunderstood. They felt islanders viewed Labrador as a place where people live in igloos and that anyone who did live there had solely first nation heritage. When Labradoreans went into their own descriptions of the place they loved, I realized how much I didn’t know.

I originally imagined Labrador as beautiful to explore, but difficult to access. I thought not only would the towns be hard to reach, but that the remoteness of the whole region would even make outdoor travel dangerous. I wondered if people felt sad, trapped and bored, and was there tension between mining towns and first nation communities? Talking to a Labradorean changed the way I thought about those answers, but many questions still remain. Are the first nation’s communities like others I’ve seen?  Do mega projects dominate the economy? What is unique about schools and governance? What does it feel like to grow up there as a child?, to be a teenager, a high school or university grad?

               There is much I wonder, much I anticipate, and much I stand to learn about Labrador. I think that Labrador will be diverse in its regions; its landscape, people, and opportunities. The most enjoyable way to alleviate my misconceptions is to go to Labrador, and to meet its people and experience it fully.