Looking back on Canada Day through the voices of Muskoka’s Indigenous residents

Canada Day can mean different things to different people. For three Indigenous residents from Muskoka, the day is an opportunity to appreciate the beauty of the land and the country they call home while reflecting on the relationship between Indigenous...

Canada Day can mean different things to different people. For three Indigenous residents from Muskoka, the day is an opportunity to appreciate the beauty of the land and the country they call home while reflecting on the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples, the legacy of the past and the work that remains toward reconciliation. Their perspectives, shared in their own words, offer a look back on Canada Day through Indigenous voices.

Joyce Jonathan Crone, president and founder of Huntsville’s Hope Arises Project Inc. has participated in Huntsville’s Canada Day opening ceremony, conducting a community smudge after a land acknowledgment. “I’m proud of my culture, I’m proud of being an Indigenous woman in my community of Huntsville,” said Crone. “I feel that this community has worked and has demonstrated an acceptance and a relationship, and for me that comes from the top down,” she said.

“It’s OK to feel not happy with that day,” said Crone. Crone said there remains “a wound” carried by the original peoples of Kanata — the Mohawk word for Canada. “Healing doesn’t come by continually peeling off the scab,” said Crone.

“We heal by the things that naturally heal a wound; air, being positive, having a good mindset, cleansing the wound, and not allowing it to fester.” Following the announcement in 2021 that ground-penetrating radar had identified 215 potential unmarked graves at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School, Crone said “I couldn’t raise the Canadian flag that year, and I understand how some people feel year after year because of being continuously disrespected still.” Crone said her personal belief is that “we can no longer hold divisiveness and anger and resentment, otherwise, we’ll never work together to heal that wound.”

“July 1 is still a symbol of colonization, but we have to show or demonstrate that there are other possibilities,” said Crone. “Possibilities of connections, of uniting, of healing, of moving forwards.” Crone said there must be the ability to look back on Canada’s history but also have the ability to look forward toward what Canada’s future could offer.

“I feel there should be a respect and appreciation for the original people who participated in the wars, who supported when the Europeans first came over, who helped them, who wanted to be brothers,” said Crone. She pointed to the Two Row Wampum, an early agreement between the Haudenosaunee Confederacy and Dutch settlers that ... describes Indigenous and European peoples travelling side by side in friendship and mutual respect, without one governing the other. Crone said until that agreement can be respected for all its principles and create a friendship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, “there’s still work to do on both parts.”

“We are still here. We as First Nation, Métis, and Inuit people have always been here, and I feel that the people of Canada cannot lose sight of that, whether it’s July 1 or whatever day of the year.” Nellie Sheshewabic, who was placed with a white foster family when she was eight months old, said “it was a very loving family and I call them family, I know no other.”

“My upbringing is so different from most Indigenous children that grew up in Canada.” Having grown up in Toronto and now living in Dwight, Sheshewabic has only recently been learning about the culture, customs and history of Indigenous people of Canada and North America. “Canada Day to me meant a day off work and fireworks, I’m just touching the surface of what Canada Day means to other Indigenous people,” said Sheshewabic.

“I’m very grateful to have been born in Canada, and very proud to be a Canadian.” Eileen Verdin, a citizen of Moon River, and Métis on her mother’s side, said “Canada is a beautiful country with land and people worthy of celebration.” “On Canada Day I took some time to reflect on what I have learned while exploring my own Indigenous heritage,” said Verdin.

“I also thought about how fortunate we are to live on this beautiful land, to have fresh air to breathe, abundance of fresh water, fertile soil, and varieties of plants, wildlife and natural resources. “All of these are gifts the original peoples of this country lived in harmony with, respected and protected. We should not take any of these treasures or each other for granted.”

“The knowledge we are gaining gives us the responsibility and opportunity to change the path forward with mutual respect,” Verdin added. Rebecca Hudescu is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter writing for the Huntsville Forester. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.