Truth and reconciliation are two diverse topics with a variety of different understandings. Through the gain of knowledge and power this topic has pleasantly opened up my personal understanding, on both my own privileges and the traumatic experiences others have gone through. As a future educator my knowledge on truth and reconciliation has expanded tremendously throughout this course, which I’m forever thankful for. Through my own journey and gathering of information about the topic went from no knowledge, to a brief understanding, to a well understanding that I’ll be fortunate to pass down to future generations and students in my classroom.
Growing up attending elementary school, truth and reconciliation wasn’t a topic I had ever heard about. Looking back, I ask myself a lot of questions. Was it just because I was young and wouldn’t understand? But if that was the case, wasn’t there a way to incorporate different understandings so that I could understand? Something you should know about me is I have a huge heart for others and I believe that everyone deserves to be treated equally disregarding where they come from. Realizing how I grew up attending school with classmates who had a variety of different backgrounds makes me wish I could go back and learn more about their own personal stories. This saying is true “you never know what people are going through, because each person you meet has a story to tell. So instead of being judgmental- Just listen well!” (Forde, Charmaine). I find this so touching because there are so many stereotypes regarding race and culture, but in reality, people don’t know the impact these stereotypes have on those who have gone through such traumatic experiences. The first time I ever heard about truth and reconciliation, and “orange shirt day” was in high school. I was fortunate to gain more of an understanding because we had a day that acknowledged the meaning behind orange shirt day. In fact, we went on a walk around my high school neighbourhood to honour those who had their culture ripped away from them. I was also introduced to a brief insight of what residential schools were about and how people who attended were brutally tortured. Although my knowledge expanded on this topic while attending high school, my perspective on everyone around me changed positively because I know not to judge someone based on appearance or behaviour. I’ve learnt that the way people act and speak comes from their home, background, and personal experiences that others may not ever understand. The amount of knowledge I now have on this topic has increased tremendously while attending University, and I hope to further reach out and continue my journey along gaining a better understanding of this topic.
Throughout this course I’ve been taught that acknowledging territory and our land “is a way that people insert awareness of Indigenous presence and land rights in everyday life” (Jones, 2016). By acknowledging our territory is a “subtle way to recognize the history of colonialism” (Jones, 2016). I’ve personally experienced and witnessed teachers, and guest speakers acknowledging our territory by simply stating at the beginning of each lecture or speech how “we are on treaty 4 land” and that’s a simple yet an effective way to bring that sense of belonging to everyone and to show respect towards our land. I’ve also learnt more about residential schools and how “Canada separated Indigenous children from their parents, by sending them to residential schools. This was done not to educate them, but primarily to break their link to culture and identity” (Canadian Teachers’ Federation). Although I did have some background knowledge and I was aware of what residential schools were about, I never knew the extent that took place for those who were forced to attend residential schools until watching the video “Muffins for Granny”. I think “Muffins for Granny ” was the main turning point for me where it actually impacted me the most. Hearing the awful stories of what these people went through and the terror within their eyes made me realize how privileged I really am. Within that film, the message that resonated with me the most was when a guy said “the moment that we were separated from our family is a moment that I will never forget. That was the moment that destroyed my family the way I knew it. I used to cry just thinking about it because it was so painful” (McLaren, 2007, 23:33). Listening to him say this touched me so much and was the moment that made me reflect on how privileged I really am, because I’m fortunate to have never gone through something like that. In fact, this is something I will never have to experience or worry about. The impact of stories become very heartfelt when you see the real and raw emotion within people which is why I believe storytelling is so important. I believe it allows people to get a real understanding of the way an individual grew up and how it makes their unique identity and own story.
Gaining knowledge on truth and reconciliation and extending my personal knowledge about residential schools, really shows how people need to take the time to learn and educate one another about this impactful topic. People are always so quick to jump to conclusions and criticize others for things completely out of their control. On top of that, that’s when stereotypes begin and false allegations on people are made. I’ll own up to the fact that I’ve judged people without even getting to know them, but having this knowledge and background information has completely changed my view on those around me in the best way possible. As a future educator, I’ll be sure to educate students with all backgrounds about this topic and I will be sure to be a role model for each of my students because all lives matter.
For my aesthetic piece I chose to represent my understanding about truth and reconciliation is a drawing of the circle of life, with an orange shirt in the center attaching all pieces of the puzzle together. This represents how every single individual disregarding where you came from, what you look like, and disabilities people may face- matter in this world. As I previously stated, I believe how every single person deserves to be treated equally which is why I chose to draw this specific piece, because I find it so important. What people go through is what makes you, you. I also chose to represent our land by creating clouds, a blue sky, and the prairie grass in the background to represent the importance of land in the Indigenous culture. By utilizing what we know now and the torture these people have faced will only change now if we make a difference. The first step to making a difference is by gaining as much knowledge as we can. I personally am going to make an effort to keep reading articles and watch documentaries of what these people faced because I believe what has happened is not fair. I am privileged beyond words.