Indigenous women leadership gathering focuses on competition

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A vulnerable social media post struck a nerve — and it’s sparked an event to change relationships between Indigenous women.

“I have worked under Indigenous women who held ‘influence’ over me, not as mentors, but as gatekeepers,” Jessica Dumas wrote on Facebook last month.

Dumas is an entrepreneur, coach and motivational speaker. She’s been spoken down to, laughed at after asking questions and made to feel ashamed for not knowing parts of her culture, per the post.

“The truth is, we are not in competition,” continued Dumas, a former chair of both the Winnipeg and Indigenous chambers of commerce.

“We are taught to believe there is only room for a few of us at the top, that success is scarce, that power must be hoarded and bestowed upon you by the chosen hierarchy. But I reject that. It’s not true.”

Dumas’s friend Jill Featherstone — a fellow motivational speaker with her own business — said Dumas’s words resonated with her. So she reached out.

The duo now expects to address 120 women Saturday at an event they’re hosting called “We Are Not in Competition.”

Attendees will be broken into groups of five. From there, they’ll undertake work to process emotions and adopt new behaviours, Featherstone relayed.

“We’ve had limited opportunities,” said Featherstone, an author and former professor. “When we do end up in these spaces, sometimes, we feel that there’s only room for one of us, so then there’s this competitiveness.”

It appears in the workplace, community and at social gatherings. It prevents women from growing professionally and rising to “their full potential,” Featherstone said.

Dumas posted the social media message because she’d heard from clients who were hesitant to join her group calls. Women worried about judgement, Dumas said in a phone interview.

“I wanted to put it out there for my clients to read, but also just to share,” she added.

Featherstone and Dumas have similar businesses, Dumas noted. But instead of leaning into a scarcity mindset, the pair have realized they can go further together, she said.

The two will remain solo entrepreneurs. Even so, the event Saturday may be the first of several they co-host. Manifestation and mindsets around money — including how to go from poverty to being financially secure, and how to act around loved ones — are topics they’ve discussed covering.

“To be able to work together, share ideas and just know and believe that we want the best for each other … just having that be a decision, like, I couldn’t have asked for a funner friend,” Dumas said.

About 15 spaces were available Thursday morning for the upcoming event; the registration deadline is 6 p.m. Friday. Tickets, available on Eventbrite, cost $155 and include lunch and a workbook.

The seminar is happening at the Wyndham Garden on the Long Plain Madison Reserve near Winnipeg’s airport. It’s open to non-Indigenous women who are allies, Featherstone said.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com