Organization seeks funding from council for Truth and Reconciliation Week

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This article was published 08/12/2021 (1739 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Brandon Urban Aboriginal Peoples’ Council is calling on the City of Brandon to support future Truth and Reconciliation Week events through the provision of consistent funding.

BUAPC community co-ordinator Michèle LeTourneau appeared before city council Monday to request $20,000 in funding for the 2022 event.

“We’re just really getting started here in terms of truth and reconciliation in this country,” LeTourneau said. “I’m looking forward to next year.”

Through discussions, it was determined that truth and reconciliation efforts need to continue in the community and become an annual event for the Wheat City, LeTourneau said. She added a part of this is helping craft events throughout the year centred on the subject.

Truth and Reconciliation Week 2022 will run from Sept. 29 to Oct. 4. Based on in-depth analysis and debriefing with those who participated in the event, LeTourneau said, it was determined a concentrated approach to funding will play an essential part in helping the event move forward and become an ongoing staple of the community.

The city is a partner in Truth and Reconciliation Week, and BUAPC wanted to make sure some base funding for two different areas — transportation and a ceremony/performance like Healing by the River — was in place.

BUAPC requested up to $10,000 from the city in support of the performance and ceremony.

The inaugural Truth and Reconciliation Week saw $6,600 put toward Healing by the River. The funding came from money allocated for events that were cancelled due to COVID-19.

“It was valuable to us that the city contributed that, so we wanted to ensure that it continued,” LeTourneau said.

Funding for transportation was also important because not everyone had a way to access the event at the Riverbank Discovery Centre, and there is also potential for parking problems in the future if Truth and Reconciliation Week grows.

BUAPC has requested Brandon Transit explore the possibility of having a shuttle running to and from the Riverbank Discovery Centre at an estimated cost of $10,000. These funds would be a type of in-kind support, she said.

Suggestions for next year’s Truth and Reconciliation Week included in the report to council fell into three types: improvements, fixes and gap-filling items for Truth and Reconciliation Week. These items will be determined by a dedicated committee with oversight and discussion from BUAPC members.

LeTourneau developed an extensive post-event report on Brandon’s inaugural Truth and Reconciliation Week for council.

The 2021 Truth and Reconciliation Week, which ran from Sept. 27 to Oct. 1, included already established events, like Orange Shirt Day and Indigenous Awareness and Education Week.

Orange Shirt Day, on Sept. 30, pre-existed the new Day for Truth and Reconciliation and had been taking place in the city for a number of years. Indigenous Awareness and Education Week was marked with a proclamation by Mayor Rick Chrest in 2019, running from Sept. 30 to Oct. 4, the day of the Sister in Spirit Vigil and Walk.

Attending Brandon’s first Truth and Reconciliation Week was an overwhelming feeling, LeTourneau said.

It was humbling to see the impressive turnout for the five-day event, LeTourneau said, adding there was an incredible number of people who were interested in engaging in Truth and Reconciliation by learning more about how it can be achieved. People who attended the event were focused on how these actions are possible by working together.

She added the sacred fire manned by head firekeeper Tim Bone at the Riverbank Discovery Centre was the heart of the event and space that united people.

“People would come through there and ask questions and offer tobacco. From there, they would go to the other sites at the Riverbank where things were going on, but ultimately, that desire to get to know each other, to get to know the past of this country, to honour survivors, to mourn for the children that never made it home — all of that together was, I think, deeply meaningful to many, many people,” LeTourneau said.

The Healing by the River ceremony and performance alone saw more than 500 people in attendence, whereas the Orange Shirt Day Walk welcomed between 600 to 1,000 people. LeTourneau said these numbers speak to the need to ensure the event becomes an ongoing part of the Brandon community.

Plans are already underway for 2022. Truth and Reconciliation Day will fall on a Friday, and the week of activities in Brandon will begin on a Thursday with the erection of teepees.

“Truth and Reconciliation Week was [a way to bring] Brandonites together in that spirit of right relationships and working together to further relationships,” LeTourneau said.

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