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This year marked the second for the Rock Your Roots, Walk for Reconciliation and the momentum continues to grow.

At about 9:30 a.m., June 21, National Aboriginal Day, Saskatoon’s Victoria Park began filling with people, and the excitement grew as more and more people joined in.

“To see so many diverse people come out to celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day was very encouraging,” said Rhett Sangster, Director Reconciliation, Community Partnerships for the Office of the Treaty Commissioner.

“I think it demonstrates that we’re moving in the right direction.”

At the War of 1812 monument, there were traditional dancers and drummers giving a feeling of the community the day honours.

Teedly Linklater was drumming and singing as she led the walk. She spoke with CBC Saskatoon during the event

“All my ancestors, my grandparents I wish they were here to see, to be a part of this truth and reconciliation,” she said to them.

Thousands of people walked together for Reconciliation and they were supported by groups providing music and dancing.

“It was a wonderful celebration. A celebration honouring survivors, a celebration honouring Indigenous cultures and a celebration of all of our ancestors and our shared future together,” Sangster said.

“It was a chance for people in Saskatoon who don’t necessarily know each other very well to interact and learn and start to build relationships.”

When the walk was over, people spilled onto the grass at Victoria Park surrounded by tipis and activities, said Reconciliation Saskatoon’s Carrie Catherine.

“A favourite moment came when CUMFI President Shirley Isbister and Mayor Charlie Clark talked about the possibility of renaming that park of Victoria Park Reconciliation Circle,” she said.

“We were reminded that beyond the moment of just walking together, there is real action being taken by members of our community and leaders working towards reconciliation. “

To raise awareness of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, people are asked to wear red or to hang a red dress in a public place on May 5.

“The red dress has become a symbol for the thousands of Indigenous women who have gone missing or been murdered in Canada over the years. Often the suspicious circumstances of their disappearance or death remains uninvestigated by police,” said a release from the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations.

By wearing red, it acknowledges that those who have gone missing or have suffered a violent death are still in the hearts of people who knew them, said FSIN chief Bobby Cameron.

Read more about the beginning of Red Dress Day: Red Dresses Draw Attention To Canada’s Missing And Murdered Indigenous Women

The Red Dress Project is online here and on Facebook.

The Office of the Treaty Commissioner was happy to be at the 2017 National Congress on Rural Education in Canada.

The conversation about reconciliation was central to the conference held in Saskatoon and included members of our speaker’s bureau throughout the March 26 to 28 event.

Annie Battiste spoke at the breakout session on “what is reconciliation and why is it important.” Lyndon Linklater spoke about treaties and the treaty relationship.

During the workshop on Responding to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action, the OTC executive director Harry Lafond, was joined by director, reconciliation and community partnerships Rhett Sangster and former treaty commissioner David Arnot. They spoke about reconciliation and how to move forward to live together.

On the final day, Sangster was part of the telling of the story of Reconciliation Saskatoon along with Neal Kewistep from the Saskatoon Health Region, Carol Cooley from Saskatoon Public Library and Dave Moors from the United Church. It was about challenging and inspiring people to start their own reconciliation work in their own communities.

For the Regina Public School Division, this year’s Orange Shirt Day is a culmination of a year of activities aimed at filling knowledge gaps.

This is the third year the division has held Orange Shirt Day, and this year nearly every school is involved, said Sarah Longman, supervisor of aboriginal education for Regina Public Schools.

In previous years, Longman said she found many people weren’t aware of Orange Shirt Day and its significance as far as reconciliation and remembering and honouring those who went to residential schools. After hearing Senator Murray Sinclair talk about filling knowledge gaps, Longman said it started them moving towards providing learning opportunities.

Over the past year educators have been reading and Tweeting the Truth and Reconciliation Commission report, Longman said. They also started using blanket exercises, where participants take on the roles of Indigenous peoples in Canada. It started with a group of volunteers on one weekend and through the following months everyone in the division office has taken it, as well as school administrators, resources officers and social workers, Longman said.

Starting in October, high school students will learn the blanket exercise and move to sharing it with their feeder elementary schools.

This work has made a good space for Orange Shirt Day, Sept. 30. During the day, kids are wearing orange, decorating orange shirts and some of the classrooms have residential school survivors speaking.

“It’s going to be a day of tears and it’s going to be a day of healing,” Longman said.

She shared a story from last year’s event.

