Background for the 215 Memorial Installation

Jun 23, 2021

Entire Community Mobilized to Remember the Children Taken

On our statement TRC Bobcaygeon says…

Our purpose as the Truth and Reconciliation Community Bobcaygeon is to foster and develop respectful relationships among Settlers, Indigenous neighbours and the Land.

We encourage and support one another, and anyone who will join with us, in moving towards restitution and decolonization.

We are learning, educating and working towards reconciliation locally within the Settler community and in relationship with the Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg.

We are actively engaged in learning about and honouring Treaties, both locally and in the wider Canadian context.

We continue to work towards restitution of wrongs as we respect the values and cultures of Indigenous communities.

Basically we focus on relationship building – leaning heavily on listening and asking for guidance on how we can best serve. We also focus on furthering our own learning and sharing that in the larger settler and newcomer community. Finally we understand that Truth is not enough especially if it does not inspire right action designed to move reconciliation forward.

 

Like so much of the rest of Canada, we were struck numb by the discovery of the 215 buried bodies of young First Nation children in Kamloops at the residential school in Tk’emlúps te Secwepemc territory. We quickly went into action to find a way to tell people who may have missed this news and to visually illustrate the extent of this tragedy. We did this with approval from Elder Anne Taylor of Curve Lake First Nation, who assured us that this was a respectful response.

 

We are grateful to everyone who helped us in this project – Barr’s BMR, W & G Landscaping and Construction and Home Hardware in Bobcaygeon for donating supplies for this project: Mayor Andy Letham, the Boyd Heritage Museum Board and the City of Kawartha Lakes Library (Bobcaygeon) for their support and we thank the numerous community members from all around the Kawarthas who not only donated their time and creative skills to painting these beautiful rocks, but expressed their grief for the 215 children and hope for the future in their art. 

 

We are grateful for media coverage from:
Kawartha Lakes Library social media: Facebook, Instagram and their website 

 

However, one person in our community noticed that the media focus appeared to be more on a “pat on the back” for the Bobcaygeon community and our Truth and Reconciliation Community rather than focussing on the real issues this display represented.  That may have occurred because the press release was written before we heard  Anne Taylor’s story about residential schools at the opening of the installation. Anne revealed that for First Nations people “our hearts are on the ground”. This harsh reality revealed by the discovery of the 215 bodies is too heavy for First Nations to carry alone. We need to support each other as we carry this burden together.  It is not going to be easy. We have many conversations ahead of us and many actions to take.

 

Important Relevant Background on Missing Children in Residential Schools

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) in 2007 started a project to identify and register missing children and unmarked burials.  Due to limited funding, they could only begin this project as it was not part of their original mandate.   They were able to identify 3,200 deaths of children who attended Indian Residential Schools but obtained verbal accounts from survivors of many more children that were missing or dead that were not recorded.  Since the completion of the Commission’s work the official death toll is now 4,100 before the recent discoveries.  There is still much more work that needs to completed.

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See What Actions You Can Take

Michi Saagiig Language Activist, Anne Taylor of Curve Lake First Nation.
Standing in circle with those who gathered to begin the exhibition in a good way, Anne shared difficult stories of how the Indian Residential School system has impacted her and her family and friends. In fact, as Anne says “There is not an Anishnaabeg person who has not been impacted by the residential school system in some way.” These impacts vary from direct lived experience to the continued challenges of intergenerational trauma and the ongoing energy required to try to be heard by governments and to demand justice. It is exhausting and Indigenous people in Canada should not have to bear the burden of making things right. “Indigenous women have laid their hearts on the ground,” said Anne, and …”it is time for settler Canadians to step up as never before”.

Here Is What You Can Do
More Actions to Take