There is an old idiom that says you shouldn’t ‘cry over spilt milk,’ meaning you can’t change what already has happened.
And while that is true it doesn’t mean we should just dismiss what has happened, especially if it is distasteful.
Take in part the ongoing issues in Canada’s First Nations communities.
Poverty, crime, drug addiction, lack of housing, lack of clean drinking water and a myriad of other problems plague many of our First Nations’ peoples and communities.
Recently, the Barrhead Leader received a letter, which you can read on page 9A, it states that a large part of the issues in Canada’s First Nations communities’ are a direct result of a codependent relationship between them and the government and in order to move forward basically both sides must effectively wipe the slate clean.
Easier said than done even if anyone would want to. We disagree.
The damage that has been done to Canada’s First Nation people is immeasurable — from broken promises, fraud and coercion involved in much of the treaty process, to the unspeakable acts committed in residential schools, to what the Truth and Reconciliation Committee, as the attempted genocide both physical and cultural of First Nations peoples, it is surprising aboriginal communities were able to survive at all.
This abuse is compounded further throughout successive generations, as the original victims pass on their pain to their offspring.
While we don’t necessarily want to discuss the Indian Act, treaties, or whether aboriginals living on reserve lands should be able to own property, something that at least one First Nation in B.C. allows, we do want to discuss the concept, as the letter’s author says, since there is little the nation can do in atoning for our past transgressions against Indigenous peoples, to just wipe the slate clean and start fresh.
This is too easy. As any health professional will tell you, to cure an illness, one must first understand the cause and quite frankly most Canadians, especially non-aboriginals have no real understanding of what First Nations peoples have endured or are currently going through as a result. How can we? But still that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try. The Truth and Commission was a good start. Not only did it allow Indigenous and Métis people to start the healing process, but it also gave others a small glimpse into their pain.
In September, the Barrhead Leader had the privilege to hear Bee Calliou Schadeck, a member of the Michel First Nation, during a Pembina Hills Public Schools’ (PHPS) P.D. day, tell part of her story.
The good news is thanks to the efforts of people like Calliou Schadeck more people are gaining a small understanding of the true issues and when they do perhaps everyone together can make a dent in the issues that plague our First Nations.
