Reflections on Chief Cadmus Discusses the Road to Reconciliation
I was lucky enough to listen to Chief Cadmus Delorme on the evening of Thursday, October 20, an event sponsored by ASCD Manitoba and COSL. This was the second time I had listened to Chief Cadmus, and I felt both times this was a true privilege and honour to be in his presence. The first time was during the keynote at the U Lead conference hosted at the Banff Springs Hotel in April 2022. As I reflected with Chief Cadmus Delorme following the evening on October 20 with tears in my eyes, I recalled the powerful impact he had on his audience including myself during both engagements. His idea of walking together for reconciliation and the future of this generation was transformative. Personally, I have just completed a meaningful and important path of writing my master's thesis, which as a settler was such an important journey of discovery through a lens of truth and reconciliation. For me, graduating with my Master of Education with a focus on Indigenous ways of knowing in a westernized world is just the start of my commitment to a lifelong journey of reconciliation. Chief Cadmus Delorme describes this road as a long one, but we must begin together. His words struck a chord with so many of us during the U Lead conference and again on October 20: we can begin a new narrative, we have inherited the past, the wrong doings, but let us not stay there. We have the responsibility to move to reconciliation.
Chief Cadmus Delorme went on to describe how currently the western world does not welcome Indigenous worldviews. As a young Indigenous scholar, he wanted to know about the western world, so he completed his master’s in public policy. How ironic, I wanted to know more about Indigenous world views, therefore I studied Indigenous ways of knowing and being and how this can impact educational leadership and our collective journey of reconciliation. I am discovering during my personal journey with Indigenous people, just as Chief Cadmus Delorme describes, Indigenous means relationships. He continues to describe an Indigenous teaching that you show them your heart before you ask for their hand. There is deep meaning here in this analogy. Chief Cadmus Delorme certainly did that in both presentations. His heart for reconciliation and the true meaning of what this entails shone through!
Chief Cadmus Delorme's parents, residential school survivors raised him as a champion, and he in turn is now championing the voices of Indigenous people. He wants us all to reset our compass and understand that the goal of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission is to welcome Indigenous world views. We must invest and better understand the intergenerational trauma that was created from the lack of vertical lineage; the passing down of Indigenous teachings and knowledge, which in turn created horizontal lineage – survival. The calls to actions are not recommendations, they are not check marks or empty land acknowledgements, they are a collective call to change the machine, and this is hard work. In the past, education did not welcome Indigenous ideology and society is now reeling the effects of this omission.
Chief Cadmus Delorme states that the world is challenging right now, but we must bring love and relationships into policy. Indigenous people want to be part of this growth. He challenges us to make an outreach, have an open heart, build relationships, find a path and walk together. We need to create a social investment for a better Canada, by fixing horribly broken relationships. Educators can put this into their hands and move forward in hope. I felt this hope deeply during both presentations by Chief Cadmus Delorme, but I would have loved more time to gain his insight into a deep and complex societal responsibility. I guess I will need to attend more presentations by the transformative and inspiring Chief Cadmus Delorme. Thank you ASCD Manitoba and COSL for bringing his gifts to us.
About The Author
Jacqui Kroeker, She/Her
Treaty #1, Principal, Pembina Trails Collegiate