Truth & Reconciliation Commission's Call to Action 72

We call upon the federal government to allocate sufficient resources to the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation to allow it to develop and maintain the National Residential School Student Death Register established by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

(Note by KJT: To read the National Residential School Student Death Register go to https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/lbrr/archives/cn000043947884-vol.4-eng.pdf )

Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action 71

Missing Children and Burial Information
We call upon all chief coroners and provincial vital statistics agencies that have not provided to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada their records on the deaths of Aboriginal children in the care of residential school authorities to make these documents available to the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation.

Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action 70

We call upon the federal government to provide funding to the Canadian Association of Archivists to undertake, in collaboration with Aboriginal peoples, a national review of archival policies and best practices to:

i. Determine the level of compliance with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the United Nations Joinet-OrentlicherPrinciples, as related to Aboriginal peoples’inalienable right to know the truth about what happened and why, with regard to human rights violations committed against them in the residential schools.

ii. Produce a report with recommendations for full implementation of these international mechanisms as a reconciliation framework for Canadian archives.

Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action 69

We call upon Library and Archives Canada to:

i. Fully adopt and implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the United Nations Joinet-Orentlicher Principles [on the Preservation and Access to Archives Bearing Witness to Human Rights Violations], as related to Aboriginal peoples’ inalienable right to know the truth about what happened and why, with regard to human rights violations committed against them in the residential schools.

ii. Ensure that its record holdings related to residential schools are accessible to the public.

iii. Commit more resources to its public education materials and programming on residential schools.

Writing Quotation

Fear isn't so difficult to understand. After all, weren't we all frightened as children? Nothing has changed since Little Red Riding Hood faced the big bad wolf. What frightens us today is exactly the same sort of thing that frightened us yesterday. It's just a different wolf. This fright complex is rooted in every individual.

– Alfred Hitchcock

Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action 68

We call upon the federal government, in collaboration with Aboriginal peoples, and the Canadian Museums Association to mark the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation in 2017 by establishing a dedicated national funding program for commemoration projects on the theme of reconciliation.

#WordWednesday

Try this for fun:

Write a tiny story or long sentence or a poem using all of these conveniently rhyming Halloween-type words: 

gloom 

     doom 

         boom 

               tomb 

                    broom 

                          loom (as in, shadows loom), 

                                             and just for the heck of it...exhume.

Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action 67

Museums and Archives

We call upon the federal government to provide funding to the Canadian Museums Association to undertake, in collaboration with Aboriginal peoples, a national review of museum policies and best practices to determine the level of compliance with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and to make recommendations.

Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Call to Action 66

Youth Programs

 We call upon the federal government to establish multiyear funding for community-based youth organizations to deliver programs on reconciliation, and establish a national network to share information and best practices.

TRC Call to Action 65

We call upon the federal government, through the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, and in collaboration with Aboriginal peoples, post-secondary institutions and educators, and the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation and its partner institutions, to establish a national research program with multi-year funding to advance understanding of reconciliation. 

Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Call to Action 64

In my continuing efforts to support and disseminate the TRC's Calls to Action as widely as I can, here is number 64:

We call upon all levels of government that provide public funds to denominational schools to require such schools to provide an education on comparative religious studies, which must include a segment on Aboriginal spiritual beliefs and practices developed in collaboration with Aboriginal Elders.

Writing Quotation

Don't tell me the moon is shining;

show me the glint of light on broken glass.

– Anton Chekhov

Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action 63

We call upon the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada to maintain an annual commitment to Aboriginal education issues, including:

i. Developing and implementing Kindergarten to Grade Twelve curriculum and learning resources on Aboriginal peoples in Canadian history, and the history and legacy of residential schools. 

ii. Sharing information and best practices on teaching curriculum related to residential schools and Aboriginal history.

iii. Building student capacity for intercultural understanding, empathy, and mutual respect.

iv. Identifying teacher-training needs relating to the above.

#WordWednesday

At this time of year, when my kids were growing up, we had a lot to celebrate! We had two birthdays (and parties and gifts and food), Thanksgiving (and decorations and a gathering and food) and Halloween (and three jack-o-lanterns and three costumes and food). Yikes. October was a lot of work and a lot of fun.

So in the spirit of all that autumn-ness and food, I decided to look into two common words of the season: pumpkin and candy.

Pumpkin, a delightful-sounding little word that we've forgotten to appreciate (say it five times fast, and you'll see what I mean), comes to us via Middle French via Latin from Greek. Throughout its long life since the 1540s, the venerable pumpkin's ancestors were pompone, pompon, pepon and peptein – words for melon and, originally, "cooked by the sun" or ripe.

Pumpkin pie has been around since the 1650s. People have been smart for a very long time.

The word "candy" has an even longer history than "pumpkin." As far back as the late 13th century, folks have had their candi (French), qandi (Arabic), qand (Persian) and khanda (Sanskrit). All of these words are related, unsurprisingly, to sugar.

Of course, October isn't all about food. There are other things going on – garden clean-up and beautiful trees and changing weather and crisp afternoons. But let's face it, this month has a lot of food going on, so we might as well know where some of it comes from.

Here's wishing you all the beauty and freshness and deliciousness of the season!

