People have a desire to be a part of reconciliation says Mushquash

March 18, 2016
Denise Baxter, whose great-grandparents moved to Pays Plat to avoid residential school, spoke about how people across the province are now talking about reconciliation during the March 7 Social Justice Roundtable discussion on Reconciliation as Pathway for Meaningful Relationships with Indigenous Peoples.
Denise Baxter, whose great-grandparents moved to Pays Plat to avoid residential school, spoke about how people across the province are now talking about reconciliation during the March 7 Social Justice Roundtable discussion on Reconciliation as Pathway for Meaningful Relationships with Indigenous Peoples.

By Rick Garrick

Pays Plat’s Christopher Mushquash was impressed with the turnout for a recent Social Justice Roundtable discussion on Reconciliation as Pathway for Meaningful Relationships with Indigenous Peoples.

“The mix of different perspectives and experiences and what those brought to bear with respect to reconciliation as pathways to meaningful relationships was very valuable to the community,” Mushquash says. “The attendance at the event was I thought exceptional. It seemed to be a very interested and big turnout and the venue was a nice setting for it as well.”

The reconciliation discussion was one of two held at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery on March 7. The other discussion was on: Understanding Refugees in Crisis: Community and Citizenship.

“The process that reconciliation requires is going to be one that has to be carefully thought out,” Mushquash says. “And it’s going to be different depending upon the people involved and sort of the focus of the reconciliation. There are a lot of perspectives and there is a lot of need for open and respectful dialogue amongst many groups, including non-Indigenous peoples.”

Mushquash notes that one of the questions from the audience was: “How can I be of help, how can I engage in this given that I am not necessarily as involved as the other people on the panel.” He says the question had a lot of value.

“It shows that there is a desire by people to engage and to be a part of reconciliation of relationship with Indigenous peoples,” Mushquash says.

Mushquash wants to see more reconciliation discussions in the future.

“As we proceed in this process, which by the way is very early, the more conversation and the more open and honest and focused conversation the better,” Mushquash says. “It is part of our collective history and it is an important social determinant of health. In order to continue on a pathway to wellness, we have to be honest about those things and we have to engage people who are curious and who may not know.”

The participants in the reconciliation discussion were: Sam Achneepineskum, an Elder from Marten Falls; Lorena Fontaine, an assistant professor at University of Winnipeg; Ry Moran, director of the National Research Centre for Truth and Reconciliation; Rob Robson, an associate professor at Lakehead University; and Denise Baxter, a student achievement officer with the Ministry of Education whose great-grandparents moved from the Attawapiskat River to Pays Plat to avoid sending their children to residential school.

“I’m working with people all over this province and people are talking about this,” Baxter says. “And for 22 years perhaps, prior to that it seemed like I was the only one talking about this. And people weren’t always wanting to engage in that conversation. And I would get so many people saying that: ‘I don’t get it, you’re not like that.’ But I’m thinking: ‘Oh, but I am.’ I just learned to navigate well.”

The discussion roundtables were sponsored by Lakehead University’s Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Faculty of Education, Bora Laskin Faculty of Law, Office of Aboriginal Initiatives, departments of Anthropology, English, History, Indigenous Learning, Philosophy, Political Science, Sociology and Women’s Studies; Thunder Bay Multicultural Association; and Diversity Thunder Bay.