Brantford, Ontario, Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Let me begin by acknowledging that this gathering is taking place on the traditional lands of the Six Nations.

Twenty years ago, when proclaiming National Aboriginal Day in a ceremony at Rideau Hall, my predecessor Roméo LeBlanc spoke of the great contributions first peoples have made to this country.

It’s a theme I want to continue here today in Brantford on this National Aboriginal Day.  

Brantford, of course, takes its name from Chief Joseph Brant, the 18th century Mohawk leader who played such a key role in the military and political affairs of the country that would become Canada.

Chief Brant’s story is an example of something we have too often failed to acknowledge in this country: the fact that Canada as we know it exists thanks to the contributions of first peoples.

But historically, we have more than failed to acknowledge this fact.

We have actively tried to ignore, suppress and erase the memory of those contributions, along with the diverse and vibrant indigenous cultures that gave rise to them. 

Indeed, that was one of the reasons why this building, the former Mohawk Institute Indian Residential School, was built.

My wife, Sharon, and I have the solemn responsibility of serving as honorary witnesses to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and I’d like to share with you an excerpt from the Commission’s final report.

It’s from a section detailing corporal punishment at residential schools, and it mentions this very building we’re standing in.

It is painful, but important, reading.

I quote:

“Some schools had a specific room set aside to serve as a ‘punishment room’,” the paragraph begins.

“After a 1907 inspection of the Mohawk institute in Brantford, the Ontario inspector for Indian agencies, J.G. Ramsden, reported, ‘I cannot say that I was favourably impressed with the sight of two prison cells in the boys play house. I was informed, however, that these were for pupils who ran away from the institution, confinement being for a week at a time when pupils returned.’”

It continues:

“In 1914, a father successfully sued the Mohawk Institute principal for locking his daughter in a cell for three days on what was described as a ‘water diet’.”

End quote.

Let’s never allow ourselves to forget about those children who were boarded here, who tried to run away, who were inhumanely punished.

As a lifelong educator, I’m deeply disturbed by the residential school system’s betrayal of the most fundamental principles of learning.

Education should never be about the narrow exclusion of cultures or worldviews.

Rather, learning must be about inclusiveness, discovery of the self, of others, and of the world around us.

The approach should be one of diversity, respect and celebration of difference.

Here at the Woodland Cultural Centre, you’re helping to preserve and promote First Nations culture and heritage, and to tell the story of Canada in all of its great complexity.

On behalf of all Canadians, I thank and commend you for that.

National Aboriginal Day likewise presents us with an opportunity to continue to tell the complete story of Canada.

Today, we celebrate first peoples and cultures and work towards healing the wounds of the past and creating a better future for all.

I believe diversity is one of this country’s greatest strengths, and our multiculturalism echoes the diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis cultures of this land.

I encourage all Canadians to learn more about first peoples and cultures today and throughout the year.

And let us all—Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal alike—seek new ways to work together in partnership and co-operation.

Happy National Aboriginal Day, Canada!