Convention plenary focus on Truth and Reconciliation
UBCM’s plenary session will address the urgent question of how Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities might walk further along the path towards truth and reconciliation. The panel will feature the Honourable Murray Sinclair, Chief Commissioner of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and will provide guidance for local governments seeking direction on how to meaningfully and effectively act on the TRC Calls to Action.
Although it is unknown how many children died while attending residential schools in Canada, the TRC identified 3,200 deaths on its registers of named and unnamed residential school students. Following the recent discoveries of mass burial sites, we are reminded once again as to the lasting legacy and deep impact of residential schools, and also as to how much work remains to address this legacy.
Of the 94 TRC Calls to Action, 16 explicitly address local government or all orders of government. Panelists will consider the implications of these Calls to Action for local government and point towards priority areas for action. There will be an opportunity at the end of the session for questions from our online delegates from across the province.
His Honour, Murray Sinclair is Anishinaabe and a member of the Peguis First Nation. He is a Fourth Degree Chief of the Midewiwin Society, a traditional healing and spiritual society of the Anishinaabe Nation responsible for protecting the teachings, ceremonies, laws, and history of the Anishinaabe. His Spirit Name is Mizhana Gheezhik (The One Who Speaks of Pictures in the Sky). As head of the TRC, he participated in hundreds of hearings across Canada, culminating in 2015 with TRC’s widely influential report. In 2017 he and the other TRC Commissioners were awarded the Meritorious Service Cross (Civilian) (MSC) for service to Canada for their work on the TRC.
The plenary session is scheduled for Tuesday, September 14 from 1:00 - 2:30 p.m. and will be available to all registered delegates to the 2021 UBCM Convention. To register, visit the UBCM registration website.