National Indigenous Peoples Day: 2 events to celebrate and mourn on Monday, June 21
This year’s National Indigenous Peoples Day, which falls on Monday, will include a vigil for the 215 children whose bodies were recently identified as buried in unmarked graves at the Kamloops residential school site.
Those who organized the kids’ shoe memorial at the Vancouver Art Gallery are asking people from coast to coast to mourn and remember the children at 7 p.m. Kamloops time.
“Everyone mourning the discovery of the 215 children at residential schools, raise your voices, your drums .... let them hear us,” reads the event description.
Those in Vancouver, Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike, are also being invited to come to the steps outside of the gallery, where the existing shoe memorial is located.
“Now more than ever non-Indigenous persons are called to hold space and centre Indigenous peoples and their experiences,” reads the event description.
The event is being promoted on Facebook by those associated with the existing shoe memorial, including Haida artist Tamara Bell. Bell is the person who first conceived of the idea of placing 215 pairs of kids shoes on the gallery’s steps back in May, when the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation announced they’d found the bodies. Since then, it has become an important space for meeting, healing and learning about residential schools.
“Wear orange and bring your drums,” reads the event description, making reference to First Nations drummers.
Earlier in the day on Monday, the Carnegie Community Centre and UBC are hosting a free online cultural event in celebration of National Indigenous Peoples Day, and it’s also open to everyone.
The event, which will feature live streamed and pre-recorded performances and artist talks, runs from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. It will kick off with a welcome from Squamish Chief Bill Williams, and include performances by the Carnegie’s lexwst’i:lem drum group and by dancer Larissa Healey, and more.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
'It was joy': Trapped B.C. orca calf eats seal meat, putting rescue on hold
A rescue operation for an orca calf trapped in a remote tidal lagoon off Vancouver Island has been put on hold after it started eating seal meat thrown in the water for what is believed to be the first time.
Man sets self on fire outside New York court where Trump trial underway
A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump.
Sask. father found guilty of withholding daughter to prevent her from getting COVID-19 vaccine
Michael Gordon Jackson, a Saskatchewan man accused of abducting his daughter to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, has been found guilty for contravention of a custody order.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
She set out to find a husband in a year. Then she matched with a guy on a dating app on the other side of the world
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
B.C. judge orders shared dog custody for exes who both 'clearly love Stella'
In a first-of-its-kind ruling, a B.C. judge has awarded a former couple joint custody of their dog.
Saskatoon police to search landfill for remains of woman missing since 2020
Saskatoon police say they will begin searching the city’s landfill for the remains of Mackenzie Lee Trottier, who has been missing for more than three years.
Shivering for health: The myths and truths of ice baths explained
In a climate of social media-endorsed wellness rituals, plunging into cold water has promised to aid muscle recovery, enhance mental health and support immune system function. But the evidence of such benefits sits on thin ice, according to researchers.