A survivor of residential schools in Manitoba has been invited to Sweden to speak at its fact-finding committee, as the country is going through its own reconciliation process.
Geraldine (Gramma) Shingoose, who attended Muscowequan Residential School in Saskatchewan from 1962 to 1971, was invited to Sweden earlier this month to speak at that country’s fact-finding commission, which first announced in 2019 that it would denounce injustices committed against the Sami by other peoples. The Swedish State.
Shingoose asked him to describe his experience at residential school and Canada’s adventure towards reality and reconciliation.
“They call it the fact-finding commission,” Shingoose told CBC. “They omitted ‘reconciliation’ and I congratulated them for that, because we have reconciliation until this fact is shared. “
The Sami now live in Sápmi, which stretches from northern Norway through Sweden and Finland to Russia. They once faced oppression of their culture, in addition to the banning of their mother tongue.
“What is also unhappy is that they took their sacred objects and burned their drums. . . I may feel that connection to the other Sami people when I heard this story,” Shingoose said.
“Here in Canada, we were not allowed to participate in our indigenous ceremonies and our sacred objects were stolen and taken. “
In 1977, the Riksdag, the Swedish parliament, identified the Sami as an indigenous people in Sweden.
Today, the Sami most commonly live on fashionable lifestyles, but they still take care of reindeer, and some still wear their classic brightly colored national costume.
Shingoose said she told the commission how the abuse she suffered at the residential school affected her mentally, physically and spiritually. He also described how in Canada they were created to “take the Indian out of the child, out of me. “
“They wanted to understand this story,” he said. They took my tongue off. I was taken from my family. They were very open to listening to my feedback, and very open to hearing my experience and learning from my experience. “
He also called for the Swedish commission to be led by indigenous commissioners, as was the case with Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which tested the history and legacy of the Indian residential school formula in Canada and presented its final report in 2015.
Dr. Kim Anderson, Chair of Research Canada on Indigenous Relations, said not mentioning “reconciliation” in the Swedish facts’ call was a smart position to start.
“Here, sometimes, other people think we’re jumping right into reconciliation without literally addressing the fact or without other people knowing,” said Anderson, an associate professor at the University of Guelph.
“Ideally, from there the reconciliation process can begin. “
The percentage of Sami people living with other Indigenous people in Canada because of their history of oppression and marginalization, as well as dispossession of land and culture, Anderson said.
Last summer, he brought an organization of indigenous and non-indigenous scholars to a box school in Sweden last summer to interact with the Sami people.
It was a profound party for indigenous students, who were able to recognize parts of themselves on the other side of the ocean, Anderson told CBC.
“We may perceive what the other is saying,” he said. “We already speak each other’s language, and that’s the language of indigenous peoples and similar reports that we have. “
For the non-Indigenous students, it was an opportunity to reflect on their own role in reconciliation in Canada, as they were able to observe the procedure from another perspective.
The boxing school was ultimately an exchange of wisdom to help everyone involved move forward, Anderson said.
“I think it’s wonderful that they can have those conversations so we can share our knowledge. “
Shingoose hopes that sharing his story will eventually help fellow Sami and Sweden on their path to reconciliation.
He brought gifts, a Every Child Matters flag and a Métis belt.
“The mixed-race belt looks a lot like the colors they wear. They were surprised with the gift,” he said, adding that he won gifts like dried reindeer, which reminded him of smoked elk meat from his home.
The elderly Anishinaabe says she learned fika during her time in Sweden, a tradition in which other people take a break to eat, drink and think several times a day.
Shingoose marked the beginning of a special relationship, she says, and hopes the Swedish fact-finding commission will continue to succeed with indigenous peoples like her in Canada.
“I just want you to know that if you want guidance, here in Canada we will. “
Özten Shebahkeget is an online journalist for CBC Manitoba. A member of Northwest Angle 33 First Nation, he was born and raised in central Winnipeg. He recently finished the MFA program at the University of Saskatchewan, where he wrote a novel in speculative verse. in the Manitoba Legislative Building. You can succeed in it in ozten. shebahkeget@cbc. ca.
With Joanne Roberts and The Associated Press
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