RECONCILIATION: MOVING FORWARD TOGETHER - INTRODUCTION
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stories.” 10 Thistle also identifies specific causes and barriers that contribute to the disproportionate exclusion of Indigenous peoples from safe and affordable housing, including: 11 • Displacement and dispossession of Indigenous peoples from their lands into unsuitable locations, which has contributed to increased poverty and poor housing; • Underfunding of Indigenous housing by the federal, provincial and territorial governments of Canada; • Colonial state-imposed laws and acts that were enacted upon Indigenous peoples to assimilate and eradicate them (e.g., the Indian Act); and, • Assimilation into housing types that are culturally inappropriate and do not correlate with Indigenous definitions of “home.” 12 Furthermore, Canada’s laws and policies were created based on notions of Indigenous inferiority and European superiority and have facilitated discrimination against Indigenous peoples. These laws resulted in disparities and inequalities between Indigenous peoples and broader Canadian society. To begin addressing these disparities, the TRC published a set of 94 Calls to Action to hold individuals, organizations, and governments accountable to reconciling past harms and inequities against Indigenous peoples. Reconciliation is about acknowledging and addressing these inequalities and working to establish and maintain a mutually respectful relationship between Indigenous and non- Indigenous peoples. Reconciliation is about ensuring systemic and cultural change to eliminate racist and discriminatory practices, policies, and approaches within organizations and in the business that they pursue as well as building respectful and trust-based relationships. Reconciliation is a process and not a destination or a singular goal to be achieved. It means instilling a way of thinking and being within the organization that aligns with a decolonized system led by people who are prepared to challenge themselves in a way that asks: • Am I taking the time to reflect on what reconciliation means to me? • Am I adapting my way of thinking and doing to reflect what I learn about decolonization and reconciliation? • Am I working to help recognize and restore Indigenous worldviews, cultural ways and traditions? • Am I replacing any Western interpretations of history with Indigenous perspectives of history? 10 Jesse Thistle, “Indigenous Definition of Homelessness in Canada,” Toronto: Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Press. Accessed August 25, 2020. 11 Ibid. 12 In opposition to the common colonialist definition of homelessness, Thistle offers a more comprehensive definition of Indigenous homelessness that is understood through the lens of Indigenous worldviews. See https://homelesshub.ca/sites/default/files/COHIndigenousHomelessnessDefinition.pdf
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