Please read the following statement from Elizabeth May, MP for Saanich—Gulf Islands and Leader of the Green Party of Canada, recognising National Day for Truth and Reconciliation:
“Today we mark National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Reconciliation is an ongoing process that we all must practice. Responsibility lies with settler culture Canadians to engage with the vast resources available on Indigenous cultures, communities and stories. I am honoured to be spending today with the Songhees First Nation for their annual South Island Powwow. We are recognising the survivors of the horrors of residential schools and their families while celebrating Indigenous resiliency through song and dance.
The Green Party has been clear that the Doctrine of Discovery must be repudiated as we move to justice. Canada must finally implement all 94 Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the 231 Calls for Justice from the National Inquiry on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. Too many have been delayed or pushed aside, like resolving the clean drinking water crisis, implementing a Red Dress Alert emergency system and investing in reliable ground transportation to keep women and girls from hitchhiking.
I appreciate this quote from my dear friend and provincial counterpart MLA Adam Olsen, who is a member of the Tsartlip First Nation in Brentwood Bay: “Reconciliation is a journey that we walk together. We cannot see the end of the trail that we walk on together. It’s one that we will…walk…for a very long time. We, as a government, have a responsibility to take care of the business that our legislative ancestors have been running away from.””