(Quebec) Between pride and suffering, the native walkers who traveled more than 260 kilometers from Lac-Saint-Jean in support of survivors of residential schools were welcomed with great emotion in Wendake on Tuesday. A few kilometers away, the capital was preparing to welcome Pope Francis.
Updated at 0:36
“I did it for missing children. And for boarding schools. Because I was a boarder,” says Thérèse Thelesh-Bégin. Aged 72, the Innu eldest from Mashteuiatsh, in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, walked the road leading from the Pointe-Bleue boarding school – which she knew too well – to Wendake. A journey of more than 260 kilometers that she describes as a “healing walk”.
Hikers took their first steps on July 21. The march will end this Wednesday on the Plains of Abraham, in time for the arrival of Pope Francis.
“It is a pride for me to see him, and that the pope has come to our lands,” says Ms.me Thelesh-Begin. Like her parents and grandparents before her, the eldest is a believer.
Welcomed as heroes
The 13 walkers were greeted by a small crowd gathered at the Marie-Paule-Sioui-Vincent Health Center in Wendake around 7 p.m. Tuesday.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, THE PRESS
The 13 walkers gathered upon their arrival in Wendake
Proudly waving flags of several nations, wearing traditional dress, walking sticks and even a canoe, the group was cheered and applauded.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, THE PRESS
Many of the Aboriginal people attending the gathering came from as far away as Natashquan or Mingan.
Many of the Aboriginal people attending the gathering came from as far away as Natashquan or Mingan, on the North Shore. Several were wiping away tears.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, THE PRESS
On the left, the Dr Stanley Vollant, Innu surgeon
“Rather than curling up, they started walking, as our ancestors always did,” says Dr.r Stanley Vollant, Innu surgeon, known to have traveled much of Quebec on foot. The organization he founded, Puamun Meshkenu, organized the march in support of residential school survivors. This time, it was the organization’s young executive director, Jay Launière-Mathias, who led the whole thing.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, THE PRESS
Jay Launière-Mathias, Managing Director of Puamun Meshkenu
“It’s a very symbolic march”, continues the Dr Flying. His hope: that the papal visit, however painful it may be because of the bad memories it awakens, will be a turning point for the First Nations.
painful memories
In the 1950s, aged 7 to 10, little Jean-Charles Pietacho, today chief of the Innu nation of Ekuanitshit (Mingan), was torn from his family and brought to the Mani-Utenam boarding school, in more than 170 kilometers. “All the children in the village were brought in a truck,” he recalls. I’m still trying to imagine the village, after…”
Between alcoholism and bad living, Mr. Pietacho experienced the repercussions of this time.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, THE PRESS
Jean-Charles Pietacho, Chief of the Innu Nation of Ekuanitshit
I never told anyone, but I would have rather starved to death [comme mes ancêtres] than to be abused by those who were supposed to protect us.
Jean-Charles Pietacho, Chief of the Innu Nation of Ekuanitshit
And in this sense, the apologies of Pope Francis, made Monday in Alberta, are not enough. Remember that the sovereign pontiff apologized “for the evil committed by many Christians against the indigenous peoples”.
“I would have liked to hear forgiveness in the name of the Catholic Church,” says Mr. Pietacho.
Quebec is getting ready
A few kilometers away, the capital was preparing for the arrival of the sovereign pontiff. After two pandemic years, the crowds were swarming among the ancestral buildings and the picturesque streets of Old Quebec. But of all these visitors, few were aware of the arrival of Pope Francis before their visit, observed The Press.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, THE PRESS
Rue Saint-Louis, in Quebec, was bustling on the eve of the visit of Pope Francis.
Sitting on the Plains of Abraham, Severine and Gennaro Cardillo, with their little dog Pryam, had not realized the visit of the sovereign pontiff before organizing their tour through Quebec. “We have a little regret, because we are Europeans and we did not have the opportunity [de voir le pape] the low. »
Several other tourists met on the spot told The Press that they had learned by chance of the coming of the sovereign pontiff. “Honestly, I had no idea,” said Sara Parker, a 22-year-old visiting from Montreal. I learned about the no parking signs! »
For Eduardo Melo, who was celebrating his 70e anniversary on Tuesday, the papal visit is timely. The Catholic man had already planned to come and celebrate in the capital and will take the opportunity to be on the Plains for the arrival of the Pope. “As a Catholic, I think it should have been done long before [la visite et les excuses aux peuples autochtones], he believes. But I’m glad he’s here. »
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, THE PRESS
Marylene Amyot and Pierre Belanger
A little further on, on the walls of the Citadel, Pierre Bélanger and Marylène Amyot were walking. Coming from Cap-Rouge, they chose to come on Tuesday to take advantage of the city center, to be able to avoid it in the coming days. “We want to be sure not to be caught in the hubbub,” explains Mr. Bélanger. We’re not even going to open our television! »