Writing Quotation

This story deserves to be told; all stories do. Even the waves of the sea tell a story that deserves to be read. The stories that really need to be told are those that shake the very soul of you. I prepare to be shaken. ― Lee Maracle

Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Call to Action 62.i

Education for reconciliation

62. We call upon the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, in consultation and collaboration with Survivors, Aboriginal peoples, and educators, to:

i. Make age-appropriate curriculum on residential schools, Treaties, and Aboriginal peoples’ historical and contemporary contributions to Canada a mandatory education requirement for Kindergarten to Grade Twelve students.

#WordWednesday

My friend Heather sent this great word along. I'd rarely heard it and wasn't exactly sure what it meant, so I figured I'd better find out and share it here. "Toothsome" refers to something edible that is temptingly tasty, delicious, delectable. You get the idea. The word came into use in the 1500s and seems to have peaked around 1900.

Toothsome treats aren't necessarily sweet; any delectably appealing dish can be considered toothsome. I enjoyed two wonderfully toothsome turkey dinners this past weekend. And one time a few years ago, my boys (Lucas missing from the photo but not from the baking) made a delicious cake for my birthday. We were toothsomely chocolatized!

Truth and Reconciliation Commission Call to Action 61.iv

We call upon church parties to the Settlement Agreement, in collaboration with Survivors and representatives of Aboriginal organizations, to establish permanent funding to Aboriginal people for:

iv. Regional dialogues for Indigenous spiritual leaders and youth to discuss Indigenous spirituality, self-determination, and reconciliation.

Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action 61.ii and 61.iii

We call upon church parties to the Settlement Agreement, in collaboration with Survivors and representatives of Aboriginal organizations, to establish permanent funding to Aboriginal people for:

ii. Community-controlled culture- and language revitalization projects.

iii. Community-controlled education and relationship building projects.

Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Call to Action 61.i

We call upon church parties to the Settlement Agreement, in collaboration with Survivors and representatives of Aboriginal organizations, to establish permanent funding to Aboriginal people for:

i. Community-controlled healing and reconciliation projects.

Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Call to Action #60

We call upon leaders of the church parties to the Settlement Agreement and all other faiths, in collaboration with Indigenous spiritual leaders, Survivors, schools of theology, seminaries, and other religious training centres, to develop and teach curriculum for all student clergy, and all clergy and staff who work in Aboriginal

communities, on the need to respect Indigenous spirituality in its own right, the history and legacy of residential schools and the roles of the church parties in that system, the history and legacy of religious conflict in Aboriginal families and communities, and the responsibility that churches have to mitigate such conflicts and prevent spiritual violence.

Writing Quotation

Writing isn't about making money, getting famous, getting dates, getting laid, or making friends. In the end, it's about enriching the lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life, as well. It's about getting up, getting well, and getting over. Getting happy, okay? Getting happy.

― Stephen King

Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Call to Action 59

We call upon church parties to the Settlement Agreement to develop ongoing education strategies to ensure that their respective congregations learn about their church’s role in colonization, the history and legacy of residential schools, and why apologies to former residential school students, their families, and communities were necessary.


Note by Kate: I'm pleased to say that two denominations on Manitoulin Island have already or will soon be holding open discussion groups about the TRC's Calls to Action. I did not get to the first series offered by Island Anglican churches, but I hope to get to the upcoming series offered by Knox United Church in Manitowaning.

#WordWednesday

I recently heard an expression I'm pretty sure I'd never heard before. A few of us were talking about gardens and harvesting, and one friend said, "I'm going to do down some tomatoes this weekend."

"Do down?" I repeated.

So we went on to have a lively little conversation about preserving garden produce in hot, sealed jars, a common autumnal activity here on Manitoulin Island and many rural places. As I drove home, that conversation inevitably led me to think about other expressions for preserving food at home.

I thought of "canning" and "do up." And, frankly, since I don't know of anyone within two lifetimes who has ever preserved their garden produce in cans (large companies do, but not usually individuals anymore), I've sometimes jokingly thought we should really call it "jarring," since we use class jars. As in, "I'll be busy all weekend jarring my tomatoes and peaches." But that makes it sound like I'm giving my produce some kind of shock, and, well, that just wouldn't be nice.

So, whether you do up, do down or can, I hope you'll end up with a few tasty, colourful jars full of summer warmth and sunshine in your cupboards this fall.

Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action 58

Church Apologies and Reconciliation

We call upon the Pope to issue an apology to Survivors, their families, and communities for the Roman Catholic Church’s role in the spiritual, cultural, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis children in Catholic-run residential schools.

We call for that apology to be similar to the 2010 apology issued to Irish victims of abuse and to occur within one year of the issuing of this Report and to be delivered by the Pope in Canada.

TRC Call to Action #57.

Professional Development and Training for Public Servants

We call upon federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal governments to provide education to public servants on the history of Aboriginal peoples, including the history and legacy of residential schools, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Treaties and Aboriginal rights, Indigenous law, and Aboriginal–Crown relations. This will require skills-based training in intercultural competency, conflict resolution, human rights, and anti-racism.

Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action #56

We call upon the prime minister of Canada to formally respond to the report of the National Council for Reconciliation by issuing an annual “State of Aboriginal Peoples” report, which would outline the government’s plans for advancing the cause of reconciliation.