To Owen Sound City Council,

We are calling on the City of Owen Sound to cancel the Canada Day celebrations out of respect for Indigenous communities and families who lost children to the Residential Schools.

On Thursday, May 27, the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation confirmed that the remains of 215 Indigenous children were found buried in unmarked graves at the Kamloops Residential School. Subsequently, unmarked graves of Indigenous children in multiple former Residential School sites were found. This includes 104 children in Brandon, MB, 38 children in Regia, SK, 35 children in Lestock, SK, 180 children in Carlisle, PA, 751 children in Cowessess First Nation, SK. These numbers are preliminary as the searches continue and we hear of Indigenous families still unable to find lost children.

Multiple municipalities across Canada have announced the cancellation of Canada Day events. This includes at least 14 municipalities in 6 provinces and territories. This call to action is made in recognition of the historic and ongoing colonial violence and injustices enacted against Indigenous peoples by the Canadian state.

Owen Sound City Council should follow the lead of other municipalities by doing the same: cancelling plans to celebrate at this time of mourning, and working with local Nations and Indigenous Peoples to find alternatives this year and in years to come. Wiarton, Lions Head, and Tobermory among others have made the commitment to do this, and we urge you to follow their lead.

To that effect, Owen Sound City Council should pass the following motion, similar to one passed in Victoria, British Columbia,

1. That Council direct staff to immediately pause any announced plans for Canada Day 2021 and do nothing further with respect to July 1st events this year; and

2. That the City work with partners as Chippewas of Saugeen and Chippewas of Nawash and other local First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples and organizations to explore and implement alternatives to the July 1st ‘celebrations’ to be held virtually and/or in-person, as public health measures allow, by September 30 (Orange Shirt Day); and

3. That the City engage in ongoing work with the Nations, communities, and organizations listed above to explore and implement alternatives on an annual basis, including but not limited to: local oral histories and cultural celebrations; the history of Residential Schools, the Sixties Scoop, and Millennial Scoop; and any other alternatives recommended.

This is by no means the end of the work that must be done, the truths that must be learned, understood, and shared. It is, however, a start.

Sincerely,

Hayley Moodie, Jay Bird, Callum Batten, Anne-Marie Hay and Cody Hawes