Cathy Dobson Two local elementary schools united Friday for a walk to celebrate the hope and healing symbolized by the Every Child Matters movement.
Cathy Dobson
Two local elementary schools united Friday for a walk to celebrate the hope and healing symbolized by the Every Child Matters movement.
About 325 students, parents and teachers primarily from Queen Elizabeth II School, but also Lansdowne Public School, walked together in orange t-shirts, waving their signs and cheering.
They marched along several blocks of Indian Road escorted by members of Sarnia Police Services and cheered extra loud when motorists honked their horns in support.
It was about raising awareness in the community, sharing the importance of remembering the children who never returned home from residential schools, and looking to the future with hope, said organizer Charlene Akiwenzie.
She is the Ojibwa language teacher at Queen Elizabeth II Public School, where about 50 students study their indigenous roots, their culture and history.
This year, Akiwenzie wanted the entire school to mark Canada’s National Truth and Reconciliation Day in a meaningful way.
“It’s important that the truth be told,” she said. “We also need to work together to build happier lives for our children in the school system, with the teachers and staff.
“It’s important to remember that we are descendants of residential school survivors,” Akiwenzie said.
“Canadian history has hidden what happened to our people for so long and society is still in denial. I mean, they did try to eliminate our people, so it’s very honorable to know we survived; we are still here and we still have our language and our culture, and we’re passing that along to our children,” she said.
Queen Elizabeth II principal Cam Gordon said the day promoted learning and understanding about the impacts of the residential school system on communities and families.
“The orange shirts symbolize hope, reconciliation, and a commitment to a better future,” said Gordon.
Crystal Huard, mother to two aboriginal children who attend Queen Elizabeth II, said the walk was important to them because they are the generation that will continue reconciliation.
Huard’s kids, Katelin Durston, 9, and Johnathan Durston, 7, see coverage of the residential school issue on the news and it’s a subject discussed at home, she said.
“I don’t hide anything from them. But I know the truth hurts and so we talk about it,” Huard said.
More awareness and an acceptance of what happened at the residential schools by the greater community, lends itself to healing, said Akiwenzie.
“Nowadays, it’s nice to know we get a lot more respect and a lot more honour with our traditions and our culture and our medicines, and our attachment to Mother Earth,” she said.
