Remembering Our Responsibilities with Creativity and Courage

 

If you’re not actively engaged in creating change, you may not notice it when it happens.  And, if you are actively working to create a new way for us to move forward together, then evidence of this happening seems to jump out at you.  Well, that’s my observation from talking to people this summer.  So, here are some stories that have jumped out at me in the past few weeks.

The Treaty Land Sharing Network (TLSN) in Saskatchewan is a new story based on the older story of treaties and the ancient stories of the First Peoples.  This network of Saskatchewan farmers is welcoming Indigenous people to exercise their treaty rights to hunt, gather plants and medicines and hold ceremonies on the land.  It is a step towards honouring treaty rights and the intent of the treaties which is to share the land in a way that is safe for Indigenous people.

Saskatchewan Treaty Commissioner Mary Culbertson, left, and subsistence hunter Brad Desjarlais, with farmers Mary Smillie and Ian McCreary, right.  (Dayne Patterson/CBC)

After Colten Boushie, a young Indigenous man from Saskatchewan was fatally shot by Gerald Stanley who was found not-guilty of second degree murder or manslaughter, conversations about this network began.  After the shooting of Boushie, racism in Saskatchewan grew stronger according to the organizers of TLSN. In addition to this, between 2008 and 2020, the government of Saskatchewan has sold over one million acres of Crown Land on which Indigenous people have treaty rights. Turning Crown Land into private property in effect takes away these treaty rights.   And so this group of 20 landowners are trying to find a new way forward in which they acknowledge that they are treaty people and that treaties should be respected.

You can read more about this story here and here.

Also in Saskatchewan, the bishops of that province announced in early July 2021 that they would begin a fundraising campaign to support the survivors of Residential Schools.  This action is to make up for the failure of the Catholic Church to meet its 2005 promise to raise $25 million in the parishes of Canada to compensate survivors of Residential Schools run by the Catholic Church.  Only $3.9 was raised at that time and the Catholic Church went to court to get out of their promise.  At the time of the Saskatchewan bishop’s announcement no other provinces were following suit. (CBC News)

Archbishop Donald Bolen of the Archdiocese of Regina, travelled to Cote First Nation in mid July to spend a full day listening to Residential School survivors who shared their stories of those institutions.  Bolen was there to listen and to take action.  You can read more about this and heard Bolen speaking here.

In Midland, Ontario my friends and I began tying stuffed animals on the fence of the Martyr’s Shrine which honours six Catholic priests and 2 laypeople.  Many more items have been added since the 215 unmarked graves were discovered in Kamloops, BC.  We have drummed there three times so far wearing orange shirts.  The largest gathering was on Canada Day but each time we get many supportive honks from people in passing cars.

This past weekend, we met once again to drum and tie up a few more stuffed toys.  There are now shoes, moccasins, orange shirts, prayers, orange hearts, ribbons and flowers on the fence.  And in the midst of this, just under the original two animals was a large white form core sign.  It read, “Prayer Pledge Immaculate Conception, Port Perry.  I support Truth and Reconciliation, Hope, Healing and Action” and it was signed by roughly one hundred parishioners. 

Prayer Pledge attached to fence of Martyr's Shrine,
Midland, ON under the first 2 toys that were tied there.

My friend did some sleuthing and found Fr. Keith Wallace’s explanation of this sign on youtube.  This sign was part of the parish's celebration on the feast day of St. Kateri who is represented by a relic at the Martyr’s Shrine. In his homily, Fr. Wallace explains why this pledge is important and reports that it was sent to the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, a representative of the Pope, and to Prime Minister Trudeau as well as being added to the fence at the Martyr’s Shrine in Midland.  He highlights the need to listen to the stories of survivors of the Residential Schools and admits that he had not read the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Final Report until recently.  You can hear him speak here: 

These are just a few stories of people who have the privilege of being a part of the dominant group, holding offices of leadership and having control over land and are finding creative ways to extend that privilege to Indigenous Peoples who have had it denied.  It takes courage to go against the current.  These change makers face ostracism and attack from their peers.  And yet they are breaking down the monolithic wall of resistance, not because they are especially altruistic, but because they know that their freedom in bound up with the freedom of everyone.  They are finding their place in the whole and meeting their responsibilities in creative ways.  And, they will inspire others to do the same and find new ways of moving forward together, in a good way. Sharing, listening, respecting, truthtelling and working together are qualities that we teach to children.  Perhaps the lost children are helping us to remember what we once learned and act from that place.