The video segments on this page are meant to showcase what Canadians from all walks of life — all ages, backgrounds, and political stripes — are doing to bridge the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. It’s about the different interpretations of reconciliation. We hope to feature a wide variety of messages from people across the land. That means we need to hear from you! How do YOU see reconciliation? What does that word mean to you? If you would like us to include a dispatch about something you, or someone you know, is doing, send us your video to garnetsjourney@gmail.com.

6.1 Greg Malcolm – Education is Reconciliation

Greg Malcolm is a Sioux Lookout resident who has known Garnet for several years. As a staff member of the local hospital, he attended a cultural sensitivity workshop that explained some of the history and effects of the Indian Residential School (IRS) system. The workshop — and the people who participated, like Garnet — changed how Greg sees the IRS experience and the Aboriginal men and women who went through it.

6.2 Message from Stefan Rasporich

Stefan Rasporich is an educator, screenwriter, songwriter, and actor, living in Alberta. He sent this video to us to post, with his message about what reconciliation means to him.

6.3 Dovercourt Aboriginal Day

On June 20, 2012, Ottawa’s Dovercourt Recreation Centre and the Odawa Native Friendship Centre co-hosted an event to celebrate National Aboriginal Day. Traditional dancers and other aboriginal artists showcased their talent, and shared knowledge about aboriginal culture with several hundred local schoolchildren and residents of Ottawa’s Kitchissippi neighborhood. Even Governor General David Johnston attended this special, bridge building event. This video is a three-minute collage of sounds and sights from that day.

6.4 Shelagh Rogers – Honourary Witness to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission has named a number of respected Canadians to be Honourary Witnesses to the work of the Commission. Long-time CBC broadcaster, Shelagh Rogers, is one these people. From the TRC: “Witnesses are asked to store and care for the history they witness and most importantly, to share it with their own people when they return home.” We caught up with Shelagh at the Montreal TRC event in April 2013, and asked her to share her thoughts on the meaning of reconciliation.