“We had a residential school survivor go in and speak to a predominantly non-Indigenous group of Kindergarten students. She was sharing the stories of when she was a little girl around the same age as them,” Longman said.

The survivor said that she didn’t have anybody who was “’there to tuck her in at night, she didn’t have anyone on her birthday bringing cake to her or any presents, she didn’t have anyone cuddle her or comfort her when she felt scared and she certainly didn’t have anyone tell her she was beautiful,’” said Longman.

“Of course our kindergarten students all understood this … and one of our little girls with great big, blue eyes and blonde hair walked up the survivor … and gently, very gently tucked her hands on her face and looked the survivor in the eye and said, ‘I think you are beautiful.’”

Reconciliation in business was a big part of the conversation at the 2016 World Indigenous Business Forum that took place in Saskatoon this week.

“Strong, shared-value relationships drive reconciliation,” said Sean Willy, vice president of Des Nedhe Development and relationship coach with Creative Fire.

He spoke about the importance of taking the time to make relationships, to the audience of approximately 900 delegates from around the world.

Willy said, if you put your own objectives and values on the table, “more often than not, you will find common ground.”

When he talks about shared value, he means that in the end everyone is looking for some way to benefit in a business deal. He gives the example of a community wanting employment, a company wanting a good story and the government wanting to increase their tax base, so everyone benefits.

“The best way to eliminate poverty is investing in Aboriginal business,” Willy said.

Monica James with the Business Development Bank of Canada, took a moment to remind everyone of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s call to the business community by reading out Call to Action 92.

“We call upon the corporate sector in Canada to adopt the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as a reconciliation framework and to apply its principles, norms, and standards to corporate policy and core operational activities involving Indigenous peoples and their lands and resources.“ (Read the complete calls to action here)

The Call to Action 92 was the centre of a presentation by vice president Stephen Lindley of SNC Lavalin, an engineering and construction group. The natural resources sector, generally, has been doing a good job of Aboriginal inclusion, he said but that the Canadian economy is more than resources.

“We’ve got a long way to go if we want to meet the challenge that’s been set out for us by the TRC,” he said.

“If we’re going to better, we’re going to have to diversify our inclusion efforts.”

Off-reserve, urban communities are growing at rate five times the rate of on-reserve communities, Lindley said, so there has to be improvement of inclusions of Aboriginal people in manufacturing, service and other sectors. He said to do that these sectors will need to continue to rely on the resource industry to lead the way.

“It’s an imperative that corporate Canada step up and take Justice Sinclair’s challenge in recommendation 92,” he said.

He makes some suggestions of what business can do:

• Reduce reliance on the temporary foreign workers program
• Get the conversation started, because it hasn’t started yet
• Encourage best practices, make it good business to have an Aboriginal employment strategy
• Reach out to young, urban populations and get to know them

“We have to work harder, smarter and faster because we have to meet this challenge sooner rather than later,” Lindley said.

It was a celebration on Stoney Knoll to commemorate the 140^th anniversary of the signing of Treaty 6 on Aug. 23.

“Today is a big day for us,” said Neil Sasakamoose, the executive director of the Battlefords Agency Tribal Chiefs and the MC for the day.

“What’s been going on in the province this summer, it’s good to meet with non-Native people right now,” he said, talking about the racism that has bubbled to the surface following the shooting of a man from the Red Pheasant First Nation on a farm near Biggar.

“It’s good to remind each other why we coexist, it’s special to coexist.”

The day is also about teaching the next generation about the Treaties of Saskatchewan.

“One of the key things about remembering an event and a time in history are the concrete symbols that we create to carry that story and that message. For the numbered treaties, the medal has been a key piece of the story,” said Harry Lafond, executive director of the Office of the Treaty Commissioner.

To honour remembering and commemorating Treaty 6 the Treaty Office gave each person at the event a small replica of the Treaty 6 medal.

“Put it some place visible in your home to remind you of your own responsibility as a Treaty 6 person. Put it some place where your grandchildren will come in and say, ‘what’s that about,’ and you will be able to tell them that they are Treaty 6 people,” Lafond said.

“That’s what these medals are for, they are reminders. They are a visible way to carry the story forward.”

Using Stoney Knoll, a hill in the middle of the prairie near the community of Laird, as the meeting place for the gathering was intentional. The land belonged to the Young Chippewayan First Nation, but they were removed in the late 1800s and the area was settled by Mennonite and Lutheran farmers.

