Truth and Thanks

Two long weekends have come and gone. Most of us are familiar with the US Thanksgiving story from 1621 where the Pilgrims and Wampanoag people came together to share a big meal. The Canadian Thanksgiving story isn’t as specific, but still just as thankful. As early as 1578, English explorer Martin Frobisher and his crew enjoyed a meal to thank God for a safe passage through what is now Nunavut. That event predated the pilgrim story but Thanksgiving moved around the calendar as the British took over what happened in the colonies. The Canadian government did make the second Monday in October an official holiday in 1957. This is the only Thanksgiving date I have ever known.

Enter “Colonialism” and the trials and tribulations associated with Europeans discovering the “new world” which did not make life easier for our first nations people. The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is ten years old but only 3 years since becoming a federal holiday. I have taken it upon myself to learn more and reflect upon how little I really knew about the plight of our first nations in the years of colonization. I began elementary school in the early 1960s. I graduated in the mid-1970s. Nowhere is my school memories do I recall learning about anything but who discovered or claimed lands in north America, by European countrymen sailing across the ocean to expand empires. I remember the lament, “In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue” as a very important year to remember for social studies class. Attending K-9 in a small town on the shores of Lake Winnipeg, to this day, the only history I know about my homeland is its claim to fame is “the heart of New Iceland”. My town was an Icelandic settlement in 1875 and the town grew from there. I’m certain there were indigenous people hunting and fishing well before 1875 as the red river cart was a big deal. A web search shows at least 14 residential schools were situated in the province of Manitoba, beginning in 1831. This information was never common knowledge. The only “Metis” story I remember learning about was Louis Riel. In the early years of Canadian history, forming a militia and leading a resistance against the government was not something to be celebrated. In more recent years, Riel is considered a champion for equal rights and social justice.

Orange Shirt Day and Every Child Matters have become a strong symbol and statement of solidarity. Imagine when September came, indigenous children were often violently and forcible removed from their families. This indecency began in the 17th century until the late 1990s. Over 150,000 children taken to 140 residential schools – with the goal of converting children from 4 to 16 years old – stripping their culture and values, forcing Christian behaviors in the brave new western world. Another web search on residential schools and I discover in 1831, the “Mohawk Institute” (an Anglican run facility) was the oldest continually operating residential school in Canada. These were colonial experiments which set the tone for many government funded religious orders to take advantage. How could church and government think this was holy and just!? We have all listened to and read about the lives of residential school survivors and learned about how many children didn’t make it home. Unfortunately, I am learning the truth very late in life; however, I will spend more time trying to understand reconciliation. In the spirit of healing and raising awareness, we must all recognize how our people were wronged and make an effort towards a greater understanding. My friend Brenda Mercer introduced me to the term “reconiliACTION”. Brenda is a force to be reckoned with. Sharing her sixties scoop stories and how the western ways have affected her people have shown me truth and reconciliation requires action.