The other morning, while sipping on coffee I decided to take a look at my twitter feed. Twitter is a favourite source of news but that morning my feed was heavier than it normally is.
The articles I saw left me thinking of inquiries and youth, intergenerational effects of trauma and institutionalized Indigenous people.
I saw reporters live tweeting about the inquiry in Thunder Bay, Ontario. I used to go to high school in Fort William, after moving there from the Ottawa Valley, and remember being in awe when I started grade eleven; the high schools had football teams and cheerleaders.
My first and closest friends were from remote reserves and communities. We were all good students back home and met as we started school at the same time.
There are other nights and other stories that I could go on about but my thoughts are prodded on by other articles.
If these inquiries are to amount to something, what will that be? Will a national curriculum that actually teaches the true historical account of our nations be implemented? Will other kids like the boys who died in Thunder Bay, or the many others who are seeking justice, have different options, going forward?
Inquiries are not going to alter intergenerational effects if the onus for justice continues to be placed on the traumatized, but rather returned back to the federal government, in the spirit of treaties.
How many generations did it take to ‘remove the Indian from the child’? Our communities, our families, our injured and lost deserve the opportunity to have the equal amount of resources and time to ‘put the Indian back in.’
Chrystal Dawne asks: Will Canada fix its historical injustices?
National organizations sent a letter to the federal government setting out priorities and recommendations
CBC Radio's Unreserved focuses on learning and re-learning our languages
