Mennonite Weekly Review

KENORA, Ont. — Murals and churches as well as the Kenora court house and mall were among the prayer stops on a public walk Oct. 17 to celebrate diversity and encourage awareness of colonialism’s impacts on indigenous peoples here and across Canada.

Attracting 30 participants from Kenora and surrounding communities, the two-hour “Prayer Walk to Honor the Treaties” was the culmination of an international fact-finding delegation by Christian Peacemaker Teams, which has worked in the Kenora area and Grassy Narrows First Nation since 1999.

“The fact that CPT goes to Iraq and Palestine, and comes here to Kenora, shows that there’s a conflict here, and it needs to become visible to white people,” said Paula Broeders, a local resident and director of the Kenora Sexual Assault Centre.

“We have a cultural divide; it’s a subtle apartheid. White people have the opportunity to stand up and be accountable, to be honest with ourselves and to show kindness.”

The walk stopped at various locations in downtown Kenora to pray, share history and reflect on the message that Native and non-Native people have rights and responsibilities under the treaties.

“This prayer walk is an act of solidarity with my brothers and sisters on Turtle Island, what we call Canada,” said Marcus Armstrong, a CPT delegation member from Willen, United Kingdom. “It’s a fundamental right of people to have land on which to live, grow things, hunt and fish to meet their basic needs. Where this isn’t respected, in my experience, has led to very great pain and suffering.”

Charles Wagamese, a member of Dalles First Nation and supporter of Grassy Narrows, joined the prayer walk and described its songs and prayers as “solidarity of the human spirit.”

The CPT delegation has met with stakeholders in the legal system, police, social services and First Nations to get a clearer picture of the struggles and initiatives facing the community, including issues of discrimination, residential schools and clear-cut logging, as well as healing initiatives.