Indigenous reactions to Pope Francis visiting Edmonton in the summer
Posted May 13, 2022 5:11 pm.
The Vatican announced Friday that Pope Francis is stopping in Edmonton this summer during his visit to Canada from July 24 – 29th.
The last time a Catholic Pope visited Edmonton was in 1984. This summer it’ll be to give the Roman Catholic Church’s apology in-person, for its involvement in running residential schools which led to the deaths of generations of Indigenous peoples in Canada.
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“Coming here and meeting with people in our setting, in our country, on our lands, at the schools where these atrocities happened will add another layer, another context about the truth of what happened,” said Cheryl Whiskeyjack, executive director of Bent Arrow Traditional Healing Society.
Whiskeyjack said the Archbishop’s office reached out to her to be part of the planning committee for when the Pope comes to Edmonton – and she hopes his visits will encourage other leaders to recognize the truth of Canada’s history.
Cheryl Whiskeyjack, executive director of Bent Arrow Traditional Healing Society. (Photo: CityNews)
“We didn’t get here overnight is what I often say here, and we’re not going to leave here overnight,” said Whiskeyjack, “But we will get there quickly if the leaders – with that kind of power to create those conditions for change – if they are the ones saying, ‘This is what we need to do and this is how we’re going to do it,’ it will happen.”
Treaty 6 Grand Chief George Arcand Jr. released a statement welcoming the news of the Pope’s visit, saying: “My prayers are with the Survivors — it is my hope we are on a path to healing and that Survivors’ truths are validated with this historic visit to our Territories.”
Catholic Pope (Photo: Facebook/ @archedmonton)
Whiskeyjack also recognizes the array of emotions survivors of residential schools may be feeling as they hear about the Pope’s upcoming visit.
“Grief, and going through those cycles is – anger is a part of that,” said Whiskeyjack, “Denial is a part of that. Acceptance is a part of that. And I think everybody is where they are at in that process, and it’s all valid.”
