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HAPPY CANADA DAY!!

Rat Luv

By Rat Luv,
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sirhc DeSantis

sirhc DeSantis

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Going to add felicitations Canada. Had up to my leaving possibly the best couple of years imaginable. Most of the other 15 were also - really rather good. The end is known to people that matter, so not going to share with you herberts. And yes, well aware of the ongoing cloud. Having known a fair few from Kanesatake since ´94 there are issues.

Also have met Trudeau pere et fils.

Best thing ever that the term 'ex-pat' is a great way to avoid people.

Happy Birthday you Maple Leaf et  F - du - L :)

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Scylla Rhiadra

Scylla Rhiadra

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Posted (edited)

Thanks Luv, this is sweet.

For a great many of us in Canada, this is a rather sombre and muted Canada Day. Many of us are in shock over the "discovery" over the past few months (as a nation, we actually always kind of knew they were there) of three sites of shallow unmarked graves of First Nations schoolchildren who died of abuse and neglect in "residential schools" run, mostly, by the Catholic church on behalf of the Canadian government. Over the course of about a century, young indigenous children were forcibly removed from their families, and brought up -- if that's the right word for the combination of abuse and indoctrination they suffered -- in these institutions as part of a deliberate and entirely open policy of genocidal cultural eradication.

In the words of Sir John A. MacDonald, Canada's first Prime Minister, in 1879:

Quote

When the school is on the reserve, the child lives with its parents, who are savages, and though he may learn to read and write, his habits and training mode of thought are Indian. He is simply a savage who can read and write. It has been strongly impressed upon myself, as head of the Department, that Indian children should be withdrawn as much as possible from the parental influence, and the only way to do that would be to put them in central training industrial schools where they will acquire the habits and modes of thought of white men.

About 4,100 young First Nations children from this period are unaccounted for. They are the occupants of the shallow unmarked graves now being uncovered. A great many more of these will be uncovered: governments at all levels are allocating money to searches for them.

So many dead children.

The last residential school closed 25 years ago. This isn't ancient history.

Canada is in many ways a wonderful nation. I count myself extremely fortunate to have been born here, and to live here. But it is also a nation built on broken promises, lies, and quiet violence. Residential schools are just the most horrifying instance of it -- starvation was routinely used in the west by the North West Mounted Police as a means of forcing First Nations groups to comply with the government's wishes.

Canada is a nation build on genocide. I don't know what else to call the deliberate policy of annihilating the culture of an entire people.

The one positive is that Canadians, on the whole, are beginning to come to terms with this, and recognizing the fact that our indigenous peoples still suffer under our system -- from a lack of safe drinking water, from rates of poverty and disease and suicide and police violence that far exceed the national average.

Many cities and communities have literally cancelled Canada Day this year, and instead urged that the day be used for reflection and mourning. This morning my partner and I walked to a nearby baseball diamond to add orange ribbons -- orange ribbons on playgrounds and baseball diamonds have become a symbol of mourning for the lost children -- to the hundreds that already festooned the fencing there. The flags there -- Canadian, Ontario, and Toronto -- are being kept at half mast by the city for 4,100 days, in memory of each child.

1650523590_Baseball-Diamond-Blank.thumb.png.d9b9dfe1cc0d1ad49c8825a5fde66dc6.png

So, sincerely, thank you.

But I'm not much in the mood for "celebrating" Canada right now.

Edited by Scylla Rhiadra
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BJoyful

BJoyful

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@Scylla Rhiadra hard to even think of such horrors committed in our beautiful country.  How did our forefathers allow this to happen.  Indeed my day is now also very sombre 😞.  I'm so disappointed to even imagine that these atrocities occurred and our forefathers managed to commit them and hide them.  I remember indigenous children as my primary school mates.  Many times after winter holidays some did not return in January and if we asked the teachers where they went, they often didn't know.  Sometimes their Guardian(s) would come and collect their belongings the teacher cleaned out of their desk.  It was very sad to see empty spaces where their art or class decorations had been.  My Grade 3 teacher suggested we could send them a package of messages as part of our Language arts and one girl named Alvina sent back a drawing of her family and she had glued ***** willow branchlets on it to represent trees with fluffy snow in the background.  ***** willows always remind me of that and how gratifying it was to think of her with her big family all around her.  I hope she had a very happy life. 🍁💔

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Luna Bliss

Luna Bliss

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Scylla Rhiadra said:

the "discovery" over the past few months

The fact that Canada is acknowledging the problem makes me like Canada all the more  :)   There's hope for a true celebration in the future, born of reality without any glossing over...

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Kimmi Zehetbauer

Kimmi Zehetbauer

Posted
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1 hour ago, Scylla Rhiadra said:

Thanks Luv, this is sweet.

For a great many of us in Canada, this is a rather sombre and muted Canada Day. Many of us are in shock over the "discovery" over the past few months (as a nation, we actually always kind of knew they were there) of three sites of shallow unmarked graves of First Nations schoolchildren who died of abuse and neglect in "residential schools" run, mostly, by the Catholic church on behalf of the Canadian government. Over the course of about a century, young indigenous children were forcibly removed from their families, and brought up -- if that's the right word for the combination of abuse and indoctrination they suffered -- in these institutions as part of a deliberate and entirely open policy of genocidal cultural eradication.

In the words of Sir John A. MacDonald, Canada's first Prime Minister, in 1879:

About 4,100 young First Nations children from this period are unaccounted for. They are the occupants of the shallow unmarked graves now being uncovered. A great many more of these will be uncovered: governments at all levels are allocating money to searches for them.

So many dead children.

The last residential school closed 25 years ago. This isn't ancient history.

Canada is in many ways a wonderful nation. I count myself extremely fortunate to have been born here, and to live here. But it is also a nation built on broken promises, lies, and quiet violence. Residential schools are just the most horrifying instance of it -- starvation was routinely used in the west by the North West Mounted Police as a means of forcing First Nations groups to comply with the government's wishes.

Canada is a nation build on genocide. I don't know what else to call the deliberate policy of annihilating the culture of an entire people.

The one positive is that Canadians, on the whole, are beginning to come to terms with this, and recognizing the fact that our indigenous peoples still suffer under our system -- from a lack of safe drinking water, from rates of poverty and disease and suicide and police violence that far exceed the national average.

Many cities and communities have literally cancelled Canada Day this year, and instead urged that the day be used for reflection and mourning. This morning my partner and I walked to a nearby baseball diamond to add orange ribbons -- orange ribbons on playgrounds and baseball diamonds have become a symbol of mourning for the lost children -- to the hundreds that already festooned the fencing there. The flags there -- Canadian, Ontario, and Toronto -- are being kept at half mast by the city for 4,100 days, in memory of each child.

1650523590_Baseball-Diamond-Blank.thumb.png.d9b9dfe1cc0d1ad49c8825a5fde66dc6.png

So, sincerely, thank you.

But I'm not much in the mood for "celebrating" Canada right now.

This year we didn't decorate our RL bar for Canada Day due to that controversy. Couple of staff told history of residential schools and how their grand parents were not treated right. We still have a flag on one of the walls, but that has been hanging there since before dinosaurs came to earth.

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BJoyful

BJoyful

Posted
Posted
28 minutes ago, Garnet Psaltery said:

All good wishes, Canadians, for your anniversary.  *waves to RL cousins across the pond*

Waves back and starts making Maple Syrup and Creamed Canadian Honey thank- you packages for all the peace, love and understanding ♥

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