Indigenous tourism in Canada: Between residential schools and new hope
Orange Shirt Day is one of Canada's most moving commemorative days.
At the National Museum of Indigenous Residential Schools in Portage-la-Prairie I learn more about the dark history of the Residential Schools and experience at the Powwow how music, dance and indigenous tourism help to revive culture and identity.
A childhood that was stolen
"Imagine you have a child. Now imagine it's evening and you can't put them to bed. You can't hold them in your arms and tell them a bedtime story. You don't know where they are."
You don't know how they are. You don't know if or when you'll see them again.
Now imagine you are that child. Perhaps just four years old. You are torn from your mother's arms and transported away in a cart like cattle. You arrive at a large house where you know no one.
They take your clothes and cut your hair. You are no longer allowed to speak your language . You don't get enough to eat, and even at night a strict nun watches over you in the dormitory.
Donna Pratt, a tribal elder of the Dakota Plains Wahpeton Nation, delivers an emotional speech at the National Museum of Indigenous Residential Schools of Canada in Portage la Prairie on September 30, Orange Shirt Day. Many of the visitors wear orange shirts that day.
Click on the first image to start the photo gallery:
Dennis feels better since discovering his love for horses. National Museum of Indigenous Residential Schools of Canada in Portage la Prairie, exterior view Lorraine Daniels shows me a dormitory At the powwow, the young people dance proudly. Children paint orange shirts And the eagle looks confidently eastward towards the rising sun and into the future.
How did Orange Shirt Day come about?
The trigger for Orange Shirt Day was the traumatic experience of Phyllis Webstad, who was six years old at the time.
When she was taken to a residential school run by nuns more than 50 years ago, on the very first day they took away the new orange shirt that her grandmother had given her as a farewell gift.
Today, every year on September 30th, many people wear an orange shirt. They do so to commemorate the children who were robbed of their families, their language, their culture, and often their lives in the residential schools.
"This forced assimilation triggered a huge trauma from which we still suffer today."
“ This trauma has led to alienation and drug problems ,” says Donna. “ We’re currently in the deepest valley. But I hope we’re about to climb out of this valley. We can do it because we’re beginning to rediscover our culture. Look around you! This is our culture. Here are children singing and dancing again, proud to have Indigenous roots.”
Hope through culture
At the subsequent powwow, the air is filled with joy and optimism. Young people and adults in elaborately crafted regalia perform traditional dances . In the Chicken Dance, the dancers move like chickens, while in the Grass Dance, the long ribbons of their garments sway like grass in the wind.
The sound of the drums is reminiscent of a heartbeat.
The dancers form a community. They are part of the First Nations, who are reclaiming their culture, their language, and their millennia-old knowledge of nature and land.
Indigenous tourism in Canada
Culture is identity.
More and more Indigenous communities in Canada are rediscovering their roots and sharing them with visitors. Indigenous tourism is growing. Today, travelers want to do more than just visit tourist attractions; they want to meet people who can tell their stories.
People like Melanie Gamache of Borealis Beading . With her beadwork, she combines botany, traditions and her family history into small works of art.
"Embroidery is my medicine. It has changed and healed me."
However, their workshops are not just about beads, thread, and needles. They are about the common thread that connects the embroidery, the land, and its culture, revealing the diversity of Indigenous culture today – and why encounters with First Nations people are among the most impressive travel experiences in Canada.
On my blog post Indigenous Tourism in Canada - you'll find 5 more authentic experiences
Information:
General information on Indigenous travel destinations, activities, attractions and accommodation options can be found on the Indigenous Tourism in Canada website :
Arrival:
Direct flights from Frankfurt to Canada are offered by airlines such as Condor and Air Canada .
An electronic travel document (eTA) is required for entry into Canada : https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/visit-canada/eta/apply-de.html .
Make:
Portage la Prairie: At the National Indigenous Residential School Museum, you can learn all about Indigenous culture and the tragic history of the residential schools. You can tour the classrooms and dormitories, gaining valuable insights into the history and impact of this era. A visit on September 30th, Orange Shirt Day, is a particularly moving and memorable experience.
In a workshop on beadwork, Melanie Gamache of Borealis Beading skillfully combines her family history with the history of the Métis and sacred plants.
Anyone who wishes can also stay overnight in the tiny house “PerLODGE” that she has set up on her property.
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