Submitted by Brian McHattie
How do we prepare for changes in the community? We know that climate change will result in warmer wet winters and more powerful storms. Many thousands of new tourists have visited our community over the past decade resulting in housing challenges and unsafe driving conditions. We know these things and as a community we are taking steps to adapt.
We also know that we live on and around the traditional lands and waters of the Saugeen Ojibway Nation (SON) who have been here since at least post-glacial times some 8,000 years ago. It is widely recognized that the Saugeen Ojibway occupied and utilized a land base of about two million acres before the arrival of the British. The area was loosely defined as a point presently known as the Town of Arthur and extending west to Lake Huron and north to Georgian Bay. We know that those of us with links to early pioneers have only inhabited the Peninsula for less than 200 years.
As the rights of the Indigenous Peoples across Canada including SON are recognized, we know that change is coming
• having read the 2015 Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action report
• having read the 1854 treaty and other documents between the Crown and SON
• in following the current land and water litigation designed to bring lands and waters back to SON, plus funding promised in the treaties
• because Parks Canada is talking about cooperatively managing the national parks with SON.
As members of the Northern Bruce Truth and Reconciliation Group, we have spent many hours over the last five years learning this history, beginning to understand Indigenous culture, and sharing knowledge in local presentations and articles. We believe that the change that is coming will bring good things such as hearing Anishnaabemowin being spoken and beginning to learn the language ourselves, and seeing tourists arrive in Tobermory knowing clearly that they are visiting SON traditional lands and waters.
To prepare, we propose coming together in a series of listening circles so we are ready to participate in positive change. We hope the circles will emphasize ‘listening’ not just talking. We have been pondering the following questions:
• What responsibilities do we have as relative newcomers living on SON lands and waters?
• How do SON and non-Indigenous worldviews and customs compare and contrast?
• What can we learn from tensions still felt in Tobermory from the commercial fisheries court decision recognizing the SON Aboriginal and Treaty rights to fish for sustenance and commercial purposes?
• How can Crown lands such as the national parks and provincial nature reserves be co-managed with SON, and how can the non-Indigenous community participate?
We recently read the book “True Reconciliation” by Jody Wilson-Raybould, former Attorney General and Minister of Justice in the Trudeau government. The book is designed to begin answering the question she and many Indigenous people get all the time: “what can I do?” Her answer: 1) learn about the legacy of colonialism and how it requires changes in how society is structured and organized; 2) understand how people comprehend, see meaning and order and make sense of the world in which they exist; and 3) act honourably in as many ways as possible. Strive to become an “in-betweener” (read the book to learn how to qualify!).
To prepare, we invite the community to come together in a series of listening circles to participate in positive change. Please join us in our first Listening Circle at Tobermory Community Centre on Saturday, March 4, 2023 from 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. Please bring a potluck healthy snack to share. Everyone is welcome! For more information, please contact nbptrg@gmail.com.
