As usual, in a wonderful Winnipeg Free Press article, Niigaan Sinclair said it much better than I could. Like me he has been saying how enthusiastic he has been about what he has seen in Manitoba in the last couple of years. In fact, he has been eloquent  in his praise. That is saying a lot because he is an astute and relentless critic of colonial subterfuge and chicanery. Recently, he said how impressed he was to see an elementary school playground filled with young students of all ethnicities and races, wearing orange shirts, playing together while expressing their solidarity with indigenous people and their complicated relationship with non-indigenous peoples.

As Sinclair said,

“Dressed by parents who want children to know that relationships with Indigenous Peoples are important, these children are receiving some of the best and most inclusive and complete education in history.”

He also pointed out how most Canadian students are now learning about residential schools, treaties, and the complicated relationship shared by Canadian indigenous peoples from dedicated teachers. When I was growing up, we received no such education.  This will give Canada a chance for a better relationship to come. Thankfully too, we have not had much of a backlash from conservatives who don’t want their children to learn things that might make them feel uncomfortable as Americans are now experiencing.  This change has occurred without a lot of opposition, other than perhaps, some naysaying old men at coffee shops around the country in places like Steinbach. But those are just nattering nabobs of negativity as American Vice-president Spiro Agnew once said.

This might just open up a significant door. After all, as Chief Commissioner Murray Sinclair has repeatedly said, “Education got us into this mess and it is the only thing that can get us out of this mess.” As always, wise words from the Honourable Murray Sinclair.  His son, Niigaan Sinclair added this in his column:

“This is an opportunity few had in school. Most, including me, still carry the residue of the racism we were taught or the deafening silence that guided us to ignorance or entitlement.”

 Me too! I too carry the residue of that racism that I am trying hard and probably not hard enough, to erase. It is not easy. But it must be done.

Niigaan Sinclair said he has seen a change in the air in Manitoba. A change that has been a very long in coming.  As he said,  “This province and city, however, are different. This place is different.” He went even farther. As I said, he was lavish in his praise:”

Anyone who has read this column knows I’ve never said our community is perfect or even close to it, but readers do know I am frank and often uncomfortably blunt. So, with all bluntness I can muster, I say something special is happening in this place.

 Once again,I don’t want to sound like Pollyanna but I want to echo his words.

Yet—and this is important—Sinclair warns us that we must not be satisfied with baubles.  We need action.  This is how he eloquently put it: “Still, most in this community continue to wear an orange shirt. Let’s just hope it’s not used as a blanket or shield, but as a pathway to action.”

Boy I wish I had said that.

Ever since the Truth and Reconciliation Commission issued its  report in 2015 Canadians had no excuse for not learning the truth. I know few people read it. That is unfortunate. The ugly truth was there.

I was fortunate in that I heard the Honourable Murray Sinclair, the Chair person of the Commission deliver to us a peak at the impending report of the Truth and Reconciliation report or at least some of the things that were in it, during a speech many years ago to Manitoba lawyers at the Manitoba Bar Association. It was shocking. Until then I had erroneously believed that the problems in residential schools were mainly “a few bad apples” in the churches. Until then I erroneously believed that the government of Canada was not responsible since it had contracted with churches to administer an educational program for indigenous children in Canada. It was all the fault of the churches I thought.I was pitifully ignorant and naïve. The start of my education began that day I heard Judge Sinclair speak.

Recently, there have been many indications that a major result of that report, trying to move Canada forward towards reconciliation is gaining strength.  So far the steps are modest. But baby steps are better than no steps.

 On the National Day of Reconciliation for Canada this year I was confined to my home trying to recover from a cold and avoid spreading it to others. As a result I watched a lot of television shows on indigenous issues and reconciliation.  As well, I watched the Winnipeg Blue Bomber football team give a firm rebuke to their arch rivals the Saskatchewan Roughriders for the 3^rd time this year. It was sweet.

But some things were even sweeter. First, the Bombers wore orange practice shirts, in honour of Orange Shirt Day (the alternative name for this memorable day). Then a referee announced penalties in both English and Ojibway. The half time show featured indigenous entertainment such as dancing. There was also a specific section in which indigenous people from around Manitoba were given a specific section. But the sweetest moment was when Blue Bomber receiver Nic Demski caught a football in the Saskatchewan endzone for a touchdown and then threw the football into the endzone section filled with indigenous people who were wildly enthusiastic by the throw.

It really felt great. It was great. These things would not have happened to this extent only few years ago.  These were indications of progress. You could see it on the faces of the people. One of the chiefs who was interviewed at half time said, “We are seeing reconciliation in action.”

All of that is good, but we must remember gestures, even good gestures, are not enough. As Niigaan Sinclair a professor of Indigenous Studies at the University of Manitoba echoed the words of  his father Murray Sinclair when he said, “Canada has to spend as much of an effort at reconciliation as it did in destroying Indigenous communities.” That is the nub. Gestures are not enough. We must take the next step.  And that can’t be less than the baby steps we have taken. It took generations to inflict the pain on indigenous people. We must take generations to repair the damage and restore those communities to the positions they would have been in had those harms not occurred.

I hope these steps we have seen so far are not merely ornamental, but real. Baby steps must lead to real steps.

A

 As Barbara Nepinak had promised the afternoon of reconciliation at the Pat Porter Active learning centre in Steinbach ended on a very positive note. Dancing. In Steinbach at that. It is not famous for dancing.

