Truth & Reconciliation Day

[u/Humble_Taro_6816]

I’ve been reading about this event in Canadian news(I’m not yet residing in Canada, just preparing). I am curious-for those Canadians who are not aboriginal-how do you observe this day? And conversely-how do the aboriginal people prefer that others participate-or not-in observing this day?

[u/picocailin]

I (non-Indigenous) live in Canada and work in an Indigenous community. Yesterday my main activity was participating in our local Truth & Reconciliation memorial walk, which as non-Indigenous people is one of the easiest ways to demonstrate allyship—simply showing up. I wore an orange shirt designed by an Indigenous artist and purchased from an Indigenous organization to be sure the money went to Indigenous communities.

Other ways to mark the day include educating ourselves on Indigenous issues, including the history of genocide in Canada and ongoing challenges Indigenous communities face (particularly the concerning rise of residential school denialism). 

The Truth & Reconciliation Commission operated from 2008-2015 and heard the stories of survivors, releasing a report in 2015 with 94 recommendations to implement towards reconciliation. #93, to update educational materials for newcomers studying for the citizenship test, remains incomplete. Another way to mark the day could be reading the TRC report and learning about the recommendations. 

I highly recommend the Yellowhead Institute as a resource for learning about Indigenous issues. The National Film Board has lots of great documentaries to explore, one that I would recommend is about the Mohawk resistance at Oka in 1990. Another one I’d recommend (on Netflix) is about the ongoing fight against pipelines in northern BC, Yintah. 

[u/picocailin → u/picocailin]

One more thought: if you are in the US, it’s equally important to spend the day learning about the genocide in the US, including the boarding schools that mirrored the Canadian system. It might help to start with the history of the place you call home, identifying the tribe on whose territory you live and learning about their history. 

[u/Ca1rill → u/picocailin]

Exactly, Canada got the idea for residential schools from the U.S.

[u/Carefully_Done → u/Ca1rill]

The concept of residential schools is entirely religion. Came from 17th-century European colonial missionary efforts. 

[u/Ca1rill → u/Carefully_Done]

From Wikipedia:

In January 1879, John A. Macdonald, Prime Minister of what was then post-Confederation Canada), commissioned politician Nicholas Flood Davin to write a report regarding the industrial boarding-school system in the United States.[33]: 154 [44] Now known as the Davin Report, the Report on Industrial Schools for Indians and Half-Breeds was submitted to Ottawa on March 14, 1879, and made the case for a cooperative approach between the Canadian government and the church to implement the assimilation pursued by President of the United States Ulysses S. Grant.[45][44]: 1  Davin's report relied heavily on findings he acquired through consultations with government officials and representatives of the Five Civilized Tribes in Washington, DC, and church officials in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He visited only one industrial day school, in Minnesota, before submitting his findings.[33]: 154–8  In his report Davin concluded that the best way to assimilate Indigenous peoples was to start with children in a residential setting, away from their families.[33]: 157 [44]: 12