Abegweit chief gives Murray Harbour mayor an eagle feather for being an ally over sign

The chief of Abegweit First Nation has presented Murray Harbour's mayor with an eagle feather, as both P.E.I. community leaders say they're making efforts toward reconciliation.

Chief Junior Gould gave Mayor Terry White the symbol during a Truth and Reconciliation event in Scotchfort Monday.

The event had been planned for a while, but Murray Harbour council members were invited to it recently, after community leaders called on a local councillor to resign over a sign calling into question suspected unmarked graves at residential schools.

"I was honoured that they invited me to their community [to] take part in that, and reciprocated that by [asking] them to come to ours," said Gould, who spoke to the southeastern P.E.I. community's council during a meeting last week.

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"I extended the feather to the mayor of Murray Harbour because I appreciate he's willing to work with us and become educated in the process to allow us to be better friends."

Gould, White and Sen. Brian Francis, the first person of Mi'kmaq descent to join the Senate from P.E.I., have all called for Coun. John Robertson to resign.

On the Sept. 30 weekend, when Canada's National Day for Truth and Reconciliation was being marked, a large sign on Robertson's property displayed a message saying "mass graves" on the sites of former residential schools were a hoax and reconciliation would mean to "redeem Sir John A.'s legacy."

The councillor later told CBC News he had no intention of stepping down, saying some people were "not getting the message" as he intended it.

"It's come down to a place where it's semantics on a sign. It's not," Gould said. "It isn't [about] semantics, whether it's a mass grave or an unmarked grave. It isn't. It's our history."

Since the confirmation of community knowledge of suspected unmarked graves in British Columbia, First Nations across Canada have located evidence of the remains of more than 2,300 children in suspected unmarked graves at or near former residential schools and Indian hospitals, according to a report from the independent special interlocutor for missing children and unmarked graves and burial sites associated with Indian Residential Schools that was released earlier this year.

Passing on the feather

Gould said he just wants to protect the legacy of residential school survivors like his father.

He said presenting the feather to White wasn't something he had planned before Monday.

I think we're going to build a good relationship [between] the two communities.— Terry White, Murray Harbour mayor

"The teaching that my father gave me is that when you were gifted a feather, you'll know what to do with it," he said.

"I [passed] the feather upstairs before I come down.... I took it as the chief and held on to it. And that was the opportunity that I believe that I was given to pass that feather on."

White said he was honoured to receive it.

"I think we're going to build a good relationship [between] the two communities," he said.

'We need to learn what happens in life'

Attendees at Monday's event in Scotchfort heard the Mi'kmaq Honour Song and watched a video about the history of residential schools. There was also drumming and food.

The audience included many school children from Mount Stewart and Morell who came to Scotchfort to learn about Indigenous history — and the true meaning of reconciliation.

Mount Stewart Consolidated students said getting this education is important.

"I think it's pretty cool. I get to learn more stuff," said Emerson MacDonald, a Grade 7 student. 

"A lot of kids died in residential schools, so we got to remember them," said William Coffin, who's in Grade 8.

"It's nice to be there for it," said Cole Mutch, another eight-grader. "We need to learn what happens in life. It's not all rainbows and sunny."

Gould said it's crucial for younger generations to learn the history of First Nations people.

"I think it's very important if someone like myself takes the time [to] slow down and talk to the next generation," he said. "That's the only way the next generation is going to start the healing process — and that's true reconciliation."