North Bay raises ‘Every Child Matters’ flag ahead of Truth and Reconciliation Day
The City of North Bay raised the ‘Every Child Matters’ flag Thursday afternoon in a ceremony honouring Canada’s survivors and victims of the residential school system.
“We wanted to make sure we showed our respect,” Mayor Al McDonald said.
The flag was raised to a crowd of more than 50 Indigenous people, dignitaries and members of the public who were sporting orange shirts, hats and sweaters. It comes a day before Friday's National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Helping McDonald raise the flag was former Nipissing First Nation Chief Marianna Couchie.
Couchie's aunts and uncles all attended residential schools and her father is a survivor of the Spanish Indian Residential School.
She will be reflecting and thinking of him Friday.
“He witnessed a lot of atrocities there," Couchie said.
"He was taught not to be proud of who he was … They ruined his self-esteem there. He was told many times there if he spoke his language that it was the devil's language."
Couchie said that about 30 years ago, she visited the school site with her father to pay respects to those who were forcibly taken from their families and taken to the schools.
She remembered her father telling her of where he believed there were unmarked graves.
“He showed us an area where he thought children were buried," Couchie said.
"It was just outside of the cemetery where that school was. It’s just mind-boggling that in this day and age people still deny what happened.”
She said there’s still along way to go for people to accept the realities of residential school horrors and move forward.
The City of North Bay raised the ‘Every Child Matters’ flag Thursday afternoon in a ceremony honouring Canada’s survivors and victims of the residential school system. (Eric Taschner/CTV News)
“We’ve been so colonized -- even non-Indigenous people have been colonized, too,” she said.
“It’s a day for non-Indigenous Canadians to learn with us and participate with us.”
In 2017, McDonald was asked by the former president of Nipissing University if the city would proclaim the year as Truth and Reconciliation Year. He agreed.
McDonald is calling on all North Bay citizens and Canadians to take a few minutes Friday and either research the history of residential schools or reflect in their own way.
“If you were to understand the history and just even a fraction what I've learned over the last five years, you'd be embarrassed as a Canadian,” McDonald said.
“Treaties weren’t recognized. Stigma and racism happened in our country.”
McDonald remembers the city partnered with First Nation leader George Couchie through a learning-and-accepting process in 2018.
“It hasn’t just been a one-day thing,” he said. “The vast majority of us recognize we have a lot to learn.”
The flag will remain until Monday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canadian gov't proposes new foreign influence registry as part of wide-spanning new bill
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government is proposing a suite of new measures and law changes aimed at countering foreign interference in Canada, amid extensive scrutiny over past meddling attempts and an ever-evolving threat landscape.
Boeing Starliner capsule's first crewed test flight postponed
The long-awaited first crewed test flight of Boeing's new Starliner space capsule was called off for at least 24 hours over a technical issue that launch teams were unable to resolve in time for the planned Monday night lift-off.
Teacher charged in historical sexual assault of Calgary teenage girl
Calgary police have charged a teacher with the alleged sexual assault of a teenage girl more than 20 years ago.
Winnipeg man admits to killing four women, argues he's not criminally responsible
Defence lawyers of Jeremy Skibicki have admitted in court the accused killed four Indigenous women, but argues he is not criminally responsible for the deaths by way of mental disorder – this latest development has triggered a judge-alone trial rather than a jury trial.
Man banned from owning animals after fatal Calgary dog attack
The owner of three Calgary dogs that got loose and mauled a woman to death in 2022 has been ordered to pay a $15,000 fine within one year and banned from owning any animal for 15 years.
East-end Ottawa family dealing with massive rat infestation
Residents in Ottawa’s Elmridge Gardens complex are dealing with a rat infestation that just won’t go away. Now, after doing everything they can to try to fix the issue, they are pleading with the city to step in and help.
Mediterranean staple may lower your risk of death from dementia, study finds
A daily spoonful of olive oil could lower your risk of dying from dementia, according to a new study by Harvard scientists.
An El Nino-less summer is coming. Here's what that could mean for Canada
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Newfoundland and Labrador latest province to tighten rules on Airbnbs
Newfoundland and Labrador is the latest jurisdiction to bring in stricter rules for short-term rentals, with a coming set of regulations that will force operators to register with the provincial government.