Toronto shows leadership in journey to reconciliation

On Nov. 12, the City of Toronto, together with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), proclaimed the year to Nov. 12, 2014 the Year of Truth and Reconciliation.

About 150 people were at City Hall to celebrate the Proclamation that acknowledges the impact of residential schools on Aboriginal peoples and on all Canadians.

City Councillor Mike Layton in his statement to the gathering said, “I’m proud to say that Toronto has the largest Aboriginal population in any city in Ontario… The City values the contributions of the Aboriginal community of Toronto, many of whom are Residential School survivors or family members who have been affected by the legacy of the Residential School system.

“This year-long Proclamation acknowledges the injustices of the Residential School system on Aboriginal people, but I hope that it can go much further than that. While apologies and proclamations are an important part of the healing, they must be followed by action and change.”

Following his remarks, Layton read the Proclamation with former Assembly of First Nations national chief Phil Fontaine acting as Honourary Witness.

Justice Murray Sinclair, chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, addressed the gathering and congratulated the City for recognizing that things must change.

In talking about the work of the TRC, he said it was uncovering the true, full and complete story of residential schools and their legacy and “to show that, in fact, the situation that Aboriginal people face and the space they occupy in this country is very closely connected to the oppressive relationship that has existed in the past.”

The reconciliation dialogue has to occur at many levels, said Justice Sinclair, not only between the Canadian government and Aboriginal communities, but it must occur at the very personal level. It must occur within families, families of survivors, between survivors and communities.

“Reconciliation must also occur within the larger urban environment,” Justice Sinclair said, “because history has shown that often urban development has been founded upon the government supporting municipal initiatives to move Aboriginal people off their territories.”

With the Proclamation and the commitment in place, said Justice Sinclair, it is imperative that the people who govern the City of Toronto ask themselves a key question when making decisions: Is what this government is doing going to improve the relationship between Aboriginal people and non-Aboriginal people?

“That’s the question that must always guide governments in future if they are serious about reconciliation,” he said. He acknowledged that the ongoing dialogue and changes would require effort and accommodation on both sides, the Aboriginal people and the City representatives.

In his remarks, Fontaine said there are so many gestures of reconciliation, but that Toronto’s initiative was particularly important because “Toronto is the fourth largest city in North America and it’s been said that this is the largest reserve in Canada.”

The story to be told on reconciliation is just starting, Fontaine said. It’s going to be a long process,  and will probably not happen in our lifetime, he said.

In an interview following the ceremony, Frances Sanderson, co-chair of the City’s Aboriginal Affairs Committee and executive director of Nishnawbe Homes, said it was her hope that the Proclamation would be supportive to survivors by creating an awareness of Aboriginal people in the city and the legacy of residential schools.

“It will give an opportunity for the City to educate their staff to the importance of the Aboriginal community”, said Sanderson, “and to the importance of...creating a space for Aboriginal people right here at City Hall.”

Councillor Layton, in an interview, said the Proclamation “accomplishes another piece of the healing. We need to acknowledge the wrongdoing and acknowledge the hurt that’s been done in order for us to actually overcome and change the situation for Aboriginal people in Toronto and across this country.” Layton said the City was working on some key policies related to commitments to Aboriginal people, but this did not involve any new funding at this time.