CANADA DAY LIKE NO OTHER
Time to reflect?
Indigenous people in Alberta are calling on the City of Calgary to scale back or cancel Canada Day celebrations as the nation grieves hundreds of children who never came home from residential schools.
Mayor Naheed Nenshi said the “horrific discovery” of 751 unmarked graves on the grounds of a former residential school in Saskatchewan has prompted city officials to consider postponing the fireworks display on Canada Day “out of respect.”
The discovery, made by the Cowessess First Nation, at the site of the Marieval Indian Residential School comes shortly after the Tk'emlups te Secwépemc First Nation confirmed the remains of 215 Indigenous children were found buried near the Kamloops Indian Residential School outside Kamloops, B.C.
“It's a travesty and it's devastated the Indigenous communities right across Canada and has reopened a lot of the pain and suffering we had to endure,” said Adam North Peigan, president of the Sixties Scoop Indigenous Society of Alberta. “So we're asking Canadians and Calgarians to take a pause and really take that opportunity to reflect on that day on what has happened on Turtle Island” (a reference to the continent of North America.)
North Peigan said the City of Calgary should limit its commemorative events on July 1, following the lead of other Canadian municipalities that have done the same thing or outright cancelled their events.
He said locals should participate in Indigenous-led activities, such as a peaceful rally and teepee building event that are currently being planned, while educating themselves on Canada's ongoing legacy of harms against Indigenous people.
“Mainstream Canadians really need to wake up and have an open mind and listen and learn about the oppression that we have suffered over 100 years plus and gain a better understanding,” said North Peigan.
He also hopes Nenshi issues a proclamation on Canada Day to acknowledge the genocide.
Calgary's mayor said it is a “moment of reckoning ” for the city and noted he is consulting with Indigenous leaders and organizations, in addition to others, on plans moving forward.
“It's not about cancelling Canada Day. It's not about taking away the celebration, but it is about understanding this year is a different year," said Nenshi. “I hope that people really do take advantage of the ability to be thoughtful and (reflect), but — most importantly — commit to action.”
In Ottawa, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said, “It will be a time of reflection on what we've achieved as a country, but what more we have to do . ... This coming Canada Day, I think we all need to pledge ourselves to doing what we can to continue that effort to make Canada better, all while respecting and listening to those for whom it's not yet a day of celebration.”
Evans Yellow Old Woman, however, said it's disrespectful to host a celebration at all during a time of national mourning.
“When it comes to the politics of all of this, quite literally there are people in a room flexing their debating skills. They're throwing out hypotheticals and playing the devil's advocate and it's frustrating because, as Indigenous people, we do not get that privilege,” said Yellow Old Woman, who is behind a petition through the Canadian Cultural Mosaic Foundation calling on the city to cancel the upcoming celebrations.
“If you knew that your neighbour was grieving a lost loved one, you wouldn't throw a huge party in your backyard and set off fireworks.”
He also said the national holiday should be a day of reflection, especially for people to better understand what reconciliation means
and looks like in Calgary and beyond. Locals should also commit to furthering their understanding of Indigenous communities and reflect on their present-day participation in colonialism.
“What I like to tell my fellow Canadians is their ignorance is not their fault. The very fact that they don't know much about us as Indigenous people was intentional, but the responsibility of learning how things actually are is on them,” said Yellow Old Woman.
“If this angers people, I just encourage people to sit with their anger and find out where it's coming from. We're angry as well, but we're not seeking revenge. We are seeking recognition. Nobody is going anywhere. Settlers aren't going home on the Mayflower and we're not going anywhere, so how are we going to move forward if not together?”