{"id":39048,"date":"2026-10-08T15:09:39","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T19:09:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/?p=39048"},"modified":"2026-10-08T15:09:41","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T19:09:41","slug":"national-day-for-truth-reconciliation-gathering-urges-standing-in-solidarity-in-the-face-of-denialism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/national-day-for-truth-reconciliation-gathering-urges-standing-in-solidarity-in-the-face-of-denialism\/","title":{"rendered":"National Day for Truth & Reconciliation gathering urges standing in solidarity in the face of denialism"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

True restitution would be the ability to bring back \u201cevery single child that was murdered, starved, raped and killed\u201d in Residential Schools, says Traditional Anishinaabe Grandmother Kim Wheatley.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While that is not possible, of course, she says it is important to continue to stand in solidarity with Indigenous communities in the quest for truth and reconciliation \u2013 and in the face of growing denialism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That was the message delivered to more than 150 community members who came out to Aurora Town Square on September 30 to mark National Day for Truth & Reconciliation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The gathering, which was led by Wheatley and elder Pat Floody began with members of the Town of Aurora team presenting the leaders with gifts of tobacco before Wheatley led the community in a thoughtful discussion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI want you to know that we are extending a hand of friendship regardless of the atrocities that have been committed against us and the most vulnerable segment of our population, which is our children,\u201d said Wheatley, who was joined at the gathering by daughter Destiny, who recited two poignant, emotionally-charged poems she had penned. \u201cWe\u2019re not here to poke a finger of blame. We\u2019re not here to have you feeling guilty. We\u2019re not here to hurt you, even though we have been hurt \u2013 that is not our way. I hope you continue to stand in solidarity with us. I hope you have time to reflect, because time is the most precious gift you give to another.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Wheatley said they were not there to \u201cpoke a finger of blame,\u201d she did not shy away from calling out what she underscored were ways Canada was not living up to its commitment to follow the path of Truth & Reconciliation, particularly in addressing the 94 Calls to Action that were made in the National Commission for Truth and Reconciliation\u2019s final report more than a decade ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some progress has been made in the Federal government addressing some of the 94 Calls, but the ones they have tackled, she suggested, were some of the lower-hanging fruit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen we think about what has happened, the word \u2018cultural genocide \u2018has been used a lot, and we’re currently, 11 years in, experiencing a huge uprising of denialism. There are people across this country saying, \u2018It didn’t happen. Where are the bones?\u2019 They’re asking us where the bones are. We’re asking the same question. The churches did not tell us where they buried our babies. There are mass burials yet to be discovered. A very dehumanizing, racist request of us,\u201d she said, noting a recent incident in British Columbia which saw a group dressed all in white unfurl a banner reading \u201cWhere are the bones?\u201d in a First Nations community has left her feeling \u201cunsafe in this country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI’m wondering with our governments in this country, why aren\u2019t they standing up and demanding justice for us? We’ve been asking for justice always. We have done everything we can to say it is unjust. We call on you to make it just,\u201d she said. \u201cIf you haven’t read the TRC report, it’s free. It is a roadmap on how not to repeat the egregious behaviours of the past. It is a roadmap for safety, for those that are still here and those that will come after us. It is a roadmap that you can self-adjust. You don’t need us to come and break it down for you. You have 94 options to align yourself with. Just pick one. Just pick one \u2013 and champion that. And then maybe, if you’re ready, you can expand that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut if you haven’t read the report, you are not walking towards the road of reconciliation and a relationship with us. This is not an Indigenous problem. We didn’t ask to be treated like this. We didn’t voluntarily give up our children. We didn’t want our language and our culture destroyed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When people are asked to \u201cstand in allyship\u201d with Indigenous and First Nations communities, Wheatley said they are not being asked to speak for others; rather, they are being asked to \u201ccreate space for us to step forward and share our truth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you put that into a percentage point, 15% of the 94 calls to action in 11 years have been addressed. In school, if you get 15% on a test, you fail. So, guess what, Canada? You fail,\u201d said Wheatley. \u201cAnd they took all the low-hanging fruit. They didn’t do the big, hard things, like give us water. Water’s life. They did the easy stuff, declaring a date. It’s not even a federal holiday. Some people get it off, some people don’t, but all the federal employees get it off. And are they here? Are they celebrating with us? Some are\u2026. All Canadians should have that day off. All Canadians should step forward and show us they do care. All Canadians have a responsibility to ignite that flame of hope. Everybody here cares. But what about all the people who aren’t here? And why aren’t they here? And why don’t they care? Do they need a conversation from you? Do they need maybe a little bit of hand-holding to get down the path of understanding and experience truth? Maybe. That’s something you can all do: Hold people accountable. When you see a wrong, speak up and speak out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are sovereign in this country. You are sovereign Canadian citizens, and we are sovereign Indigenous citizens. We have a nation-to-nation agreement with all of you. That’s what makes you a treaty partner. A treaty partner has two sides. Right now, it’s not in balance and harmony. Let’s make it so. Let’s choose that. Your greatest power is free will\u2026. Use your power. You may not get an award, you may not get any recognition, you may get some pushback, people might start to leave you because they\u2019re like, \u2018They\u2019re always harping on this Native stuff,\u2019 but we need you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI hope that what you heard here today gives you the courage, the momentum, and the belief to move forward, to step into the truth, whole and complete, to continue to learn and educate yourself. When you leave here today, I want you to leave better than when you came, but I want you to share with somebody who wasn’t here. Find somebody. Talk to somebody about this. Stretch the message. Let it ripple out with your passion, your belief, your courage, and your truth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Brock Weir
Editor
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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True restitution would be the ability to bring back \u201cevery single child that was murdered, starved, raped and killed\u201d in Residential Schools, says Traditional Anishinaabe Grandmother Kim Wheatley. While that is not possible, of course, she says it is important to continue to stand in solidarity with Indigenous communities in the quest for truth and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":39049,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4,3,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39048","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general_news","category-headline_news","category-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3D2k4-a9O","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-10-15 17:35:10","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/2026-10-08-02.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39048","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39048"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39048\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39050,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39048\/revisions\/39050"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39049"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39048"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39048"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39048"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}