Image Credit: Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc

By Adam Donnelly

TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION

Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc invites the world to join in song on September 30th

Sep 17, 2021 | 3:07 PM

KAMLOOPS — Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc (TteS) has invited people around the world to pause and pick up a drum at 2:15 pm on September 30th, Canada’s first-ever National Day of Truth and Reconciliation.

The invitation was made at an online media conference Friday morning (Sept. 17). The event is being held in response to what the band calls “a global outpouring of interest and support” after it was announced that ground-penetrating radar had been used to identify over 200 potential gravesites located on the grounds of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.

“It’s time to honour the children and the unrelenting spirit of these ancestors. It’s time to drum for the healing of the Indian Residential Schools Survivors who carried the burden of knowing where the children were buried, and to drum for the healing of the families and communities whose children did not come home,” states Kukpi7 Rosanne Casimir, in a media release sent out during the media conference.

Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc is also urging those interested to learn the Secwepemc Honour Song so that those who choose to take part can sing and drum along, wherever they may be.

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“We invite you to share this song, to teach it and record it in schools, workplaces and living rooms. Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc is calling upon the world to help us shine a light on the truth, the pursuit of justice and peace, as well as healing for all affected by these beloved missing children. The confirmation of the missing children has impacted people locally, regionally, nationally and even globally. Secwepemc Elders have said that it is the children that are going to bring us together. We want to make the world a better place for children everywhere and give them hope and assurances, that every child matters,” declares Kukpi7 Rosanne Casimir.

TteS had hoped there would be an opportunity to hold an event to commemorate the confirmation of the remains buried at the site. However, with COVID-19 cases throughout the province still fluctuating, they ask those who take part to share their experiences through social media, as they continue to work with health officials to ensure the safety of community members.

For more information on the event, you can visit tkemlups.ca/drum.

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For more information:

Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada

Support Resources:

• KUU-US Crisis Line: 1-800-588-8717
• Tsow-Tun-Le Lum: 1-866-403-3123
• Indian Residential School Survivors Society Toll-Free Line: 1-800-721-0066
• 24hr National Crisis Line: 1-866-925-4419