Starting in the 1970s there has been the beginning of an understanding of what happened. Leonard Doell, coordinator of the Indigenous Neighbour’s Program for the Mennonite Central Committee, spoke during the ceremony of the descendants of Young Chippewayan band members coming and talking about their connection to the land.

He said this became an impetus to learn more and the “first step on the journey of three peoples working together for justice.”

It was 10 years ago that then Stoney Knoll Chief Ben Weenie called Doell to see if the Young Chippewayan band members could commemorate the 130 anniversary of the Treaty 6 signing alongside the Lutheran and Mennonite settlers on the land.

“By taking this risk and extending the olive branch through kindness, Chief Weenie began a journey of reconciliation, hoping that there would be receptive people to walk alongside on uncharted ground,” Doell said.

That spirit of the multi-party gathering continues to be honoured to this day.

Thousands of people filled the streets of downtown Saskatoon for the first Rock Your Roots, Walk for Reconciliation on June 22.

“To see so many people come out, and to see the diversity of the crowd walking side by side, it literally gave me goose bumps a couple of times! It was just such a powerful and positive statement of reconciliation and the resilience of Saskatchewan people,” said Rhett Sangster, one of the organizers and Director of Reconciliation and Community Partnerships with the Office of the Treaty Commissioner.

The event was the culmination of a month of reconciliation activities going on in the city to promote togetherness and awareness in the community.

“Our organizing committee was such an incredible mix of people who came together each week to eat together, to learn together, and very often, to laugh together. The group was incredibly diverse – we had people from all walks of life – over 30 organizations were participating by the end,” Sangster said.

Rock Your Roots saw people from different nationalities representing who they are, from the colourful ketenge fabric of Africa, to Scottish kilts, to beaded regalia of Canada’s First Nations.

About 120 people in the walk were recent immigrants and refugees to Canada, many who carried signs encouraging reconciliation, including those reading ‘I am from South Sudan’ and ‘I am from China.’
Also filling the streets were kids from Saskatoon schools – all sporting the newly minted Reconciliation Saskatoon logo on specially designed buffs. They walked alongside about 60 residential school survivors.

“To me it really validated that reconciliation is not only possible in Saskatchewan, but that the process of reconciliation – that of coming together and learning and building and planning together – that this is an incredibly rewarding and enriching experience for those who are willing to jump in and take a few risks and get to know their neighbor,” Sangster said.

The walk and month of activities was spearheaded by the Office of the Treaty Commissioner and the City of Saskatoon, as part of the City’s Declaration of a Year of Reconciliation.

The Central Urban Metis Federation Inc. and the Saskatoon Tribal Council joined the effort, along with a coalition of over thirty business, civil society, faith-based, and government organizations across the city.

The Office of the Treaty Commissioner hopes this is the beginning of a regular event in the city and around the province. There have been calls to make it a national event, including one by Saskatchewan columnist Doug Cuthand.

Whatever comes of the Walk, there is already agreement among the organizing partners to continue working together. We want to create opportunities for Saskatchewan people to better know their neighbours, to honour survivors of residential schools and their families, and to inspire each of us to find our personal Calls to Action. This is the path for building a better future for us all.

A month of events to engage the community in reconciliation has kicked off in Saskatoon.

“Reconciliation is the restoration of a friendship after an estrangement,” said George Lafond, past treaty commissioner.

“It does not require agreement on every aspect of how to live together. It is not an apology that has been accepted once offered.

“Rather, it is about the process of coming together—a conscious choice that the future will be better if we work through difficulties and differences with an openness to hearing about, and responding to, the harm that has occurred.”

The idea is to engage and inspire all citizens on what it means to have reconciliation and to find their own personal call to action.

“Reconciliation is a process of opening up our hearts to be inclusive of all cultures and religious beliefs,” said Shirley Isbister, president of the Central Urban Métis Federation Inc.

”[It’s] a process of understanding that we may be unique but can still live and work together in harmony. Our call to action paves the path for future generations.”

Saskatoon has committed to responding to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s calls to action. It all started with a proclamation by city council on June 22, 2015 declaring 2015/2016 the Year of Reconciliation.

The month of events was created as partnership between The City of Saskatoon, Office of the Treaty Commissioner, Saskatoon Tribal Council and Central Urban Metis Federation Inc., along with 29 supporting organizations.

“The organizations involved in these events are setting the foundation to the work we can all do together to improve our relationships and be all inclusive,” said Felix Thomas, chief of the Saskatoon Tribal Council.

