January 24th, 2020
Every time I hear a first peoples territorial acknowledgement at the beginning of a concert, church service or other special event, I cringe a little. I know that the words written for me to say or the ones I am hearing are well intentioned and an important part of the process of reconciliation, but I also feel the emptiness that comes with knowing that these words by themselves are painfully insufficient.
This past week I attended what was for me a very rich evening of witnessing, learning, listening and thoughtful conversation guided by members of Lekwungen Nations and the City Family, Mayor Lisa Helps, members of City Council and special guests. It was the third in a series of six dialogues planned in Victoria that seek to build the community’s knowledge and understanding of Reconciliation – what it is, why it is needed, and why community conversations about Reconciliation are important.
I was moved and inspired by the process.
We took time. Time for food and drink, time to listen to the speakers, time for teaching, time for learning, time for conversation. Over 300 people took time to get to know one another. I took the time, grateful for the opportunity to share in an event in which to personally engage even in some small way the work of reconciliation. For me, as a leader in my church community, it was helpful and heartening to discover what kind of meaningful corporate response we might have to the challenges put forward by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The evening finished with a traditional Lekwungen time of ‘bearing witness’ where we heard from four people about what they experienced. It was an important part of the experience to be challenged and invited to put into words something of the impact of the evening.
Mayor Lisa Helps closed by recognizing that “we are, all of us, witnesses. Our role is to take these conversations and share them … it's all wonderful that we are here but it is our job to have similar conversations around other tables beyond tonight.”
The first three community dialogues are available on-line for you to bear witness. You can find them as you scroll down this page at the city of Victoria. I will be going back to watch the ones I missed and plan to sign up for the next dialogue planned for March 2nd at the Victoria Conference Centre.
I encourage you to take time to learn the history, to join in the work of reconciliation. It seems that there are concrete ways we can engage and make a difference.
Hay'sxw'qa
Rev. Karen Dickey
Video links:
Dialogue #1: Lekwungen Knowledge and the Land
Monday, September 30, 2019
Victoria City Hall
Dialogue #2: The UN Declaration on the
Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the City
Monday, November 18, 2019
Victoria Conference Centre
Dialogue #3: Newcomers to Canada and Reconciliation
Monday, January 20, 2020
Crystal Garden, 713 Douglas Street