The final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was released today, and renowned Inuit artist Tanya Tagaq is calling for an end to abuse, reforms to the judicial system, better resources for dealing with trauma, changes to the aboriginal school system and more.
Tagaq's powerful statements came in a series of tweets using the hashtag #MyReconciliationIncludes, which came shortly after the release of the commission's final report, which said that aboriginal residential schools caused a "cultural genocide."
One of the most anticipated in Canadian history, the report follows years of hearings, with much of the heart-wrenching testimony coming from survivors of years of physical, sexual and emotional abuse at the schools, which were run by the Canadian government.
The report also found that at least 6,000 aboriginal children died in residential schools.
Here is what Tagaq had to say:
Here is what Tagaq had to say:
#MyReconciliationIncludes an equal and opposite reaction to residential schools
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes the ending of the food crisis in Nunavut. Subsidize the shipping costs.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes not fearing for my life more than you have to.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes not watching people I love in pain, not knowing so many that succumb to suicide.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes having the government care for our well being.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes proper resources to deal with trauma.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes public knowledge that residential schools have had a long term intergenerational effect.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes some compassion for those who suffer.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes rehabilitation facilities provided to those who need them. Proper mental health care. Proper health care.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes being considered an equal.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes not feeling ashamed when stumbling in a culture that is foreign to my blood.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes embracing traditional belief systems. Shamanism is noble.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes acknowledgement not judgement
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes honouring the treaties. Give back what has been taken.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes abolishment of the myths that keep alive the undercurrent of abject racism
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes a government that wing jail us for protest
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes power to protect our land
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes standing up without fear of the repercussions.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes an ending of the abusive relationship we are in with the government.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes a shift in the judicial system to accommodate victims of abuse.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes assimilating indigenous practices into public schools so we are not foreigners to fellow Canadians.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes not being afraid of social media because someone will tell you that you are simple/savage/dirty/wrong.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes not considering someone privileged just because they were not sexually abused
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes working therapy into the school curriculum in Nunavut. Give children tools to cope.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes crisis management. This issue will persist until it is taken care of. We are not going away.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes healthy, free school lunches provided in a territory suffering a food crisis.
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes not being blamed for post colonial fallout
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes unification to demand federal action
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes penetrating and dissolving pervasive sociological issues
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
#MyReconciliationIncludes not being called an activist just for demanding human rights
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) June 2, 2015
by Jennifer Van Evra via Electronic RSS
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