Today marks the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. President and CEO of the Downie Wenjack Fund, Sarah Midanik, talked with us earlier this week. When asked about Gord Downie’s impact on Canadians and getting the message out. Since he first brought Chanie Wenjack’s story to Canadians attention to where we are now and everything Gord accomplished, Midanik talked about the power of timing.
Of those 94 calls to action, 15 have been accounted for. Midanik wondered if that’s something to be proud of or if more could be done to continue to move forward together. She talked about the truth part of today and said 1 in 3 Canadians still don’t know the history of residential schools.
She said there’s tremendous progress to be made in the school system and Downie Wenjack is a perfect example of that.
In terms of reconciliation, Midanik talked about what Indigenous people are hoping for.
She said these are systemic changes so the call to action is on everyone from government officials to the average non-Indigenous Canadian. Midanik urges people to educate themselves today through terrific resources available at adaytolisten.ca and through Downie Wenjack’s social channels.
Story by Harper Cotie