The month-long schedule of activities will give Saskatoon residents an opportunity to:

• listen to the stories of survivors and their families,
• learn about our history, about residential schools, in an environment that is accessible to all,
• show-up to support events for reconciliation, and
• share your personal response to the calls to action with friends and family using #ReconciliationSK.

The Office of the Treaty Commissioner celebrates the work of the National Centre of Truth and Reconciliation and we were excited to hear that a Saskatoon-based student was one of ten winners of a contest looking at Canada through a lens of reconciliation. Here is Christopher Sandford Beck’s story.

Saskatchewan teen Christopher Sanford Beck thought the Imagine a Canada contest, sponsored by the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR) was a “neat project” to enter. But little did he know that his entry would gain so much attention and become an award winning story.

Sanford Beck, 15, was one of 10 contest winners for his detailed short story on what he would love to see for the future of Canada. The contest required that students, “envision what the future of Canada will look like through the lens of reconciliation,” through art, poetry, film or an essay.

Set in 2036, Sanford Beck’s short story tells of a small farm family that is heavily involved with the indigenous community and other groups of different nationalities. He details how unified Canada had become with indigenous peoples as he illustrates how the family is visiting a reserve for a community celebratory event.

“I thought the contest by the NCTR was a neat one and I think it was important,” said the teen.

An avid reader and writer since he was six-years-old, Sanford Beck is way beyond his years in his thinking.

“It is important for indigenous people to be represented more than the way they are now and I thought it was important to express that with this story.”

He says he hopes to see more indigenous groups being represented on a national level and Canada will move into a more unified future, treating all peoples equal.

Though Sanford Beck seems to have a natural gift of writing, which may have been influenced by the fact that both of his parents are writers, he also thoroughly enjoys other activities. He is actively involved in parkour and free running, construction and social justice work.

“I love activism and would love to be a part of a lot of voluntary work in the future,” he said.

He is ecstatic about the award and thinks reconciliation is important for everyone in Canada.

“My friends at school are happy that I won the award and they love the short story. I’m glad they do because I think this is important,” he said.

The full story can be found on Sanford Beck’s blog, Crownshire’s Blog

— Sasha-Gay Lobban

Life lessons and the teachings around indigenous resilience were the focus of a panel discussion hosted by the Office of the Treaty Commissioner during Aboriginal Achievement Week.

The newly opened Gordon Oakes Red Bear Student Centre at the University of Saskatchewan was filled with the smells of soup and bannock and the sounds of storytelling during the panel called Lunch, Learn, and Listen on Friday.

The five diverse panelists each brought a different life experience to the table from surviving residential school to reclaiming identity through dance.

Ruth Cameron spoke about growing up being separated from her family through residential school but she said she always held one lesson from her mother inside, “Be proud of who you are.”

Metis dancing and the arts was Amy Seesequasis constant connection to her indigenous identity. She said the carrying of history through stories is essential, not only for indigenous communities but for everyone.

“Through [dance] and through university I was able to be able to reclaim my identity,” she said.

The journey towards her indigenous identity started as a teenager, Jennifer Heimbecker explained to the room. Heimbecker said her mother was rejected by her First Nation when she married outside the community, and so she was raised in a small rural village.

“It was a life that was unfolding and unfolding and it continues to unfold. It gives me great pride to be who I am and come from the family I came from,” she said.

Political science student Xavier Fisher said growing up his home was filled with the sounds of the Michif language and it was essential to his identity. He is teaching himself his language again.

“I take it upon myself to be not only reeducating myself, but my children,” he said.

“That’s what that resilience is to me because it… is reclaiming my identity. Not only reclaiming my identity but reclaiming my children’s identity, reclaiming my family’s identity.”

Donnie Speidel, from the Lakota tribe, said working in the school system you can see the effects of the residential school. He said re-instilling and reclaiming the passion for identity is critical for future generations.

“I really believe that it’s a paramount role for all of us as parents and members of the community to retain and understand tradition, language,” he said. “Language is so vital to our survival and so vital to linking us to the past, present, and future.”

The Office of the Treaty Commissioner has supported Aboriginal Achievement Week since its inception. In 2012 OTC signed a strategic alliance with the U of S signifying the commitment of both institutions to educated students, staff, and faculty about the importance of the treaties and the responsibilities that flow from the treaties.

– By Geraldine Malone