Statement of Solidarity with Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc
Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network
The Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network expresses its solidarity with Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc following the discovery of the remains of 215 children at the federally-mandated residential school located in Kamloops, British Columbia. We stand in solidarity with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities as they shine light on hard truths, hold ceremony, and seek justice and accountability.
We acknowledge the direct parallels between the historic and ongoing violence inflicted on Indigenous communities by colonial systems in Canada and Guatemala, and recognize that solidarity efforts abroad must also be grounded in the territories where we are rooted.
We call on the Canadian government to take immediate steps to fulfill the 94 Calls to Action included in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the 231 Calls for Justice included in the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, and to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
The lands of the Mi’kmaq, Wolostoquiyik, and Passem’quoddy sustain the solidarity work of the BTS Network. We know that Canada’s residential school system impacted, and continues to impact, communities on this territory. We call upon ourselves and our communities to not only learn more about the ongoing impacts of colonialism in Canada, Guatemala, and beyond, but to also take action.
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