Thanks so much for coming by for this story, but the revision of Half-Breed to Metis was published in error on April 1st. It is scheduled for publication on April 18th.
Please come back then to read it, and in the meantime I hope you’ll enjoy my effort at short fiction that was published today called, “The Mirror”.
Warmest regards,
RL
Andrea Hotomanie, Principal, Glenda Speight, Constable Erin McAvoy
As Remembrance Day approaches, I am reminded of how profoundly I was moved by the Remembrance Day assembly at my son’s school last year. I found it particularly poignant for two reasons.
What I found initially striking was that the ceremony was presided over by all women, something I’d never seen before. This brigade of impressive feminine force were school Principal, Glenda Speight, RCMP Constable Erin McAvoy in Red Serge, and Andrea Hotomanie, the district Aboriginal Support Worker.
Andrea Hotomanie was the second reason of note. She stood up in recognition of the Indigenous peoples who serve and have served in the Canadian military. She wore a magnificent button blanket, borne of the Northwest Coastal tribes, around her shoulders. It was the first time I had seen this kind of Indigenous inclusion at any school remembrance assembly and it brought me to tears.
It moved me so deeply because it was the first time I felt my grandfather and uncles included in these remembrances in a way that they hadn’t before. It brought them, Cree warriors from northern Alberta, faded from history for so many decades, up to the front too. I felt they were being honored for the first time as servicemen and not as guests held only in my mind, while all the other heroes were noted up on the screens and in the speeches. Between Andrea’s presence and my son nearby, this acknowledgement brought it all fully home to my heart.
All those many years ago, there was never any doubt that at least three of my uncles would join the military from the time that, as young boys, they stared admiringly at the one photo of my grandfather in his uniform until they were all signed up and fitted into their own.
Along with pride of their homeland and reverence for the uniform, there was another underlying and stirring reason to join up. Uncle Philip finally expressed it after I asked him why he always declared that his favorite job was being in the Canadian forces. He said, “Respect”. While he wore that Canadian uniform, it was the first time in his life that he was treated with honest to God respect, and it didn’t matter where he was in the world. It was his greatest time of honor and pride. I can’t say so for my grandfather or the other uncles, but I suspect they felt much the same.
Their presence at the Remembrance Day assembly that day was palpable to me, and I have no doubt that they were all there in full uniform.
There is a lot of history about Indigenous participation in the military and the details are available more than ever. I would encourage anyone to look up that history sometime for some very interesting and enlightening reading.
For now, I would just like to say thank you to my family for their courage. We will always be proud. We will always remember.
In remembrance of:
John Gray-WW1, Frank Gray-WW2, Phil Gray-Korea, Larry Gray-CDN post Quebec
RL
Our Home and Native Braves was published October 30, 2013 on the Reader’s Digest community website: http://www.readersdigest.ca/our-canada/community-blog/our-home-and-native-braves
Recommended link for Native military history:
A Commemorative History of Aboriginal People in the Canadian Military:
http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/pub/boo-bro/abo-aut/index-eng.asp
Unfortunately I was hacked and a post was put up on my page without my involvement today. Although I am in support of the knowledge contained in the report that was posted, I will not support the tactics used to place it on my page.
I am a strong supporter of Indigenous issues and I speak out regularly on various platforms often and proudly, but I’m sorry that someone felt that placing their view, even if well-intentioned, without my permission would be a viable method. I will ask for help if I have trouble finding my own words.
I appreciate someone else wanting help in spreading the word about the incredibly uninformed and racist views of Conservative candidates, but ask for my assistance, do not impose your will on me, the way Canadian policies were imposed on our ancestors.
I am aware of these candidates, I speak out about them, I encourage people to seek out the backgrounds of who they may be voting for, but most of all, please use the hard-earned right to do so.
RL
The REDress project, created by Anishnaabe/Finnish artist Jaime Black, highlights the issue of the missing & murdered Indigenous women in Canada.
October 4th is a day to honor the lives of over 4,000 Indigenous women tragically taken from their loved ones. It is also a day meant to raise awareness about the ongoing violence, at significantly higher rates toward Indigenous women and girls than any other demographic in Canada.
This effort was started by the Sisters In Spirit Vigil (SIS) organization and the Native Women’s Resource Centre in Toronto nine years ago, and includes support services for the family members of the missing and murdered women (#MMIW).
The group began in answer to the lack of resources through any government services and the continuing lack of public response on any meaningful scale.
Current Prime Minister, Stephen Harper outraged many when he said in an interview on the CBC last December, that looking into this issue, particularly with a national inquiry was “not high on his government’s radar”. To date, despite a later outright denial of what he said in that recorded video, his government has continued to do nothing about the issue.
In response, artist Jaime Black chose to highlight the issue with her project designed to represent the women with red dresses in a photo display that is being shown in various galleries across the country. In various interviews she said she would like people to hang their own red dresses wherever in their community or wear one on October 4th in solidarity for the women and their families.
The public can also participate in the honoring by attending various candlelight vigils in various cities and/or with a virtual candle online project: http://www.october4th.ca/
RL
Please see Jaime’s full story at http://www.redressproject.org
For more information about the Sisters in Spirit group, see: https://www.canadahelps.org/en/giving-life/community-happenings/sisters-in-spirit-honouring-the-lives-of-missing-and-murdered-indigenous-women/
Two years of dedication to informing, amusing, irritating, or boring! I know how to perform to expectation. At least, I think so, but considering this is the day of green beer again, I won’t guarantee anything through a lens of verdant bubbles.
For 24 months as of today, I have loved meeting new you’s and the pals who’ve stuck around long enough for me to able to call them friend. I am so pleased, honored, and humbled by that; you are the quality of life. You have no idea how you’ve shaped my world, but you have and for the better. Thank you for everything you’ve shared in your own amazing words of wisdom, your creativity, and most definitely your humor.
I’ve also used this past year to write more from time to time about my Indigenous ancestry and the issues that surround it. Yesterday, I came across a story I had no idea about and I doubt many do, but it couldn’t have made a more perfectly timed appearance in my newsfeed. It is about a March 1847 effort by the Choctaw people in Scullyville, Oklahoma, who gathered funds and provisions to help the Irish during their great famine.
This effort was a mere 17 years after the Choctow were among those made to walk the Trail of Tears to great desperation and decimation themselves. This year an Irish town will erect a pretty poignantly designed sculpture in gratitude to those Choctow. It’s quite a story and you can read about it here at Irish Central (March 6): Irish town builds memorial to thank Native Americans who helped during Famine
Memorial sculpture of eagle feathers in Cork, Ireland in thanks to the Choctaw Nation
Happy Green, Happy St. Paddy’s Day, and Happy 2 Awesome Years with Y’all!
RL
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