Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc (Kamloops Indian Band)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Join Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc on September 30 at 2:15 pm Pacific to drum and sing for the missing children of Indian Residential Schools.
September 17, 2021, Kamloops – Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc calls on people worldwide to drum simultaneously for the missing children of Indian Residential Schools for the first Canadian National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, this September 30 at 2:15 pm Pacific time.
After a global outpouring of interest and support for the missing children from the Kamloops Indian Residential School, Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc is offering a way for people to connect, support and ground into the importance of this very first Canadian National Day of Truth and Reconciliation. Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc is calling upon people around the world to gather – safely – to drum and sing with us for the missing children of Indian Residential Schools.
“It’s time to honour the children, and the unrelenting spirit of these Ancestors. It’s time to drum for the healing of the Indian Residential Schools Survivors who carried the burden of knowing where the children were buried, and to drum for the healing of the families and communities whose children did not come home,” stated Kukpi7 Rosanne Casimir.
Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc is urging everyone to learn the Secwepemc Honour Song so that all who join in may do so in unity with drumbeat and voice. The song is available through Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc social media channels as well as on the dedicated web page https://tkemlups.ca/drum/
“We invite you to share this song, to teach it and record it in schools, workplaces, and living rooms. Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc is calling upon the world to help us shine a light on truth, the pursuit of justice and peace, as well as healing for all affected by these beloved missing children. The confirmation of the missing children has impacted people locally, regionally, nationally and even globally. Secwepemc Elders have said that it is the children that are going to bring us together. We want to make the world a better place for children everywhere and give them hope and assurances, that every child matters,” declared Kukpi7 Rosanne Casimir.
Contact: Racelle Kooy Email: media@kib.ca
Access to B-roll of Kukpi7 Rosanne Casimir drumming in front of the Kamloops Indian Residential School and of the Secwepemc Honour Song Recording (featuring Secwepemc hand drummers): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-Eyoe4vpa6X1uJPP6xaCENboCgCqa8mv/view?usp=sharing
Access to additional visual assets of “Every Child Matters Drum” and Tk’emlups te Secwepemc drum being struck (held against a blue sky background) can be downloaded from the dedicated web page: https://tkemlups.ca/drum/
200-330 Chief Alex Thomas Way, Kamloops BC V2H 1H1 Phone: 250-828-9700 Fax: 250-372-8833 www.tkemlups
DETAILS
Even though we are unable to gather together physically in great numbers due to COVID 19, we want to encourage a sense of unity and engagement so we ask everyone to join in drumming with us at 2:15 Pacific Time . We look forward to bearing witness to people joining us, from Secwepemcúlecw, our homelands, to around the world – connected by an honour song for the children in our care as well as for those laying to rest in other areas.
We chose 2:15 pm Pacific Time because as 215 was the number that made a ripple around the world at the end of May of this year (2021) about the truth of missing children in unmarked graves at the sites of former Indian Residential Schools as it revealed the truth of the historic mistreatment of Indigenous children. The time was chosen as a way to honour those who are currently in Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc caretakership. Since the news about the 215 at Tk’emlúps, more missing children have been confirmed at other Indian Residential School sites in Canada and the United States. At Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc, we know that our work has only just begun.
As this is a worldwide call out for participation, it is challenging to coordinate everyone online at the same so we request that you film yourself, post it on social media and tag us by using the hashtag #DrumForTheChildren
Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc Social Media : Twitter: @Tkemlups
Facebook: @TkemlupsteSecwepemc Instagram: @Tkemlups_te_Secwepemc
Dedicated Web Page: https://tkemlups.ca/drum/
Background
Canadian–National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, details of the federal legislation (Bill C-5):
https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/news/2020/09/government-of-canada-introduces-legislation-to- establish-national-day-for-truth-and-reconciliation.html
https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/corporate/transparency/open-government/standing-committee/dm- transition-material-2021/bill-c5-national-day-truth-reconciliation.html
Why is September 30th also know as Orange Shirt Day, the importance of orange as well as the origin of “Every Child Matters:
https://www.orangeshirtday.org/orange-shirt-society.html
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