First Nepinak told us about how she had attended a function at a town near to Steinbach when she was young. They came to demonstrate their culture to the students of a school in this area.  Much to her surprise the students mocked the indigenous children, used derogatory terms about them, and hurled items at them. “This seemed shocking to us,” she said because they thought they were in a civilzed place. I guess they were wrong. How did we treat indigenous people when we were young? I can’t remember much.

Today we were presented with 3 young dancers of exceptional ability. In fact, a couple of weeks ago we attended a pow wow where our 3-year-old indigenous granddaughter was strutting her stuff with the regalia her mother had made. One of the winning dancers at that pow wow was performing for us in Steinbach. His name was Tyson Prince and he was outstanding. I particularly liked his dance called the Prairie Chicken Dance. I have seen a lek and it was a pretty good rendition.

Tyson’s sisters Rose and Teagan also performed. The dances were sensational. This was in fact a high note all right.

There were no racial insults hurled this time.  Steinbach has come a long way toward reconciliation, but still has a long way to go.

In the film A National Journey for Reconciliation, Joe Clarke, the former Prime Minister of Canada had some moving words to say about reconciliation:

“The Commission Chair, the eloquent Mr. Justice Murray Sinclair, borrows a phrase that was used by the leaders of the American Civil Rights Movement. That phrase is, “Keep your eye on the prize.” That sets a challenge for all of us. Indigenous and non-indigenous. Commissioners and Citizens. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission will help to define the prize. We as Canadians, as citizens, have to mobilize the eyes and help the larger Canadian population both see and act. Reconciliation means coming together as a whole with one purpose being to hear and to heal  and then a critical common purpose which is to move forward together. And if we fail to do that, if we fail to go beyond apology and regret, if we admit the truth and ignore the reconciliation that would be to repeat the profound offences of the Residential Schools themselves. I believe that Canada as a broad and generous country can find the will to repair the damage of that past and build new partnerships if enough of our citizens know and if their eyes are turned to the prize.”

I think that is what reconciliation looks like. I too think Canada can do this. We should do this.

I know some of my friends, good people, are getting tired of hearing about residential schools and reconciliation. Who can blame them? We would all like to move on.

But as Chairperson Judge Murray Sinclair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission said, Canada should spend as much effort repairing the damage it caused to the indigenous people as it did in inflicting the harm in the first place.

I am not saying each of us should wear only sack cloth and mourning clothes until this is resolved, or that each of us should purchase an AR-15 assault rifle and a pith helmet so we can lead the revolution into Premier Heather Stephenson’s back yard.  Each of us have only limited talents. But the talent we have should be used to remedy an historical harm.  At least a little bit.

What can we do? It depends on our talents. We can speak up when we hear someone utter an ignorant racial smear or unnecessary demeaning remark about indigenous people. We should speak up as kindly as we can but firmly enough to make it clear that we dissent from such remarks. Or if we hear someone else speaking up against injustice we can make it clear that we concur. That might be difficult. We can reach out to our political representatives that we expect them to do better. If we see someone in trouble we can offer a helping hand. We can read one article about reconciliation. We can make an effort to learn. We can make an effort to learn the truth somewhere about one indigenous issue. We can call up someone who has knowledge for guidance or information. We can watch a film about indigenous issues. Someone told me that is all you cans see these days. We can make a gesture of support to indigenous people somewhere or somehow.

We should recognize that to say we are simply tired and don’t want to do anything is understandable, but that is not the best me I am putting forward. What have we  done to renounce the privilege we enjoy solely by virtue of the colour of our skin, that indigenous people do not enjoy? To say ‘absolutely nothing’ is not the finest answer. If we can say we have done a small thing or even 2 small things that is much better.

If  we have resolved to pay a little more attention and will do something in the future and to pass that thought on to others or have resolved to do better, that is an improvement.

Then we will be ready to return to our life of watching Yahoos opining on our favourite sport or watching the Mad Housewives of Blumenort and carry on your life again.

None of us are saints or heroes, but we are not incapacitated either. We can do a little bit while returning to the life we enjoy. I think that is at least a small step towards reconciliation.

Some people don’t like apologies, particularly from their leaders. A lot of people don’t like Justin Trudeau because they think he apologizes too much.  They see an apology as a sign of weakness.

Lawyers constantly tell their clients to avoid apologies. Perhaps it was lawyers that held sway over Pope Francis  of the Catholic Church for so long that he almost  had to be dragged to Canada  nearly a decade after the call for him to apologize by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. He apologized long after the leader of the United Church apologized for damage done to Indian residential school children by his church,

Speaking as a person and a citizen, not a lawyer, I say that an apology is a sign of strength not weakness. The leader of the United Church of Canada, the very Reverend Dr. Bill Phillips gave a moving apology to the victim of residential schools I Canada. Here is part of his words:

“We are on a long and painful journey as we reflect on the cries that we did not or would not hear. And how we have behaved as a church. We travel this difficult road of repentance and reconciliation and healing. We commit ourselves to work towards ensuring that we will never again use our power as a church to hurt others with attitudes of racial and spiritual superiority. “

I heard no weakness in that apology. Only strength.  The United Church did wrong. It apologized. What is weak about that? Misusing power against vulnerable children on the other hand, that is weakness.