Week of Reconiliatory Action: A Student's Perspective

Did you know that today, the vast majority of Indigenous people living on reserves don’t have access to safe, clean drinking water– a basic human right? Or that, up until 1996, over 150,000 First Nations children were placed in residential schools, where there was a 1 in 25 chance of death? I can tell you for certain that, before this past week, neither I nor the majority of my peers appreciated the sheer magnitude of difficulties that Canada’s Indigenous peoples have faced – and continue to face today. Greenwood’s Reconciliation Week, organized by the Diversity and Service Learning Committees, gave students the much needed opportunity to address, reflect on, and discuss this much darker side of Canada’s identity.

 

Each morning during the week, students began their day by listening to the Treaty Land Acknowledgement. This acknowledgement recognizes the fact that Greenwood – and virtually all of Toronto – is situated over traditional territories. Classes were then given discussion questions, surrounding a different theme each day, that related to the prejudice that Indigenous communities face. These questions prompted some difficult but extremely important discussions. I had an especially meaningful conversation with my Thursday morning film class about how First Nations families are still affected by the legacy of residential schools.

In English class, students participated in activities that linked the topic of reconciliation to the themes we were discussing in the classroom. Since my class is currently reading the dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451, we compared elements of the novel’s dystopian society to elements of the real-life residential school system. It was an interesting way to not only think critically about the text we were reading, but apply its themes to real life and educate ourselves further on the residential school system.

On Monday, the entire school gathered in the gym to hear a presentation from filmmaker Mike Downie. Mike talked to us about his involvement with the Secret Path project, which all started when he came across the story of Chanie Wenjack. Chanie Wenjack was a twelve year old boy who, along with countless other First Nations children, was forced to leave his family and attend residential school. One October, Chanie ran away from his school and attempted to travel over 600 kilometers to reach his parents. Walking along abandoned railroad tracks in the cold, Chanie tragically met his death.

Mike’s original intention was to turn Chanie’s story into a live-action short film. However, the project ended up going down a much different, somewhat less obvious course. When Mike shared the young boy’s tale with his brother Gord Downie, Gord was moved to write a poem about Chanie called Secret Path. One thing lead to another: one poem became ten poems, which became an album, which became a graphic novel, which all culminated in an hour-long animated film depicting Chanie’s journey.

Chanie Wenjack’s story was incredibly saddening to me, but what was even harder to wrap my head around was the fact that he was only one of many Indigenous children who shared the same fate. After the assembly, I was left questioning: why is this massive part of Canadian history so often ignored? And how can my peers and I get involved in helping our country take real steps towards reconciliation?

Well it turns out that, going beyond just talking about it, there are many things we can do to create positive change. For example, on Thursday, Greenwood had Orange Shirt Day. Students could pay $2 to “dress down” in an orange shirt, and the funds raised were given to Teach for Canada. Teach for Canada is a nonprofit that recruits and trains educators to teach in Indigenous communities. Organizations like this enable children living on reserves to get a quality education from teachers who genuinely care about them and their well being – something that I often take for granted. Having a better education will give First Nations youth more job opportunities (and with that, a sense of hope, stability, and freedom) down the road.

Overall, Greenwood’s Reconciliation Week really opened my eyes to the huge amount of discrimination that still affects Indigenous peoples’ daily lives. Giving students time in class to talk about this discrimination, and the importance of reconciliation, turned out to be so invaluable. I seriously doubt I would have had the same kind of discussions anywhere else. It is important to remember that the issues surrounding Indigenous communities did not end with the closing of residential schools; these issues are still far from over. But if we continue taking reconciliatory action by having weeks like these in schools across Canada, we are on our way to a country that is united and equal.