Bodies should be dealt with in whatever way First Nations think best

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/06/2021 (1927 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Rather than dictate to First Nations people what should be done with the bodies buried at residential school sites throughout Canada, now’s the time to listen to them.

This should be 100 per cent in the hands of First Nations leadership, who need to be provided whatever support is required to follow through on whatever decision they make.

An even cursory view of our nation’s past and present shows the impact imposing colonial ideals and beliefs has on Indigenous people.

You don’t need to be a statistician to know Indigenous people are disproportionately affected by all manner of negative outcomes they didn’t face prior to colonization, much of which is the product of colonizers either not listening to, or caring, what Indigenous people had to say.

There have already been a few recommendations as to what should become of the bodies buried at and around the Brandon Residential School site.

With approximately 50 bodies buried at what is now the privately held Turtle Crossing Campground, Jennifer Moore Rattray suggested the City of Brandon should purchase the property.

Her great aunt and uncle, Lydia Moore and David Moar, are buried in unmarked graves at the site.

“The City of Brandon made a mistake in 2001 when it sold a cemetery,” said Rattray, who is also the chief operating officer of the Southern Chiefs Organization.

“What really needs to happen is the City of Brandon needs to undo what it did. It needs to correct a wrong and it needs to purchase back the piece of land that is currently the cemetery.

“That at least will then allow access for families who want to pay their respects and until such time as families determine what would be appropriate at that site.”

A land development project is slated for the site, though owner Mark Kovatch clarified last week that those interred will be handled in whatever manner their respective First Nations community determines best.

Those who attended the Brandon Residential School, also for a time known as the Brandon Industrial Institute, were from various First Nations communities.

“We have to either leave them where they are and fence them in and leave a shrine around them, or move them up with the other kids in the graveyard up on the hill,” he said.

Although it’s been long recognized there are bodies on site, an ongoing effort to identify bodies and deal with them in a respectful manner has faced delays as a result of the pandemic.

However, with renewed international attention from the media, Sioux Valley Dakota Nation Coun. Evelyn Pratt said she hopes to see these efforts receive additional funding, shift into a higher gear and get completed as soon as possible.

Whether it’s having the affected land change hands, the bodies moved to a central cemetery with marked graves or the bodies moved to their respective home community, it shouldn’t matter what the landowners, municipality, provincial or federal government want to happen.

Affected First Nations people — as it stands, led by Sioux Valley Dakota Nation — need to remain firmly in the driver’s seat, supported by whoever needs to support them.

As soon as someone else grabs the steering wheel it’ll become clear past mistakes are being repeated and the seemingly endless cycle has been furthered.