At last Friday's meeting, September 27th, we had the Guelph Indigenous Community Council (GICC) speak to our club. 

 

Elaine introduced our speakers. She began with a land acknowledgement, "...the lands in which the city of Guelph has been built were once home to the Adirondack and the Haudenosaunee people. They are held as the treaty lands in territory with the Mississaugas of the credit First Nation.

 

"This land is currently home to descendants of multiple indigenous First Nations and Metis people from across North America. It is also home to indigenous peoples from around the globe. It is home to people from all continents of this earth, whether they are descendants of affluent imperialists or the ancestors of hopeful settlers, whether they are immigrants or refugees seeking better opportunities for themselves and their families."

 

Eleni went on to say, "I believe we hold many common values with the GICC." She then introduced the club to five of the board members: Verna Medina, from the woodland Cree in Saskatchewan, Randy Freeze, Plains Cree and Red River Metis. Evaristo, known as Maru Ramos Le Pan Apache, Lori Thomas Saguin, First Nation, Bear Clan,  and Nathaniel Thomas, her son. 

 

Eleni then welcomed Verna to speak on behalf of the GICC.

 

Verna began by discussing her background, "I'm Woodland, Cree from Saskatchewan. I am a 60 scoop. Been here in Guelph 20 years."

 

She then went on to explain the GICC's presence at Rotary. "So, I am here to speak a little bit about my truth as to why we started this organization, some of the troubles that we have gone through, some of the troubles that we have seen in the city of Guelph for the past 15 years, and these troubles have affected our community members like Lori, who's been here for 56 years, and because of these troubles, it has been very difficult for someone even like myself, as a single parent, who came here to get support and help within our community let alone to even find community." 

 

She went on to explain that Guelph looks like a donut because it is that empty space in the middle of a network of Indigenous communities. There are no resources in Guelph and no place for Indigenous people to meet. To find any sort of programs or services you have to go outside of the city to Fergus,  Cambridge, Kitchener, or Waterloo.

 

For this reason, "Guelph has been a problem spot." She explained that Indigenous people have been through many different forms of discrimination, "our people have been demoralized, disseminated, being forced to try to integrate, etc. And that started first with the residential schools. Over the years, it became the 60s scoop. Randy and I are both one of those adoptions, separations."

 

She continued, stating that the newest form of discrimination is identity theft. In Guelph, this has been going on for 15 years. A small group of individuals have taken Indigenous identity even though they have no Indigenous heritage. These individuals have taken advantage of programs and grants that have been made available by different levels of government while excluding actual Indigenous people. We had a small group of people here who have. This is how the GICC was formed. It is a community and safe space for Indigenous people in Guelph.

 

Verna went on, "so in order for us to be able to continue going forward and be able to strengthen our relationships and actually create these safe spaces for our people..." they needed to go through this transition with a traditional ceremony, "...which is our sacred [and] binding, not only to our people, but binding to the territories that are here and to those all around and our commitment is building our community here. Everything that we do has been for that purpose, and not only for the community of Guelph but for our brothers and sisters that are in this local territory, and beyond that, for Turtle Island, because as we all get connected, we're all going to be able to help and support each other and create a better territory in Turtle Island." 

 

Verna then welcomed Maru up to say a few words. Maru is originally from Texas, so he explained how his transition to Guelph, a different part of Turtle Island, was difficult. He explained how the GICC has the hope of finding a permanent place in Guelph to establish themselves. He reminded everyone to ask questions about things that don't know. He explained that many good intentioned people in Guelph did not realize the lack of resources that existed because they assumed those resources were present. 

 

He ended by saying, "So we have to also keep invigorated and keep bringing new voices in, and try and look at things from different perspectives and kind of like what I've seen, what the Rotary does with the different people that you know come in as guests or different organizations you might work with. And I think we all need that in the different places that we occupy."

 

Nathaniel than came up to speak about the youth Indigenous experience in Guelph. He talked about the need for more supports in school and the racism he has encountered while growing up. He ended my emphasizing how crucial it is for all Indigenous people, no matter the age, to have a community space.

 

The meeting ended with questions from our Rotarians. President Martin thanked the GICC for speaking to our club and welcomed future collaboration between our club and their committee. 

 

On Saturday, our club held Lobsterfest. The event was a success. We had over 200 people in attendance and we raised more money in our live auction then we did last year. 

 

On Sunday, the Indigenous Awareness Committee held their Reconciliation Walk. The event was well attended by members of the community.