What did you do?
Together, we built a picnic table and painted it bright orange. A local artist put two eagle feathers and the words "Every Child Matters" on the top of the orange table. We put this in our front lawn. Our pastor took a Nishnaabemwin course and worked with the instructor to translate important phrases from English into the local dialect of Ojibwe. We made a large sign to go behind the table that has the United Church's 1986 Apology to Indigenous Peoples, the All Native Circle's response to the apology, some local history of treaties and peoples, and our dream of living in harmony as children of the Holy One. We dedicated our table at our Orange Shirt Day service and blessed it as a community. We each took A Place At The Table postcards to pass out to people to invite them to come to the table, read the sign, and talk about what truth and reconciliation mean.
Why did you do it?
We are not reconciled. Although 10 years have passed since the Truth and Reconciliation Report, and 39 years since the church's apology, most Calls to Action are unfulfilled and racism continues in the church. There is living, and generational, trauma that continues to impact us. There is living, and generational, shame that continues to harm us. Unless we face the truth, unless we mourn together, weep together, and work together, we won't ever find harmony among all our peoples, faiths, and traditions. Manitoulin is a tourist destination, and over the summer thousands visit the island. We hope this table right in the middle of Little Current's downtown will be an inviting place for people to eat lunch. Then, they'll read the signage: "Welcome to Little Current. Gdanmikaagoo Wewebjiwang. There is a place for you at the table. Gdaa-nmadab doopwining. Every child matters. Gchi-piitendaagzi kina binoojiinh."
Media Coverage
- The Manitoulin Expositor, Little Current United Church’s orange picnic table a place to converse, exchange ideas in spirit of truth and reconciliation (p.3)
