Conversations that could shape Indigenous reconciliation in Old Ottawa East

A December gathering organized by The Mainstreeter highlighted emerging initiatives and projects – and a growing desire to work together on the community’s Truth and Reconciliation efforts.

SARAH PLEDGE DICKSON

   Community members gathered in December to identify and discuss a variety of initiatives they’ve been working on or contemplating to advance Truth and Reconciliation in Old Ottawa East (OOE). The Mainstreeter also attended the meeting to help organize and facilitate the conversation between the various community groups and individuals active in the Indigenous reconciliation process.

   The community’s reconciliation initiatives are still in the early stages, but according to those attending the meeting, the hope is that through collaboration, community members can unite in order to get some or all of the projects that have been identified off the ground.

   Tom Scott, a long-time OOE community association member, has been advocating for the creation of an Indigenous language university in Ottawa. He told the meeting that realizing this goal would put Indigenous curriculum at the forefront and make it accessible for other groups in Canada.

   “The main aim of an Indigenous university is to develop curricula so that other areas across Canada can develop their own colleges based on their own languages,” Scott said. “It’s not a translation of the Ontario curriculum; it is theirs in their language. What better place to have a core language university to give instruction in Indigenous language than here in Ottawa?”

   Peter Croal, who volunteers with The Mainstreeter, is also the co-founder of the National Healing Forest initiative which works to “create green spaces throughout Canada to honour residential school victims, survivors, and their families, as well as murdered and missing Indigenous women and girls, and children who have been or were removed from their families,” according to the organization’s website.

      Croal, a geologist who resides in Old Ottawa East, participated in one of the first healing walks in 2015.

     “I was walking along and thinking, what can I do as a citizen with these 97 calls to action in the Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission?” he recalled at the December meeting. “I thought that it’s impossible to talk about reconciliation inside constructed spaces that are designed by the culture that caused the trauma in the first place. Where else can you talk about reconciliation but outside, connected to the ground.”

   Croal explained that there are now 31 healing forests in Canada, including three in the Ottawa region. 

   The possibility of creating one or two healing forests on each side of the Rideau River, possibly connected by a new footbridge at the edge of Brantwood Park at the eastern end of Clegg Street, was discussed at the meeting. The proposed Clegg Street footbridge is an initiative that OOE resident and community activist, John Dance, has been nurturing for several years.

   The meeting was held at the Canadian Martyrs Church, which has also been making efforts to advance truth and reconciliation by running workshops and educational sessions through a guide created by the Jesuit Forum of Social Faith and Justice called “Listening to Indigenous Voices.”

   Dianne Wing, chairperson of the board of directors of The Mainstreeter, observed that the newspaper’s role in organizing the meeting of the various stakeholders is a part of The Mainstreeter’s objective for 2026 to encourage and foster community engagement.

   “In different ways, The Mainstreeter is trying to reach out and be more connected to all the different Old Ottawa East organizations and the special people that make this community really unique and that take care of it and keep it getting better,” Wing said at the December meeting.

   Lorne Abugov, editor of The Mainstreeter, agreed. “This particular initiative is a perfect opportunity for us because it allows us to collaborate with different organizations and people that are actively involved in trying to do the right thing for Old Ottawa East,” he said at the December meeting. “We [The Mainstreeter] just want to help facilitate and bring people together.”

   All participants at the meeting expressed their hope to create a united coalition of community members and groups looking to advance Truth and Reconciliation efforts across Old Ottawa East. “What we need now is the positive support from Old Ottawa East,” Scott said.

   Some of the representatives who attended the meeting plan to meet next with Capital Ward Councillor Shawn Menard and his staff to brief them on the roster of possible OOE initiatives and to learn more about similar initiatives on the City’s planning board. While a number of those in attendance have already sought consultation with Indigenous groups, they all agree that more work is needed. They anticipate that the next steps will focus on engaging with Indigenous groups. 

If you are interested in getting involved in helping to realize TRC initiatives in Old Ottawa East or have started one of your own, reach out to us at socialweb@mainstreeter.ca.