Dearest reader,
As you are surely aware, this publication, my beloved patron, examined recently in some detail the concern of indigenous reconciliation. Amongst the points to be found most preeminent was the suggestion that the Young Building, the most venerable premise between our two campuses, be redecorated with some form of First Nations’ art. This is the better to prevent its disturbing the sensibilities of those who find it reminiscent of a residential school. I regard this an excellent idea, if only the beginning of a most desirable trend in local architectural and cultural rebranding.
As the sentiments of opinion-makers have designated Edwardian architecture a representation of cultural genocide and an affront to the dignity of at least some of the population, the city of Victoria, in addition to our own Camosun establishment, has a great deal of work ahead of it. With the aid of our local craftspeople, such as those who provided us with Na’tsa’maht, our eventual success in erasing all local reminders of a less tolerant and enlightened age is assured.
As some may opine that the history of all peoples and cultures is mired in blood and conquest, I here take the opportunity to remind them of that very history. Shedding what trappings of the city’s European heritage remain, from the barbarous Captain Cook statues to the clock tower of our own vile Young Building, will at last ensure that we are guiltless in the atrocities of the past.
It has likewise been suggested, in ignorance, that monetary compensation to the families of those denied educational and employment opportunities at the hands of the residential school system instead be made the focus of our repatriation efforts. This, is, of course, sheer madness. Let not a dollar be spent in aid of the living where two may be spent washing away the stain of those who came before.
Lastly, dearest reader, allow me to impart some small token of advice as we reel down our national banners and instead march forward under the flag of the cultures who first laid claim to this land: there will never be found in this world a suffering so great that it cannot be employed in elevating our own self-image.