Land acknowledgement
The RDCO acknowledges our presence on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded tm̓xʷúlaʔxʷ (land) of the syilx / Okanagan people who have resided here since time immemorial. We recognize, honour, and respect the syilx / Okanagan lands upon which we live, work, and play.
What is tm̓xʷúlaʔxʷ?
tm̓xʷúlaʔxʷ means the land and everything that lives and interacts on it. It is an all encompassing word that expresses the intersectionality of land and nature.
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
For more Information about Truth and Reconciliation and the 94 Calls-to-Action please visit: nctr.ca
RDCO and WFN message on Truth and Reconciliation Day
This path we walk calls on us to acknowledge the truth of what has been done to Indigenous people in the past and continues to this day. The injustices toward syilx / Okanagan people and all Indigenous people across Canada take form through policies that perpetuate racism, hardship, and oppression.
As a non-Indigenous person learning and acknowledging these truths has been uncomfortable and frankly, shameful. Many of us coming from a settler heritage have benefitted from the colonial policies that have led us to where we are today.
This acknowledgement and commitment to educate ourselves is the first step toward Truth and Reconciliation. Often, we want to jump straight to action, but this is a journey we must slow walk to fully understand the ever-present challenges faced by Indigenous people in this place we now call Canada.
Before reconciliation there must be truth.
way̓ limləmt | Thank you
Loyal Wooldridge (he/him)
Chairperson | Regional District of Central Okanagan
Residential School Survivor Support line
If you are a Survivor and need emotional support, a national crisis line is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week: 1-866-925-4419
Truth and Reconciliation events and resources
| Sncəwips Heritage Museum - exhibit |
|
What does it mean to be syilx? The latest exhibit at the Sncəwips Heritage Museum, focuses on the voices of community members and their artistic / written expression of identity. Drop-in and learn all about the syilx people. |
| Take the Indian Out of the Child - book |
|
While there are now many books about the Indian residential school system, Take the Indian Out of the Child is the first to speak about specific ways in which it has touched the syilx / Okanagan people. Available for purchase through Okanagan Nation Alliance. |
|
Where are the Children - touring exhibition, website and app |
|
Where are the Children: Healing the impacts of Residential Schools is a touring exhibition that explores the history and impacts of Canada's Residential School System through Survivor stories, archival photographs and documents curated by Iroquois artist Jeff Thomas. |
Westbank First Nation partnership
Visit our syilx / Okanagan partnerships page for more information.