National Indigenous Peoples Day.
SYDNEY — The Cape Breton Post wanted to know how Unama’ki was planning to celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day on June 21 as COVID-19 has changed a lot of the plans and celebrations often held in local communities to mark the occasion.
We reached out to five L’nu across the island to find out what the day means to them.
BERNADETTE MARSHALL
Marshall is the first vicepresident of the Nova Scotia Women’s Association and from Potlotek First Nation.
She was saddened to hear about the recent police shooting deaths of Chantel Moore and Rodney Levi in New Brunswick. For the 61-year-old, it brought up old feelings of how she and her family have dealt with racism throughout their lives.
“Indigenous Peoples Day means nothing to me,” said Marshall. “Right now, I’m not proud of it anymore, I’m proud of being Indigenous, but I’m not proud of what they’re doing to us.”
National Aboriginal Day was first celebrated in 1996 on June 21, aligning with the summer solstice. In 2017, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau officially changed the name to National Indigenous Peoples Day.
Marshall remembers when the first National Aboriginal Day was announced and she was excited to finally be recognized. This year, she says she can’t bring herself to celebrate the day with the current injustices Indigenous people are facing.
“It’s just the government’s way of pacifying us,” said Marshall.
Instead she will mark the day by saying a prayer for the families of Chantel Moore and Rodney Levi and celebrate Father’s Day with her family.
JESSICA CHRISTMAS
Christmas is 30 years old and recognizes every day as Indigenous Peoples Day.
She’s from Membertou First Nation and is grateful for her community’s commitment to cultural education. Her four-year-old son Dalen, is enrolled in Mi’kmaw language courses and is learning to fish. There are hunting and moose camps also available and for Christmas those types of things are important.
“Indigenous Peoples Day means to me just reclaiming who we are,” said Christmas.
They don’t have plans to mark this year’s celebration, but she knows her son loves the outdoors.
“When he’s outside he’s just in his glory. He has that connection with nature that he needs,” said Christmas.
BARRY PAUL BERNARD
Bernard is 60 years old and from Eskasoni First Nation. He believes every day is a day to celebrate Mi’kmaq culture and language.
“My mother (Teresa Bernard) was a residential school survivor and I believe it’s important to keep the language alive because for her it was one of the most important things in her life,” said Bernard.
He’s taught his children the language and plans to treat the upcoming national celebration like any other day, taking pride in being Mi’kmaw.
“It’s very important to display our own culture because it’s so unique, you’ll never find it anywhere else,” said Bernard.
TRACY MARSHALL
Marshall is from Potlotek First Nation. She thinks Indigenous Peoples Days is about celebrating still being here.
“A lot of non-indigenous people forget that we are still here,” said Marshall, 27, adding a friend recently told her about a textbook proclaiming the Mi’kmaq were all gone. So she hopes people learn about the Indigenous people of the land they’re living on.
Marshall wants to spend the day hiking with her son and reconnecting to nature.
“It’s about celebrating being here,” said Marshall.
MORGAN TONEY
Toney is 21 years old and considers both We’koqma’q and Wagmtcook First Nations his hometowns. He’s a fiddler and a student at Cape Breton University. Toney will be marking the national event by releasing videos of himself playing his music.
“For me as a Mi’kmaw fiddler, it’s a day to celebrate my Mi’kmaq people,” said Toney.
He’s hoping to acknowledge the history of the Mi’kmaq people and to perform fiddle renditions of Mi’kmaq songs, like the Honour Song and the Ko’jua. Toney also plans to collaborate with local musicians from Eskasoni to mark the occasion.
“It’s a day of recognition and celebrating our history and our culture,” said Toney.