'Today feels so empowering': Ceremony at The Forks celebrates Indigenous Peoples Day
People gather at traditional Winnipeg meeting place for celebration of First Nations, Métis, Inuit culture
Lori Bateman has woven her path to healing one bead at a time after the death of her son three years ago.
But with every beadwork piece she has created since, there has also been an opportunity for her to reconnect with her First Nations identity.
"This is a whole learning curve for me," said Bateman, who is from Sandy Bay Ojibway First Nation, in Treaty 1 territory on the west side of Lake Manitoba. "It all has to do with my culture."
Bateman joined others at The Forks in Winnipeg on Saturday to celebrate First Nations, Métis and Inuit culture during National Indigenous Peoples Day.
"It means a lot to our people," Bateman said. "It's a great day for us."
She set up a stand with her beadwork at The Forks — a national historic site where the Red and Assiniboine rivers meet that was an Indigenous meeting place for thousands of years before colonization, and which was among the many locations that hosted Indigenous Peoples Day events Saturday.
Standing in front of a glowing fire, Mary Black held her drum up to the sky and began playing and singing in front of a group of people who came to celebrate at The Forks.
"Today feels so empowering," said Black, from Wanipigow (also known as Hollow Water First Nation), on Treaty 5 territory in eastern Manitoba.
"The thrill, the ecstasy of drumming is something that will never leave you," Black said. "It's almost like connecting with that heartbeat of Mother Earth."
The annual celebration is a testament to the strength First Nations, Métis and Inuit have shown throughout generations to keep their traditions alive, Black said, even when institutions like Canada's residential school system tried to strip their language and identity from them.
"The fact that we even have the opportunity to do this today is miraculous," she said.
National Indigenous Peoples Day has been officially observed every June 21 in Canada since 1996, coinciding with the summer solstice — a significant time in many Indigenous cultures.
Indigenous and non-Indigenous people alike joined in the celebration at The Forks Saturday, a display of unity Black said she was happy to see.
"Seeing our relatives that live on treaty land but may not be Indigenous … feeling welcome enough to come into the circle and make their offerings is absolutely beautiful," she said.
Premier Wab Kinew acknowledged the strength and resilience of Indigenous people in a statement on Saturday, thanking First Nations, Métis and Inuit leaders who have come together to help during an "unprecedented wildfire season" that has forced thousands of people, many from First Nations communities, out of their homes.
Kinew encouraged people to listen with open hearts while celebrating the Indigenous cultures, languages and stories that "are a vital part of our provincial identity."
With files from Gavin Axelrod