Larissa Munch: Influencer and Cultural Icon
Larissa Munch, a Carrier and Nehiyaw woman from Nazko First Nation in British Columbia, is one of many young activists using social media in order to share her Indigenous culture on a global scale.
Since the invention of the printing press, media has exercised an unprecedented ability to define cultural identity. Gutenberg’s invention enabled members of the growing middle class in Europe to consume the same news and literature; and, through that consumption, to begin to develop an idea of shared class experience. The lives depicted in the most popular novels, and the stories on the news, came to define the ‘norm’ of a nation’s culture; and this sense of unity fueled populist political movements around the continent. As a result, the circulation of print work both united and divided populations: it created a concrete sense of “us” versus “them” through its power to reproduce and confirm some voices and reject or alienate others.
As technology evolved over time, media has continued to hold the potential to unite and divide, as well as to reinforce or silence cultures. At the start of the twenty-first century, UNESCO adopted the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, which emphasizes the importance of cultural knowledge and diversity and states that “cultural rights are an integral part of human rights, which are universal, indivisible and interdependent.” UNESCO believes that diversity of cultural expression is vital to fostering communication and cooperation across the globe:
“…it is important to emphasize that the use of information and communication to ensure that different cultures have the space to freely express themselves — on their own terms — is vital to advancing mutual understanding among peoples and between cultures. The media has the ability to facilitate this intercultural dialogue. By challenging prevailing attitudes and assumptions concerning the many ‘others’ in our world, the media can move beyond scripted stereotypes, stripping away the ignorance that breeds mistrust and suspicion, thus promoting a tolerance and acceptance of difference that values diversity as an opportunity for understanding.”
According to this view, if media does not discriminate between the voices it publishes, it holds the power to provide a platform where people can create a sense of community and connect across the very divisions that have generated conflict for hundreds of years.
By extending the power to generate and publish content to all people capable of purchasing a smartphone, social media has sped up, multiplied, and democratized traditional media’s power to define and shape cultural expression. As with the invention of the printing press centuries earlier, this expansion of media’s reach has impacted the degree to which individuals see themselves as a part of a community, sharing the same thoughts and values as others. Movements such as Black Lives Matter have been able to garner mass support and communicate the importance of fighting discrimination across cultural lines, while white supremacist groups have also used social media to spread exclusionary and hateful language.
In this complex media landscape, many individuals are taking the opportunities offered by social media to build up widespread understanding and celebration of the cultural traditions, languages, and histories that had never seen wide acceptance or coverage in old media. Some of these individuals are members of Indigenous groups who are using digital media to dispel stereotypes and encourage other youth to understand and embrace their culture.
Larissa Munch: TikTok Influencer
At 17 years old, Munch has over 43.6k followers on TikTok (@lariissalynn), and almost a million likes. Her followers come to her page from all over the world to like and learn from her posts, which raise awareness of her heritage and cultural traditions, as well as current issues relevant to Indigenous communities today. Larissa’s content ranges from videos aimed at breaking stereotypes about Indigenous peoples to posts capturing Larissa getting ready in her traditional jingle dress before a powwow.
Munch’s work is incredibly inspiring for the conversations it creates and the potential it has to encourage other youth to post about their own cultural traditions online. She was kind enough to answer some questions about her life and motivation over direct message.
When did you start participating in Indigenous cultural traditions, such as the powwow? Did your parents bring you along, or did you join in on your own initiative?
I started learning about Carrier cultural traditions when I was born — there are a lot of things we believe in, even before a baby is born. I started powwow dancing when I was 8. My parents brought me to the powwow in my hometown and I loved it.
Do you speak Carrier or Cree? Have you ever posted something in either language before, whether it was you speaking or someone else?
[I speak Carrier but am not fluent] in Cree. My grandpa who was Cree passed away when I was really young. I never learned [the] language except for some basic words. But I try to learn with my mom. I have not posted anything in Cree because I don’t think I am educated enough.
How did you decide to bring your traditions onto social media like TikTok and Instagram?
I decided to bring my traditions to social media because I know people look up to me — I am a huge role model to people. I want to inspire all the youth to engage in their culture. On TikTok I know there are a lot of youth on the app so I know they will see my posts. It’s super important to me that youth learn about their native culture.
Were you hoping to connect with other Indigenous people your age, or looking to spread awareness outside of Indigenous communities?
Aside from the youth, it is important [to me] that my voice is heard by people who are non-Indigenous because it seems our issues only stay in our communities.
I was really moved when I saw your post about being called Pocahontas, and the lack of knowledge about what actually happened to the historical figure. It made me wonder how often your presence on TikTok might make followers think you are expected to explain Indigenous history and traditions. Do you have anything you would like to say about the questions you receive? Or how people could ask better questions?
I think some of the questions I receive are people asking about native culture [in general]. But there are so many different native cultures and they are all different. I think people could ask better questions if they were more specific on the questions or what tribe…but it’s like I said, native traditions aren’t all the same.
You mentioned that you hope your TikTok brings attention to issues that are important to Indigenous communities but do not typically reach non-Indigenous people. Could you give an example of an issue and say what you hope to communicate or raise awareness about by posting?
An issue Indigenous people go through is how often our native women go missing. Yes, other women who aren’t native go missing, but Indigenous women are far more likely to go missing or be murdered. And it seems nothing is being done about it, so I want to raise awareness for those women and my aunty who was murdered in 2015. We still pray for justice every day.
Another issue is our land. We care for our land and the government just wants to go on our land and build pipelines, that ruins our land and our care for the land. Most people who are non-native won’t understand because they weren’t raised on the beliefs that the land is sacred and we have to take care of it, so I think it’s wrong to build pipelines on native land.
*All photos and screenshots of Larissa Munch were used with her permission.
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