Remembering the Children

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marcel

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Feb 15, 2008, 5:31:32 PM2/15/08
to First Nations Skyvillage
Attention News Editors: Remembering the Children

An Aboriginal and Church Leaders' tour to prepare for Truth and
Reconciliation

TORONTO, Feb. 15 /CNW/ - Canada will soon mark a pivotal moment
in its
history.
That is why in early March the spiritual leaders of the Anglican,
Presbyterian and United Churches, along with representatives of the
Roman
Catholic Church, and the National Chief of the Assembly of First
Nations, will
be participating in a multi-city tour to promote the work of the
upcoming
Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC).
Once established, the Commission will be an official independent
body
that will oversee a process to provide former students and anyone who
has been
affected by the Indian Residential School legacy, with an opportunity
to share
their individual experiences in a safe and culturally appropriate
manner
through statement taking or truth-sharing.
As key participants, along with the federal government, in the
operation
of Indian Residential Schools, the Anglican, Presbyterian, Roman
Catholic, and
United Churches have committed themselves to full participation in the
TRC
process.
"We believe it is essential that Canadians pay close attention to
this
process of truth telling," explains Hon. David MacDonald, the United
Church's
Special Advisor on residential schools, and one of the organizers of
the
leaders' tour.
MacDonald adds, "This is the opportunity for all of us to hear
the voices
of the children who attended residential schools, to listen to their
stories,
and to learn, maybe for the first time, of the impact that residential
schools
have had on Canada's First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities."
The Remembering the Children tour is scheduled to begin in Ottawa
on
Sunday, March 2 and will make stops over the next week in Vancouver,
Saskatoon, and Winnipeg. Participating in the tour will be:

- Phil Fontaine, National Chief, the Assembly of First Nations
- The Rt. Rev. Dr. David Giuliano, Moderator, The United Church
of
Canada
- Archbishop Fred Hiltz, Primate, the Anglican Church of Canada
- The Rev. Dr. J. H. (Hans) Kouwenberg, Moderator,
The Presbyterian Church in Canada
- The Rt. Rev. Mark MacDonald, National Indigenous Bishop, the
Anglican
Church of Canada

At various times throughout the tour, local Roman Catholic
representatives, along with regional Aboriginal leaders, and
representatives
of both Inuit and Métis groups, will participate in major public
events that
are being planned in each city by local organizing committees. Further
details
regarding the locations and times of these events will be available
later this
month.
MacDonald says that the Aboriginal and Church leaders hope the
tour will
raise awareness about the work of the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission and
will help to educate both church members and other Canadians about the
legacy
of residential schools and the impacts of colonization on Aboriginal
people
and their communities.
"We see this tour as an opportunity to model what a new and
positive
relationship between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people might look
like,"
says MacDonald.
Additional information about the tour will be posted and updated
on a
website that is currently being developed at www.rememberingthechildren.ca.


For further information: or to arrange media interviews, please
contact:
Mary-Frances Denis, Communications Officer, The United Church of
Canada, (416)
231-7680 ext. 2016 (office), 1-800-268-3781 ext. 2016 (toll-free),
(416)
885-7478 (cell), (416) 766-0057 (home), mde...@united-church.ca; Joan
McEwen, Communications Director, Assembly of First Nations, (613)
241-6789
ext. 242, (613) 324-3329 (cell), jmc...@afn.ca


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