The Sad Truth About Racism in Canada
it exists
The year is 2021, I decide to take a walk as there is little else that can be done on a hot summer day during a pandemic. I pass the Legislative building around the corner — think Capitol hill or the parliament building for those in the US and UK respectively. I hear laughter and a beating drum and decide to see what socially distanced display might entertain me. I see about 3–4 indigenous women in their traditional attire seating on the steps of the building, shoes displayed in front of them. The shoes look like they belong to children. They are sober and mournful, they are the source of the music. Further up the stairs, I see a giggly teenager, she is dressed in a beautiful blue gown. She has just graduated from high school and is taking pictures with her friends and classmates at the legislative building. There are more teenagers scattered here and there, taking pictures, chatting, waiting. It suddenly strikes me the dichotomy that exists in this space. On one hand, I see laughing teenagers with their friends and parents happy to continue on to the next stage of their life. On the other hand, I see mothers, sisters and friends mourning the loss of children they never knew were buried with futures they will never see.
