In August, we went to Montana to visit family who live on the Flathead Reservation of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. The Pend d’Oreilles also call this land their home. It heightened my awareness of the Native American culture and contributions to the nation. November is Native American Heritage Month. It is a right and just thing to recognize this special time of recognizing and celebrating the ancient and proud peoples that called this land home well before Europeans. They have sacrificed much past and present, and their history is an important part of world history.
Yesterday was focused on the issues Indigenous people and mental health. I wanted to share a couple of thoughts.
Indigenous people are an important part of the life of a place because they are the connection between humans and the land. The stories they tell are important to the language and traditions of the community.
Mental health is so vital in making people well and whole. Many struggle and should never feel ashamed in asking for help. We are all better knowing our physical and mental health are linked.
We should remember both things daily and to make the world a better place for all people in body, mind and spirit.
Indigenous Peoples’ Day is a holiday that celebrates and honors Native American peoples and commemorates their histories and cultures.
The people who lived here before Europeans made their way to their “new world” deserve better lives and the rights that go with it. America needs its own truth and reconciliation movement to atone for the atrocities committed against indigenous peoples that forced them off their lands and killed thousands. Native peoples have a deep cultural contribution that cannot be ignored. May everyone understand.
September 30, 2021 marks the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.The day honours the lost children and Survivors of residential schools, their families and communities. Public commemoration of the tragic and painful history and ongoing impacts of residential schools is a vital component of the reconciliation process.
I’m not Canadian but this time of truth and reconciliation are universal and every nation have their own issues with the treatment of indigenous people and the sadness of how they were oppressed and removed from their homes and land.
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