My Apology to Indigenous Canadians
Mar. 30th, 2022 09:10 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dogriverWhen I was a kid growing up in the seventies, the consensus held by many people was that Indigenous Canadians were inferior to the rest of us. I don't think people, at least most people, were deliberately or intentionally cruel, but we still were; the proof is in the pudding, or as the Bible says, we are known by our fruits. I'm sure most Indigenous Canadians didn't say, Oh gosh, they didn't intend to treat us like dirt, it just happens. So ultimately, good intentions - or rather, lack of bad intentions - are irrelevant. It's what we said, what we did, what we thought, that counts.
I was not innocent in all this. I wasn't openly hostile, at least I don't recall being so, but I harbored stereotypes, I harbored a feeling of superiority, I harbored prejudicial thoughts. I was guilty.
Over time, as I grew to understand life, humanity, and atitudes better, I learned the errors of my ways. I was appalled by terms like "indian giver" and other things that, as a child, I said quite freely. I realized the damage that my prejudicial and stereotypical thoughts did. I grew up.
Do I have it down perfectly now? No, I don't. I think that, if we examine ourselves carefully and honesty, there is prejudice to one degree or another in every single human being on the planet. This doesn't mean that we're all a bunch of Archie Bunkers or Archie Bunker wannabes, but it does mean that we are imperfect, it does mean that we are all paying the consequences for the arrogance in humanity that was the Tower of Babel. We all, each and every one of us, still has growing up to do.
Prejudice, stereotyping, treating anyone as inferior to ourselves based on race, creed, color, gender, or anything else, is evil. I have been guilty at various times in my life of that evil. I can't speak for anyone else, it's something we must all decide to do on our own. I can only speak for myself.
To my Indigenous brothers and sisters, I want to say a huge, heartfelt apology for my part in that evil. that evil can't be excused by intentions or the lack of them; it can't be excused by circumstance; it can't be excused by anything; for the evil of racism, prejudice and stereotyping, there is no excuse. I want to say that I am very sorry.If you are reading this and I have hurt you in any way because of the evil of racism, stereotyping or prejudice, I throw myself at your mercy and ask your forgiveness. And if I make mistakes in this regard in the future, which this imperfect human being is sure to do, I hope that I will be made aware of this so I can attempt to repent and make reparations.
Some people reading this may think that what I'm doing is going overboard, or doing something unnecessary, but I don't believe this to be the case. For hundreds of years, Indigenous Canadians have been told that they are not worthy of personhood. And if my atitudes, behaviors and words have contributed to this in any way, I need to repent, and I need to do so openly. It's the only way. It's far too easy to say, "I didn't do it", or "that other person was far worse than I was". It's far too easy to say, "I abhor racism, therefore I am not racist." It's far harder to say, "I've made mistakes, inexcusable mistakes, and I need to repent." I have infinitely more respect for someone who admits they've been wrong than for someone who denies it or covers up their own sins by trying hard to show the world how racist they're not; or by yelling at the top of their lungs about the racism of others to deflect attention from their own issues. Cowards deny it; real men and women fess up to it, take ownership of it, and realizes that the road to reconciliation starts with one person.
I was not innocent in all this. I wasn't openly hostile, at least I don't recall being so, but I harbored stereotypes, I harbored a feeling of superiority, I harbored prejudicial thoughts. I was guilty.
Over time, as I grew to understand life, humanity, and atitudes better, I learned the errors of my ways. I was appalled by terms like "indian giver" and other things that, as a child, I said quite freely. I realized the damage that my prejudicial and stereotypical thoughts did. I grew up.
Do I have it down perfectly now? No, I don't. I think that, if we examine ourselves carefully and honesty, there is prejudice to one degree or another in every single human being on the planet. This doesn't mean that we're all a bunch of Archie Bunkers or Archie Bunker wannabes, but it does mean that we are imperfect, it does mean that we are all paying the consequences for the arrogance in humanity that was the Tower of Babel. We all, each and every one of us, still has growing up to do.
Prejudice, stereotyping, treating anyone as inferior to ourselves based on race, creed, color, gender, or anything else, is evil. I have been guilty at various times in my life of that evil. I can't speak for anyone else, it's something we must all decide to do on our own. I can only speak for myself.
To my Indigenous brothers and sisters, I want to say a huge, heartfelt apology for my part in that evil. that evil can't be excused by intentions or the lack of them; it can't be excused by circumstance; it can't be excused by anything; for the evil of racism, prejudice and stereotyping, there is no excuse. I want to say that I am very sorry.If you are reading this and I have hurt you in any way because of the evil of racism, stereotyping or prejudice, I throw myself at your mercy and ask your forgiveness. And if I make mistakes in this regard in the future, which this imperfect human being is sure to do, I hope that I will be made aware of this so I can attempt to repent and make reparations.
Some people reading this may think that what I'm doing is going overboard, or doing something unnecessary, but I don't believe this to be the case. For hundreds of years, Indigenous Canadians have been told that they are not worthy of personhood. And if my atitudes, behaviors and words have contributed to this in any way, I need to repent, and I need to do so openly. It's the only way. It's far too easy to say, "I didn't do it", or "that other person was far worse than I was". It's far too easy to say, "I abhor racism, therefore I am not racist." It's far harder to say, "I've made mistakes, inexcusable mistakes, and I need to repent." I have infinitely more respect for someone who admits they've been wrong than for someone who denies it or covers up their own sins by trying hard to show the world how racist they're not; or by yelling at the top of their lungs about the racism of others to deflect attention from their own issues. Cowards deny it; real men and women fess up to it, take ownership of it, and realizes that the road to reconciliation starts with one person.
