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Written by Russell Mitchell-Walker
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Saturday, 21 January 2012 11:27 |
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This past week, I spent one morning at the Truth and Reconciliation hearings at the First Nations University. These hearings are for people to share their residential school experience and work toward healing. It is important that there are non-aboriginal people present to witness and respectfully listen to what can be a difficult, courageous and painful sharing. One of the speakers was from Gordons First Nation and he went to residential day school across the street from where he lived. He did not want to go but was forced by the government agent and the nun. He was very close with his father who was his hero, but as he was taken and looked back to see his father going back to work, he said his hero died that day. He did not learn until he was 45 years old that the reason his father did nothing, was that they told him if his father wanted his son to go to a different school he had to give up his status as an Indian. He wasn't willing or able to do that. The speaker shared at one point, looking at the banner promoting the Truth and Reconciliation hearings, and the slogan, "For the child taken, For the parent left behind." He said the slogan should really read for the parent lost. He lost his father that day, who he thought his father was, and the healing came in knowing the truth 35 years later - he found his father again. This is very important, painful, and healing work that our government is doing, and we as a church who contributed to that pain, need to listen, learn, grow and be open to how we can be together in community. That is our work as we seek to live out our apology to First Nations congregations and those who attended and were affected by the Residential Schools system.
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