CW: residential schools, genocide
A very special morning. As part of a process of reckoning and truth telling about the Church’s role in the Indian Residential School System, and the deep and painful impact of Canada’s colonial policies on Indigenous People… 1/x
…the St Andrew’s Wesley United Church in Vancouver have commissioned Squamish Nation artist Xwalacktun, OBC, to design a Coast Salish house post. This piece will honour the children who were lost, and tell the story without burying the history. 2/x
The imagery is profound. There are children in the protective arms of mother bear, a Thunderbird representing the Great Spirit, and it is holding a bronze plaque which tells the painful story of the church’s own involvement in residential schools. 3/x
The Coast Salish eyes on the house post remind us that we are being watched by the Creator, the ancestors, and by our own conscience.
It was an honour to meet the artist and do a bit of carving myself. The house post will stand in the church entry way, bearing witness. 4/x
The number of children whose bodies have been discovered is 5296 and counting. There is a lifetime of work to do, as we grapple with genocide.
The IRSS Crisis Line is available 24/7. Call 1-800-721-0066 for support.
#everychildmatters 5/5
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