It’s a long road to reconciliation – Terrace Standard

Dec 2, 2015

WITH THE Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s findings on the detrimental impact of residential schools only months behind us, Prime Minister Trudeau will undoubtedly face a trial cultivating new relations with Canadian First Nations.

In response to these challenges Trudeau has promised to meet with indigenous leaders before year’s end and hold an inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women. While I commend our new Prime Minister for his efforts to recognize First Nations’ issues, I’m concerned that they are not aimed at remedying the pervasive culture of tokenism and narrow representation that saturates Canada’s conversation on aboriginal issues.

First things first. The fleeting acknowledgement of being on unceded First Nations’ territory or noting the legacy of residential schools is not enough to be a solution to the systematic marginalization of indigenous peoples. For that reason, I have serious concerns about the state of equality, multiculturalism, and ultimately reconciliation in Canada. Even the Truth and Reconciliation Commission is not beyond the realm of my concern.