On this National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (and on any day), please take some time to continue learning about Reconciliation by exploring some of the many resources out there.
Local Events on September 30th:
- 8:30am: Gathering at Hillcrest Park (hosted by Maamawe, City of Thunder Bay)
- Honouring Our Children Run at Boulevard Lake in support of Mazinaajim Children’s Foundation
- 10:30am-3pm: Orange Shirt Day Walk to Support Residential School Survivors and their Families; family-friendly event starting at the NAN office (200 Syndicate Ave S.)
- 1pm: Fort William First Nation Traditional Gathering on Anemki Wajiw Pow Wow Grounds
A gentle reminder that reconciliation is about more than wearing an orange shirt; and learning about residential schools is learning about colonialism and patriarchy. Do some reading, listen to Indigenous voices—especially survivors, learn about the Land Back movement, engage in conversations with family and friends, celebrate Indigenous innovation and creativity, and encourage our government to restore Indigenous jurisdiction and authority over those so called Crown lands:
- Land Back: Indigenous Perspectives | The Agenda interview with Pamela Palmater and Riley Yesno (March 28, 2022)
- Land Back: A Yellowhead Institute Red Paper (2019)
- Land Reparations & Indigenous Solidarity Toolkit compiled by US-based Resource Generation Land Reparations Group (2018)
Reports and calls to action:
- Calls to Action Accountability: A 2021 Status Update on Reconciliation, special report by the Yellowhead Institute (2021)
- NWAC ’s Action Plan to End the Attack Against Indigenous Women, Girls, and Gender-Diverse People (2021)
- Reconciliation with Indigenous Women: Changing the story of MMIWG, a report from ONWA (2020)
- Reclaiming Power and Place: The Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (2019)
- Métis Perspectives of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and LGBTQ2S+ People, a report from Les Femmes Michif Otipemisiwak/Women of the Métis Nation (2019)
- MMIWG2SLGBTQQIA+ National Action Plan, Final Report by the 2SLGBTQQIA+ Sub-Working Group
- TRC’s Principles of Reconciliation and Calls to Action (2021)
- Reports from The Standing Senate Committee on Indigenous Peoples:
- Make it stop! Ending the remaining discrimination in Indian registration “Ongoing discrimination in the registration provisions of the Indian Act remains and continues to affect First Nations women and their descendants.”
- Not Enough: All Words and No Action on MMIWG
- The Scars that We Carry: Forced and Coerced Sterilization of Persons in Canada – Part II. “The federal government should compensate and apologize to all people who were subjected to forced and coerced sterilization.”
Articles, essays, videos, podcasts, other resources:
- Indigenous Ally Toolkit (2019) by the Montreal Indigenous Community Network
- Calls to Action for Newcomers to Canada & the Violence of Canadian Citizenship Education (Lucy El-Sherif, The Yellowhead Institute, September 26, 2023)
- 4Rs Youth Movement is a youth-driven initiative that was launched to change the country by changing relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous young people.
- Auntie Up! is a celebration of Indigenous women talking about the important stuff. Listen to the podcast or watch the interviews by Creative Makwa.
- Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance (1993), a landmark documentary by Alanis Obomsawin. (See also: Considering Kanehsatake, Thirty Years Later by Marg McPhail)
- Protecting boreal plant species is a critical part of reconciliation efforts (J.M. Baker, The Conversation, August 10, 2023)
- We need a better understanding of race, ‘status’ and indigeneity in Canada (Celeste Pedri-Spade, The Conversation, August 7, 2022)
- Writing Myself into Existence: An Essay on the Erasure of Black Indigenous Identity in Canadian Education (Etanda Arden, Abolition & Solidarity Brief, Yellowhead Institute, January 28, 2021)
- Indigenous people pay taxes: Demythologizing the Indian Act tax exemption (Bradley Bryan, The Conversation, August 23, 2022)
- Zaagi’diwin Inakinogewin | Love Law: A Policy Note For Protecting Two-Spirit, Non-Binary & Trans Indigenous Peoples (Fallon Simard, Gender & Generational Justice Brief, Yellowhead Institute, August 2, 2022)
- Stolen: Surviving St. Michael’s is an award-winning podcast by investigative journalist Connie Walker about her family’s experience of the residential school system
- The Story of Orange Shirt Day and Phyllis (Jack) Webstad’s story in her own words via the Orange Shirt Society
- The Orange Path: Resources for Learning
- Indian Residential School Survivors Society (IRSSS) provides counselling and 24/7 crisis support to those who are impacted by residential school experiences: 1-800-721-0066
- Walking with Our Sisters: A Commemorative Art Installation for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women of Canada and the United States (7 year project: 2012-2019).
- Oshdeebeganwin – (Oshdee – cross your heart, Begaa-win – written agreement), talking treaties with Michele Solomon, Nicole Richmond, and Gene Nowegejick shares an Anishinaabe perspective of the Robinson-Superior Treaty of 1850. Watch a recording by Thunder Bay Art Gallery here.
- (Dis)placed: Indigenous Youth and the Child Welfare System (2017), directed by Melisa Brittain featuring the perspectives of Indigenous youth and First Nations child advocate Cindy Blackstock.
- Seven Fallen Feathers: Racism, Death, and Hard Truths in a Northern City (2017) by Tanya Talaga
- A Two-Spirit Journey: The Autobiography of a Lesbian Ojibwa-Cree Elder (2016) by Ma-Nee Chacaby and Mary Louisa Plummer
- Biidaaban (The Dawn Comes) | Full Film (2018) by Amanda Strong + Leanne Betasmosake Simpson
Some Indigenous-led initiatives and organizations to learn about and/or support:
- Beendigen
- Full Moon Memory Walk
- Indigenous Food Circle
- Neechee Studio
- NAADMAAGEWIN Indigenous Domestic Violence Coordinating Committee
- Ontario Native Women’s Association (ONWA)
- Raven Trust
- Solidarity Collective
- Thunder Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre (TBIFC)
This year, the Women’s Centre is making donations to support the Full Moon Memory Walk (Sept. 29th) and Naadmaagewin’s Mamokawok “Coming Together” Youth Conference (Nov. 1st). For more information on how to attend or support Mamokawok, call Lorena (807) 684-6751 or Cindy (807) 631-5274.
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