Truth and Reconciliation
Journey Toward Truth and Reconciliation
DIVERSEcity has a strategic commitment to fostering meaningful relationships with Indigenous communities
At DIVERSEcity Community Resources Society, we are committed to truth and reconciliation as a value, ensuring equitable access to opportunities for all and fostering meaningful relationships with Indigenous partners. We embed Indigenous principles and practices, prioritizing cultural safety and humility in our work.
Land Acknowledgement
DIVERSEcity recognizes that our work takes place on the ancestral, traditional and unceded territories of the SEMYOME (Semiahmoo), q̓ic̓əy̓ (Katzie), kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem), q̓ʷɑ:n̓ƛ̓ən̓ (Kwantlen), qiqéyt (Qayqayt), xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) and sc̓əwaθən məsteyəxʷ (Tsawwassen) First Nations.
The knowledge, traditions and ongoing contributions of these communities are significant in providing context to the work we do, and DIVERSEcity recognizes the importance that reconciliation has in building truly inclusive and strong communities.
It’s Part of our Strategic Platform
Truth and reconciliation is part of our strategic platform. In DIVERSEcity’s Strategic Plan 2024–2025, truth and reconciliation is a value and a priority. We commit to establish meaningful and collaborative relationships with Indigenous communities
and organizations and embed Indigenous knowledge and perspectives into the organization’s policies, programs and decision-making processes.
A Mural Project at DIVERSEcity Surrey Community Campus
As part of DIVERSEcity’s truth and reconciliation journey, we commissioned a hand-painted mural to foster awareness about Indigenous history, culture and arts with the diverse communities we serve. The painting and its symbolism also send a message of harmony among all people, animals and the land.
Coast Salish lead artist Chase Gray imagines the mural as a place where an abundance of food, ecosystems, animals and people coexist and thrive together. Inspired by the Musqueam lands on the Fraser River he calls home, Chase invited another Coast Salish artist Nova Wolf to collaborate on the mural.
Chase describes the mural this way:
“I think of riverbeds, sunlit mornings and stories told for time immemorial. On the bottom is a representation of the land, and the sʔi:ɬqəy̓ (double-headed serpent) carving out the creeks with its massive body, leaving the seeds of the məθkʷəy̓ plant behind it, which will grow into the namesake of Musqueam. Then, of course, there is the river, the reeds and the creatures who care for the river. We have ooligans swimming in the river, which once sustained the people. We have a canoe headed to visit relatives across the waters, being visited by Killer Whale along the way. Eagle and Raven are keeping watch from the skies, while Heron keeps watch from the waters of the Fraser River, which flows throughout the province connecting many different peoples. Every little thing is connected in some way, ensuring growth and sustainability.”
Nova, who has been taking lessons on Musqueam’s hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ language, which has been undergoing revitalization since the 1970s, has named the mural Siyey̓e. The word means family or relations, representing harmony between all.