Singer says nod to Indigenous was cut

Singer-songwriter Patrick Watson says Heritage Canada edited out a land acknowledgment he made to Indigenous peoples before his Canada Day performance. The Montreal musician posted on Facebook Thursday that he was “deeply upset” to discover his statement did not make it into the hour-long broadcast, which was pre-recorded and filmed in Montreal’s Olympic Stadium. The virtual show was funded by the federal government to celebrate the national holiday. Watson said he made the acknowledgment during his performance, but it was not included in the program broadcast to Canadians. The musician said he wanted to celebrate “where I was standing, to point out the connection between the Indigenous struggles with the Black Lives Matter movement, and to include everyone who lives in Canada and their sensibilities.”