Every year on Sept. 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is observed across Canada.
Established in 2021 following recommendations in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 calls to action, numerous commemorative events and ceremonies are held to remember the Indigenous children who died while being forced to attend residential schools, those who survived and the families and communities who are still affected by the lasting trauma.
Here are some of the various events in Calgary people can participate in on Monday:
Presentation from author Michelle Good
The University of Calgary will host a talk from Michelle Good, a Cree writer and member of the Red Pheasant Cree Nation in Saskatchewan, who is well-known for her award-winning book, Five Little Indians.
Good’s life and career involves many different paths — she has been an activist, a lawyer, and now, an author. She spoke with CBC Radio’s Calgary Eyeopener, and told the story of how she decided to become a writer.
“Well, I just got mad. I was representing survivors at the time that I first started writing Five Little Indians, and listening to these phenomenal people, who very often started telling their story by saying, ‘I forgive them,'” said Good.
“Listening to the most horrific things that you can possibly imagine, and then reading the newspaper or watching the news and hearing non-Indigenous people saying, ‘Why can’t they just get over it?’ As though this is something that happened 1,000 years ago.”
“And just in that statement, ‘Why can’t they just get over it?’ is this extreme articulation of ignorance in terms of the impacts of trauma and how long-lasting they are and intergenerational as well. So I just decided, well, I can answer that question, so I’m going to. And that’s what I did when I wrote Five Little Indians.”
The event, called “Getting Under the Myth of Canadian History,” will be hosted at the Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall in Rozsa Centre on campus starting at 12:30 p.m. on Monday.
Pokaiks – The Children’s Commemorative Walk and Gathering
Coordinated by the CIF Reconciliation Society, the sixth annual Pokaiks – The Children’s Commemorative Walk and Gathering will take place on Monday.
The walk will be starting at Eau Claire Park, at the south side of the Peace Bridge, and ending at Contemporary Calgary. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Arts Commons events
This year, Calgary’s Arts Commons will be hosting a variety of events related to “Indigenous ways of knowing and being” on Monday.
Visitors can sign up for a gallery tour and artist talk around the “Building Bridges and ReconciliACTION” exhibit, explore the Indigenous Makers Market and learn about the history of residential schools and the resilience of Indigenous peoples through the second annual Elders Story Project, which is held at the Jack Singer Concert Hall.
Beading workshops at Moonstone Creation Gallery and Gift Shop
For over three decades, Moonstone has become a hub for traditional Indigenous arts in Calgary’s Inglewood community. Yvonne Jobin is the shop’s owner, as well as a beader and traditional artist.
To commemorate Orange Shirt Day, Jobin says people are able to sign up for a beading workshop by registering online or calling the store.
“We’re doing an orange shirt pin, but rather than beading the whole pin, we’ll just be decorating with the beads around the edge of it, and that way we can also have more people throughout the day. So we’re doing three classes back-to-back,” Jobin told the Calgary Eyeopener.
“At the same time we’re offering tea and fried bread, Saskatoon jam, just a celebration of how far we’ve come.”
Truth and Reconciliation Day tours at the Military Museums
On Monday, the Military Museums Foundation will be hosting two tours dedicated to National Truth and Reconciliation Day.
“Our special tours aim to highlight the stories, struggles, and adventures of Indigenous peoples and the complex history with Canada and the Canadian Armed Forces,” reads its website.
At 1 p.m., the first tour will discuss Indigenous stories from the 18th century to now. Then, at 3 p.m., the second tour will discuss the history of Indigenous women in the Canadian Armed Forces.
Events at The Confluence: Historic Site and Parkland
Starting at 9 a.m., a blessing from an elder will start the events, and visitors will be able to attend presentations from various speakers, including Indigenous elders and Calgary’s mayor, as well as watch Indigenous dancers.
Earlier this year, Fort Calgary was rebranded to The Confluence: Historic Site and Parkland.
Elder Leonard Bastien Weasel Traveller transferred the name I’táámito’táaattsiiyio’pi — meaning “harmonious meeting place” in the Blackfoot language — to the historic landmark.
Confluence president Jennifer Thompson says honouring the site’s Blackfoot name is helping to create space for deeper conversations around truth and reconciliation.
“For us, we’re really able to sort of expand the narrative and start talking about things in a lot more of a truthful manner,” said Thompson.
Attendees are encouraged to wear orange in support of the event.
Structures illuminated in orange
Calgarians can also expect to see landmarks like the Reconciliation Bridge, Olympic Plaza, the Calgary Tower and Telus Spark science centre all illuminated in orange in honour of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
CBC Calgary radio programming
In honour of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, CBC Calgary’s radio shows will be interviewing various guests to discuss the significance of the commemorative day.
Here’s just two of many interviews listeners can expect to hear on the Calgary Eyeopener in the morning and The Homestretch in the afternoon:
Elder Alice Kaquitts explains the importance of language
Language and the names we give places can be a significant step on the path toward truth and reconciliation. For the people of the Stoney Nakoda First Nations, that was seen late this summer.
After more than a century, the community of Morley, Alta., celebrated the reclamation of its traditional name, Mînî Thnî — which means “cold water.”
Alice Kaquitts is an elder, knowledge keeper and language interpreter. She is also a first generation residential school survivor, and she spoke with the Calgary Eyeopener about the importance of language.
“Our belief that language has a spirit, language in essence protected me from all the abuse that I had endured, because even as a child that spirit of that language protected me.”
Blackfoot artist Adrian Stimson discusses new Canada Post stamp
A multi-disciplinary Blackfoot artist is having his work featured on a stamp as part of a series that will highlight the personal experiences of residential school survivors.
Adrian Stimson is a two-spirit, Blackfoot member of the Siksika Nation in southern Alberta.
Stimson — who attended three residential schools growing up — will explain the importance of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in relation to his artwork on a new Canada Post stamp during an interview with CBC Radio’s The Homestretch.
“My experience, albeit the same as many residential school survivors, was also unique because that kind of straddled the history of the actual residential school and the day school. So trying to capture and capsule that entire history within that sort of space, well, of course is definitely a challenge,” Stimson told CBC News.
“But at the same time, I think pictographic language, which is the Blackfoot way of telling and storytelling, suited it so well.”