The City of Delta is hosting two blanket exercises this weekend while Tsawwassen First Nation is inviting area residents to take part in a walk to honour National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
According to a city press release, a blanket exercise is an interactive and experiential teaching tool that explores the historic and contemporary relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples.
Participants step onto blankets representing land and into the role of First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples as facilitators playing the roles of a European “settler” and narrator walk the group through a script telling the story of the first contact between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. There will be separate scripts for adults and for youth.
“As the script progresses, blankets are folded and made smaller, representing the results of the loss of land by treaty and newly legislated reserves. People are asked to step off their blankets, symbolizing disease, war and extinction. Blankets are removed or moved to other areas, showing the way land was taken and peoples relocated,” the release states.
“The exercise concludes with participants discussing the experience in a healing circle.”
Blanket exercises will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (Saturday, Sept. 30) at Harris Barn in Ladner (4140 Arthur Dr.) , and on Monday, Oct. 2 at the North Delta Recreation Centre (11415 84th Ave.).
There is no fee to attend, however pre-registration at cityofdelta.perfectmind.com is required as space is limited to 40 people per exercise. Participants are advised that they will be required to remove their shoes before stepping onto the blankets, so should consider wearing socks or other foot coverings if they are uncomfortable going barefoot.
Meanwhile, Tsawwassen First Nation is inviting the public to take part in a Walk for Truth and Reconciliation on Sept. 30.
Everyone is welcome to join in the event, which runs from 9:45 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the TFN Recreation Centre (1929 Tsawwassen Dr.). The walk will proceed rain or shine so be sure to dress accordingly, and participants are encouraged to bring their drums, rattles and/or clappers in addition to their powerful, strong voices.
There’s limited parking available at the rec centre, so participants are asked to either use public transit or walk to the event. For those arriving by car, it’s recommended to park at Tsawwassen Mills and walk to the centre along Blue Heron Way.
RELATED: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Surrey events
Saturday, Sept. 30 marks the third annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, a day that aims to provide Canadians with the opportunity to recognize and observe the tragic history and ongoing legacy of residential schools.
It’s also Orange Shirt Day, which was inspired by the story of Phyllis Webstad. In 1973, when she was six years old, Webstad was sent to St. Joseph’s Mission Residential School outside Williams Lake. On her first day, she wore an orange shirt that was a gift from her grandmother before school staff took it from her.
In April 2013, Webstad had been mulling over ideas for a talk she was to give at St. Joseph’s when she remembered the orange shirt. The tale soon went viral, and in the ensuing decade she popularized orange shirts as a symbol of reconciliation in Canada, inspired Orange Shirt Day or National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and creating the slogan “Every Child Matters.”
Among other events taking place across the Lower Mainland in recognition of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and, by extension, Orange Shirt Day, is a Skookum Surrey event on Friday, Sept. 29 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. in Holland Park (13428 Old Yale Rd.).
Hosted by the Surrey Urban Indigenous leadership committee, this year’s event will feature drumming, story sharing, tea bannock, and a time to gather and reflect as a community to honour survivors and children who did not make it home. Attendees are encouraged to wear an orange shirt.
Also, on Thursday, Oct. 5 from 6 to 8 p.m., join Surrey Local Immigration Partnership at Museum of Surrey for “Stories from the Land,” an opportunity to share a meal and hear Indigenous stories from south of the Fraser River.
— with files from Anna Burns