I’m going to share with you in this post, the things i’ve heard about this day from an Indigenous and non-Indigenous viewpoint.
There may be a lot of confusion about this day and what to do to truly honour this day and what it means for everyone.
From travelling around the Powwow & Ceremonial trail, I’ve got the privilege to hear from many about TRC and what it means to a variety of people.
One of the things that I’ve heard from Indigenous people is that we don’t need to Reconcile. We’ve done our part of the Treaty. We’ve made room for Europeans to come in and utilize the land based on Treaty agreements. I’ve heard that we’ve held up our end and through that process we endured a lot of suffering, pain, and deceit.
I guess what i’m also hearing from Indigenous peoples is where our relationship goes from here. Some Indigenous groups are calling for “land back”, while others want the Treaties to be truly honoured.
From the Non-Indigenous standpoint, it’s trying to figure out what reconciliation means to them. Many are taking on a journey of learning about the true histories of the past. Many heard different stories from their grandparents and parents about Indigenous peoples. The views they have of Indigenous peoples, they are realizing have come from lies and ignorance.
Murray Sinclair explains how the generational public had no idea about the true history of what happened to Indigenous Peoples or even about residential schools.
The first journey that people need to take is to learn the “Truth” part of TRC.
Here are some Truths to Learn About:
- Residential Schools
- Generational Trauma
- 60s Scoop
- Treaties
- Jordan’s Principle
- Child & Welfare System
- Pass System
- Cultural Genocide
- Clean Drinking Water on Reserves
- Housing for Indigenous Peoples
- Land occupied by Reserves in Canada
- Suicide Rates
- Loss of Land
- Loss of Resources
- How Farm Land was acquired
- Indian Act
Learning about the Truths about Canada and how we came to be where we are at now, will help really understand what reconciliation is and can be.
