National Indigenous Peoples Day, marked annually on June 21, is a day for Canadians to acknowledge and celebrate the distinct heritage, different traditions, and contributions of First Nations, Inuit, and Metis peoples. It was first established in 1996 with the Proclamation Declaring June 21 of Each Year as National Aboriginal Day, which has since been renamed National Indigenous Peoples Day. It was founded in response to Indigenous leadership's appeals and the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples' 1995 report.As stated in the proclamation, June 21 was chosen to coincide with an important day for Indigenous peoples: the summer solstice. Indigenous peoples commemorate the Sun on this day, as it rises to the greatest point in the sky. It is the brightest day of the year, and Indigenous peoples have been gathering for thousands of years to express appreciation for Mother Earth's bounty.On the other hand, September 30 is National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, a day set aside for the public to remember the tragic and traumatic past and ongoing legacy of residential schools. It was established in June 2021 as an official federal holiday. It is also regarded as a government response to a call to action issued by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
September 30 was designated as Orange Shirt Day
Every Child Matters, an Indigenous-led remembrance inspired by a 2013 reunion of residential school survivors from British Columbia's St. Joseph Mission Residential School. Phyllis Webstad, a reunion spokesperson who was forcibly removed from her family at the age of six and brought to the residential school in 1973, told the story of how she was told to take off her favorite orange shirt, which her grandmother had given her, and put on the residential school uniform. She never saw the orange clothing again.What many people, including myself, struggle with over these holidays is a lack of clarity about societal expectations. I understand that it may feel as if the events and decisions were beyond our control. This style of vacation is typically focused on increasing knowledge and awareness, with minimal guidance on how to correct our trajectory and better position ourselves for the future. To clarify, I believe it is our responsibility as residents of this country to follow the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Calls to Action.When the Truth and Reconciliation Commission published its final report in 2015, it urged Canadians to "redress the legacy of residential schools and advance the process of Canadian reconciliation" in concrete ways. The short booklet, which can be accessed here, provided guidance on how to do so through 94 discrete calls to action.
While these are necessary to move us in the right direction
they should not be viewed as a checklist of tasks that, if done, guarantee us a reconciled condition. Reconciliation necessitates the sharing of truth, apologies, and commemorations, all of which acknowledge and correct past wrongs. It necessitates, like a marriage, an ongoing commitment to learning about and respecting one another, an ongoing commitment to renewing that relationship every year, and a desire to make it work—not only for the benefit of Indigenous peoples, but also for the benefit of the country as a whole.The question arises, what level of power and influence do you wield? And are you upholding your leadership in those positions? What opportunities are within your reach? I previously defined it as "doing what you can within your hug range." And if your wing span is wider than average, that's a bonus for us! Take action on what is within your scope of authority and accountability, and if it is not, influence it. While a show of solidarity and dedication to reconciliation on September 30th is appreciated, it is the implementation of genuine, practical actions on every other day of the year that is most significant. For example, we've recently seen some outstanding progress on large-scale projects, such as the precedent-setting agreement that saw Hydro One and First Nations across Ontario collaborate to launch an industry-leading equity partnership model on new capital transmission line projects worth more than $100 million. Or consider Enbridge, which recently announced an agreement in which 23 First Nation and Metis communities will buy an 11.57 percent stake in seven pipelines in northern Alberta's Athabasca region for $1.12 billion, making it the largest energy-related Indigenous economic partnership transaction in North America to date.
Perhaps you are not a business shark who can
approve multimillion-dollar partnerships with Indigenous communities. Perhaps you're just getting started on your learning adventure. That is okay. We all started somewhere. Wear an orange shirt. Purchase the orange dusted donut at Tim Horton's. Gather your friends and colleagues for a book club and read that best-selling novel authored by an Indigenous author. Hire an indigenous caterer. Watch a film that was created and directed by Indigenous people. Buy birthday presents from Indigenous artists and designers. Make a commitment to purchasing goods and services from indigenous businesses.Revisit your own preconceptions about your surroundings from the comfort of your own living room by visiting www.whose.land to learn more about Indigenous communities in your area, or whether there was a residential school nearby. Maybe you grew up down the street from a residential school without realizing it.In any case, regardless of where one of us is on the path to reconciliation, the task remains. Allow us to ponder together on a day set aside only for it. Take what activities are feasible.As Justice Lamer of the Supreme Court of Canada stated in his 1997 ruling in Delgamuukw:"Let us face it, we are all here to stay."So let's put in the effort to make this happen.
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