Two-day Indigenous Legacy Gathering to be held in Nathan Phillips Square
Toronto’s Legacy Gathering acknowledges and honours residential school survivors and those affected intergenerationally
The City of Toronto will join the Toronto Council Fire Native Cultural Centre (TCFNCC) for the Indigenous Legacy Gathering event today and tomorrow, to acknowledge and honour residential school survivors and those affected intergenerationally.
Undertaken by TCFNCC, in collaboration with the City, the Indigenous Legacy Gathering will showcase and celebrate the diversity of Indigenous Peoples’ cultures, traditions and languages through workshops, presentations, stories, teachings, dance, film and music.
Tipis designed by Indigenous artists and youth will again transform Nathan Phillips Square. Both days will begin with a sunrise ceremony, followed by featured speakers and presentations. Evening programming will feature special entertainment each night. All programming and workshops are family-friendly, safe, and free to the public.
Spirit Garden at Toronto’s Nathan Phillips Square
Also, the gathering will also promote the Spirit Garden as a permanent structure responding to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada Call to Action 82. The Spirit Garden will honour residential school survivors and all the children who were lost to their families and communities. The spirit garden is set to be completed in 2023. In April, Toronto City Council allocated an additional $2 million towards the construction of the Spirit Garden, also known as the Indian Residential School Survivors (IRSS) Restoration of Identity Project, on Nathan Phillips Square to honour residential school survivors and all the children who were lost to their families and communities.
The two-metre tall turtle sculpture, by Anishinaabe artist Solomon King, represents Turtle Island, also referred to as Mother Earth. The turtle, climbing over a one-metre tall boulder, elevated on a platform, will identify the names of the 17 residential schools that once operated in Ontario. The design of the Spirit Garden revolves around the turtle sculpture and will include elements representing First Nations, Inuit and Métis cultures, including a teaching lodge, amphitheatre, a Three Sisters teaching garden, a voyageur canoe and an inuksuk. The spirit garden will also incorporate the White Pine, or Tree of Peace, a key element of the Kuswenta, also known as the Two Row Wampum, which lays the foundation for all relations.
“We are proud to collaborate with Toronto Council Fire Native Cultural Centre to honour the resilience and vitality of residential school survivors and their families to build this important legacy project and advance reconciliation,” said Toronto Mayor John Tory.
More information is available online .
The Indigenous Legacy Gathering is designed with guidance from Toronto Public Health to provide a safer environment for participants. As per Provincial regulations, proof of vaccination is required to participate.
“The Indigenous Legacy Gathering celebrates and honours the resilience of residential school survivors and their families and is an important form of reconciliation. The City is proud to collaborate with Toronto Council Fire Native Cultural Centre on this vital event at Nathan Phillips Square. I invite Torontonians to visit Nathan Phillips Square to honour survivors and their families, while exploring, learning about and participating in Indigenous activities.”
– Mayor John Tory
Those wishing to attend the Indigenous Legacy Gathering may register here .
TCFNCC is an autonomous, vibrant cultural agency that involves and serves the Indigenous community with confidence for, and commitment to, their well-being. The agency’s mandate is to provide counselling, material assistance and other direct services to First Nations people, as well as to encourage and enhance their spiritual and personal growth.
More information about the Toronto Fire Council and the Indigenous Legacy Gathering is available online .
photo by Will Emorey
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