Manitoba funds Truth and Reconciliation Week programming

A rock with the message 'Every Child Matters' painted on it sits at a memorial outside the former Kamloops Indian Residential School, in Kamloops, B.C., on Thursday, July 15, 2021. (Darryl Dyck / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Winnipeg -

The Province of Manitoba has pledged $75,000 in funding for a host of Truth and Reconciliation Week events including workshops, activities and performances.

Education Minister Cliff Cullen and Indigenous Reconciliation and Northern Relations Minister Alan Lagimodiere made the announcement in a news release Wednesday.

“This will provide educational leaders an incredible opportunity not only for their students, but also for themselves to better understand, reflect and learn about Indigenous history,” Cullen said in the release.

The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR) will lead the week of programming, which runs from Sept. 27 to Oct. 1.

“Truth and Reconciliation Week is an opportunity for every person in Manitoba to listen and learn from the voices of survivors, elders and knowledge keepers as we walk the path of reconciliation together,” said NCTR Executive Director Stephanie Scott.

The province said the NCTR will host workshops and activities for students with artistic and cultural performances by First Nations, Metis and Inuit artists.

The NCTR will also offer video content that builds greater awareness among Canadian youth, the province said, demonstrating the inter-connectedness of Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, while exemplifying how honouring Indigenous knowledge is key to building an equitable country.

The province said activities will focus on school-aged kids in grades 5 to 12 in all 10 provinces and territories. The programming will touch on land and treaties, language and culture, truth and reconciliation, Orange Shirt Day, and elder-youth knowledge transfer.

“These events will focus on increasing awareness, knowledge and understanding among youth to encourage reflection and meaningful discussions about the impacts of residential schools. It will also give youth the opportunity to learn about the important contributions that Indigenous peoples have made and continue to make in our province and across Canada, and the importance of respecting the treaties and embracing cultural diversities,” Lagimodiere said.

This comes after the NCTR registered over 500,000 participants for the event in 2020. Over 3,000 schools and Indigenous communities participated.

According to the province, both Ontario and Manitoba provided funding for Truth and Reconciliation Week in 2020 - the only two jurisdictions to do so.