The Creator gave you a mind to think; use it. So that’s what I’m doing now. It transformed into me giving cultural teachings to organizations, talking about residential school to organizations, helping young people.
John Langan – or Whitehorse if using his Indigenous name – is a Lieutenant with the North Saskatchewan Regiment, a Saskatoon Police Service officer, and an author and speaker from Keeseekoose First Nation in Treaty Four Territory. He enlisted in the Canadian Armed Forces in 2007, continuing his family’s tradition of service.
Langan’s own military career started with the Bold Eagle program – basic training with a cultural component that integrates Indigenous teachings. He later returned as an instructor, mentoring other Indigenous youth.
Langan earned a BA in sociology, Indigenous justice, and criminology from the University of Saskatchewan, commissioned as a military officer, and joined the Saskatoon Police Service. A deployment on Operation UNIFIER in Wiesbaden brought him a Chief of Defence Staff Commendation and a medal from the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
We worked directly with the Ukrainian Armed Forces and it was such a good experience. I got to meet people all over the world. I even got to do a presentation about the residential schools.
An advocate for cultural revitalization in the military and policing, Langan authored Iskocēs Tipiskak: A Spark in the Dark and now serves as 3rd Canadian Division’s Indigenous Advisor, integrating traditional knowledge into military practice.
I’m trying to reclaim that language, that culture, that spirituality. Because that’s what people need to know they belong to a community … I carry my own medicine bundle. I carry my own pipe now … things that were banned before, now we’re using them. Now we’re utilizing them. Now they’re coming back.