Canada's 1st National Day for Truth and Reconciliation ~ Tiny Shoes on Steps

*** Trigger Warning ***

If you need support reach out to the 24 Hour Crisis Line Indian Residential School Survivors and Family: 1-866-925-4419 ************

My bestie is originally from Newfoundland. 

She has been living in British Columbia for many years. 

This year she was visiting family for Canada's 1st National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30th 2021.

 Mikwite’tm Garden, Corner Brook, Newfoundland, Canada

Along with the photo above she messaged  that it
"was very humbling and special to be apart of the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in my own indigenous community". 

Qalipu women smudging ceremony

The event took place at the Mikwite’tm Garden, built by Qalipu First Nation in memory of missing and murdered indigenous women.  A more  powerful location for this first year of reflection couldn't be found.

Mikwite'tm Garden — the name translates to "I remember"

My bestie is from Corner Brook, Newfoundland, Canada. Her family has long been members of the Qalipu First Nation. Her family has lived in that area for many generations. There is little doubt her family of origin carries the legacy of residential school. 

In May 2021 the unmarked graves of 215 children were found on the grounds of a former Residential School in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada. The school operated from 1890 to 1969 as a residential school, and 1969 to 1978 as a day school. 

Over the following few months more than 1300 lost children would be found in unmarked graves on the grounds of 4 Western Canada former Residential Schools. 

Children who never got to go home. 

Children who never got to grow up. 

Children who could never find their way back to share in a Truth & Reconciliation ceremony in their own indigenous community as my bestie did. 

The families and communities of these lost children are broken. 

The legacy of the residential school stands today. 

Before Reconciliation must come TRUTH! 

On May 31st 2021 my husband and I visited the memorial on the steps of the courthouse in our community. 

We both work in fields where we have learned about Residential Schools. We have both attended training sessions to understand the impact of colonialism on the populations we serve. We thought we understood what had happened when we headed to the memorial.
We thought we were prepared.

We each placed a pair of tiny shoes on the steps as symbols for the two boys we got to keep and raise. Two small pairs of shoes on the steps alongside all those shoes. Each pair representing a child. 

Standing at this memorial with tears streaming down my face I realized I never understood & no matter how hard I try I will never begin to understand what happened or how it happened. 

We stayed there rooted to the spot. Unsure how we could walk away leaving those children alone. The shoes standing vigil for the spirits of the children. After a very long time we slowly walked away while looking back at those shoes. 

How could this have happened in the country we know as Canada?

"There may be reasons why they wouldn't record the deaths
properly and that they weren't treated with dignity and
respect because that was the whole purpose of the
residential school ... to take total control of Indian children,
to remove their culture, identity and connection to their family," 

 1  ~Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, Director of the

Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre   

This is my reflection on Canada's 1st National Day for Truth and Reconciliation!!!

This is why I search - 

Cause ... 

You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!

***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post***

Footnotes:

1 Dickson, Courtney & Bridgette Watson (27 May 2021). Remains of 215 children found buried at former B.C. residential school, First Nation says. CBC News. Paragraph 19. Retrieved September 30th 2021 from  
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/tk-eml%C3%BAps-te-secw%C3%A9pemc-215-children-former-kamloops-indian-residential-school-1.6043778

Sources:

Canadian Press. (29 May 2021). Why Canada is mourning the deaths of hundreds of children. BBC News. Retrieved September 30th 2021 from
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-57325653

CBC Kids News. (31 May 2021). WShoes honour loss of 215 children at former residential school. CBC Kids News. Retrieved September 30th 2021 from 
https://www.cbc.ca/kidsnews/post/shoes-laid-to-honour-the-loss-of-215-children-at-former-residential-school

Davis, Wynne. (29 May 2021). The Remains Of 215 Indigenous Children Have Been Found At A Former School In Canada. National Public Radio (npr). Retrieved September 30th 2021 from
https://www.npr.org/2021/05/29/1001566509/the-remains-of-215-indigenous-children-have-been-found-at-a-former-school-in-can

Dickson, Courtney & Bridgette Watson (27 May 2021). Remains of 215 children found buried at former B.C. residential school, First Nation says. CBC News. Retrieved September 30th 2021 from
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/tk-eml%C3%BAps-te-secw%C3%A9pemc-215-children-former-kamloops-indian-residential-school-1.6043778

Gilmore, Rachel. (15 September 2021). Mapping the missing: Former residential school sites in Canada and the search for unmarked graves. Global News. Retrieved September 30th 2021 from
https://globalnews.ca/news/8074453/indigenous-residential-schools-canada-graves-map/

Greenpeace Canada. (2 June 2021). 215 Children. Greenpeace. Retrieved September 30th 2021 from
https://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/story/48616/215-children/

Honderich, Holly. (15 July 2021). Why Canada is mourning the deaths of hundreds of children. BBC News. Retrieved September 30th 2021 from
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-57325653

Mosby, Ian. (1 August 2021). Canada’s Residential Schools Were a Horror. Scientific America. Retrieved September 30th 2021 from
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/canadas-residential-schools-were-a-horror/

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Government of Canada. Retrieved September 30th 2021 from
https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/national-day-truth-reconciliation.html

Paperny, Anna Mehler. (29 May 2021). Remains of 215 children found at former indigenous school site in Canada. Reuters. Retrieved September 30th 2021 from
https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/remains-215-children-found-former-indigenous-school-site-canada-2021-05-28/

Links:

Amy Johnson Crow, 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge
https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

credit http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/

My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!

________________________________________________________________