I experienced a remarkable week reflecting on Truth and Reconciliation [TRC] and I want to share this in hopes of inspiring and supporting others.
Before I can speak to any of this, in order to do so from a place of integrity, I must share where I am coming from.
I am a fourth-generation settler to Canada with mostly Irish and Belgian heritage. I grew up with my mom and sister in Brandon, MB, while spending significant time on my dad’s farm north of town. I attended small schools of predominantly Caucasian children and received next to no education on colonization, nor on Indigenous culture and history through this system.
Through a range of connections, my dad had a close relationship with community members in Sioux Valley, MB. Based on his experiences, Dad always spoke with kindness and respect of the people and their culture, and included us in the ceremonies that he was invited to. My experiences inspired me to want to learn more throughout my life, which led me to so many different personal, professional and educational experiences; both beautiful and tragic in their teachings. I have been so blessed to have had countless incredible Indigenous people throughout my life who I have called colleagues, friends and family.
I am the proud mother of a 5-year-old son who carries both my heritage and his father’s Ojibwe and Dakota Sioux heritage. I work hard every day to find my way as a white, social worker mother of an Indigenous son, who I hope will always “walk in both worlds in a good way” as they say.
I am also a therapist and a post-secondary instructor in the social services. As an instructor, I participated in many events for Truth and Reconciliation this week. Despite what may be considered “above-average” prior knowledge around TRC, I was greatly educated, humbled and inspired this week.
Perhaps most impactful for me was my first experience of the KAIROS Blanket Exercise. This is an experiential workshop, wherein participants are asked to step into the roles of Indigenous people to explore the history and relationship between the Indigenous and non-Indigenous people of Canada.
“Powerful” does not even begin to describe the experience. While the information provided throughout was not new to me, the experience of it was. Through the power of experiential story, I “experienced” the authoritative presence of colonizers, the shrinking of my land, and the slow decline in our numbers to illness, residential schools, and other methods of genocide. A woman behind me during the exercise had her “baby” (doll) removed by a “colonizer” within the story of the 60s Scoop, and fought tearfully, but unsuccessfully, to keep her baby. I was flooded with emotion as I imagined the many loving parents who truly experienced this tragedy. I was struck by the metaphor of this happening to parents and children like my son and I, not so long ago in history, just as this woman and her “baby” had stood so close behind me.
One of the courageous elders who spoke to us this week named the shame that many of us non-Indigenous people experienced, as we reflected on the role of our ancestors in this appalling history. She spoke of how none of us are to blame, but we have all inherited this history, and we all have a responsibility to use this knowledge to change the future.
I have come to think of TRC from a family systems perspective (not surprisingly, given my areas of practice). The Indigenous people – who have always been here, who should have inherited their land, their cultures, their teachings – also inherited intergenerational trauma due to colonization. We, the non-Indigenous people who were born here, inherited the shameful history. Newcomers “marry into” or “adopt” this history as members of Canada today.
Together, we are like a family. How I should refer to that family, I cannot say with confidence, as “Canada” itself is a Western, colonized concept. But for lack of a more appropriate, cohesive phrase, I will say “Canadian family”. A family with a shared (albeit differing) history that cannot be erased and still affects our country today. We cannot disown it. We cannot divorce it. It is an irrevocable part of our heritage. And if we do not work to improve our relationships – to learn, empathize, communicate, respect and grow together – we will forever have family dysfunction. Canadian dysfunction.
Because this is not ancient history. This history is alive and present today. Indigenous people Canada-wide continue to experience significant inequities in terms of health, education, justice, child welfare, language and culture; all as a direct result of past and present practices of colonization. In Canada, the average life expectancy of Indigenous people is 15 years shorter than non-Indigenous people. The federal government provides 30-50% less funding for education on reserves compared to the provincial funding of public schools throughout the country. Over 4000 Indigenous women and girls have been reported missing or murdered in the last 60 years. Indigenous adults account for 32% of incarcerated persons, and Indigenous children account for 53.8% of those in the child welfare system; despite Indigenous people making up just 5% of Canada’s population.
Truth and Reconciliation is not only about acknowledging and healing from the past. It is about recognizing the impacts today and changing the future.
I often reflect on Patrick Stewart’s quote: “People will not listen to you or take you seriously unless you’re an old white man, and since I’m an old white man, I’m going to use that to help the people who need it”. No matter who we are, we have a duty to stand up for what is right. When we are in a position of privilege and / or authority – white, male, educated, influential, etc. – we have an increased responsibility to use our voices to make a difference.
I am no Patrick Stewart. I am no old white man. But I am an educated, white, female social worker. And I will always use the power and privilege that I have to make a difference in my little corner of the world. For my community, for my clients, for my students, for my friends, for my family. For my son.
If you are doing this too: I thank you. The world thanks you. You are making a difference.
If you are not yet using your voice in this way: Educate yourself. Use your power for good. Help our people – all of our people – to grow and thrive, together.