Canada Day should perhaps be a time for reflection

By Lethbridge Herald on June 30, 2022.

Alica Mistaken Chief and Jason Laurendeau

As July 1 approaches, it is worth reflecting on the state of affairs on these lands we occupy. Perhaps Canada Day should be not a celebration, not a moment to honour Canada’s past, but a moment for deep reflection. Perhaps it can be a moment to ask ourselves what kind of future we want to build, and what we can do in the present to do so. Specifically, with National Indigenous Peoples Day having recently passed, it can be a moment to reflect on “truth and reconciliation.”

As stated in the final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2015: “Without truth, justice, and healing, there can be no genuine reconciliation.” There is no possibility of reconciliation, in other words, without truth. 

Canadians need to listen to the truths of unmarked graves at the sites of former residential schools; of the impacts of the child welfare system in Indigenous lives, Nations, and kinship systems; of the disproportionate numbers of Indigenous peoples imprisoned, living on the streets, and dying from the opioid crisis, COVID-19, state violence, and numerous other health and social crises; to the truths of Indigenous peoples whose lives have been structured by state violence since birth, who bear the weight of not only their own trauma but the trauma inflicted upon their ancestors, nations, and lands.

Canadians need to listen, too, to the truths of Indigenous resistance, refusal, and resurgence. To the truths of the Sage Clan Patrol in Lethbridge, working tirelessly to support those most marginalized in Sik Ooh Kotoki (Lethbridge), those facing barriers to housing on their own homelands. To the truths of organizers in and around Lethbridge ensuring that we remember the little ones who never made it home from residential schools as well as the survivors of these genocidal institutions and their descendants. To the truths of land defenders putting their bodies and lives on the line to protect the lands we so often “acknowledge” at public events. To the truths of language revitalization, cultural preservation, and sacred ceremonies around which Blackfoot life, spirituality, and nationhood are built.

What’s more, listening to these truths comes with responsibilities. It is not enough for Canadians to simply hear these truths; we must ask ourselves what we can do to help build more just futures. Sure, we can attend feel-good events on National Indigenous Peoples Day or listen to Indigenous friends, colleagues, and community members. But if we only listen to their joy and not their anger (to which they are entitled!), if we only do the comfortable work, the work that feels easy or good, then we are not taking on much of a responsibility. 

Those of us occupying Indigenous lands as uninvited guests need to do work that makes us uncomfortable and uncertain, even about that very occupation. We need to learn about broken treaties, about the Pass system, about intergenerational trauma. 

 We need to learn, too, about the Cardston blockade, about the Kanehsatà:ke resistance, about the Innii initiative focused on reintroducing Buffalo to these lands, and about innumerable other examples of Indigenous strength and complexity. 

We also need to do something with that learning, to figure out how to support Indigenous sovereignty. Perhaps that means attending Every Child Matters events and finding ways to support organizers. Perhaps that means making muffins or sandwiches that the Sage Clan Patrol provides to those in need in the community. Perhaps that means challenging anti-Indigenous racism in our social worlds. Whatever it means, it certainly means recognizing the humanity of Indigenous peoples, their inherent right to live in a world that sees a shared humanity. Recognizing that the world we’re building must be a safe space for all of our children and grandchildren.

This won’t be easy work, nor will it always feel comfortable or certain. But it will be important. And that is worth considering on July 1.

Alica Mistaken Chief is an Every Child Matters activist and organizer and a member of the Kainai Nation.

Jason Laurendeau is a settler living and working on Blackfoot lands.