ESKASONI, N.S. - Amidst all of the dancing and drumming, it become very clear that Canada Day means something different to the people who were first to call this country home.
While it may have been a coincidence that Eskasoni’s powwow falls on Canada Day, some took it as an opportunity to celebrate the progress that has been made – while some chose not to celebrate at all.
From residential schools to systemic racism, Canada’s first people have been through some terrible things since confederation.
“It’s good that people are having a good time. But I don’t really celebrate Canada Day. It’s good that people are having a holiday. But to me, it’s more like a colonial Day,” said Brock Stonefish.
But others in attendance took a different stance, choosing to take the opportunity to celebrate a culture older than the country and the progress that has been made over the years.
“We focus on reconciliation; we don’t want to go through what we did the past 150 years. The next 150 years are going to be positive, and we’re going to be proactive,” says Chief Leroy Denny.
Today, Denny says he celebrates the resilience of their community, and hopes treaties and land will be respected in the future.
“We’re older than Canada. We’ve been here for time immemorial, and it’s a good way to honour not only our land, not only our territory – but our culture and language,” said another attendee Michael Denny.
But although Canada Day may have meant different things to those in attendance today, the maple leaf flag was flown proudly throughout.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Ryan MacDonald.
