Truth and Reconciliation with Ookomis Donna Debassige

Bemaadizijig Ganoonindwaa: Talking to People

Ookomis Donna Debassige shares her experiences as a survivor of the Spanish Indian Residential School for Girls. We talk about the effects that residential schools, government policies and religion had on her community, and her advocacy work. Ookomis Donna also shares her hopes and expectations for the September 30th National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, for both her fellow survivors and for the community at large.

Ookomis Donna Debassige is a citizen of Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory, is a mother of three children and a grandmother to four grandsons. She is a fluent speaker of Odawa and a member of the Raindance Lodge.

Ookomis Donna is the Lake Huron Representative for the Getzijig (Elders) Council, and the Kwe-Wuk (Women's) Council. Ookomis Donna is the lead Elder and Survivor providing guidance and direction for the Anishinabek Nation’s Reconciliation initiatives. She is an active member in the Anishinabek Nation Caring Community group, made up of lead communities and technicians doing the searches at previous residential school sites. She also does advocacy work on the provincial and national levels, including with Survivors Advisory Circle for the Office of the Independent Special Interlocutor for Missing Children and Unmarked Graves and Burial Sites associated with Indian Residential Schools.

Please be advised that listeners may be triggered by this recount of Indian Residential Schools. To access a 24-hour National Indian Residential School Crisis Line, dial 1-866-925-4419.

For emotional support resources, visit the Indian Residential Schools Resolution Health Support Program at: https://www.sac-isc.gc.ca/eng/1581971225188/1581971250953

For more resources about Indian Residential, Day and Industrial Schools, visit the Anishinabek Nation’s website at: http://www.anishinabek.ca/irs

This podcast is produced by the Communications Department at the Anishinabek Nation.

Music: “Brothers” by Wolf Saga and Chippewa Travellers, “Late Shift Paint for the Commissaries” and “A Glaring Falsehood” by Justin Delorme and “Winding River” by Bryden Gwiss Kiwenzie, licensed through Nagamo Publishing, and Feather Waltz, by Kevin MacLeod.

Click here for the episode transcript.