A memorial hosted by Grand Council Treaty #3 is being held Saturday in Kenora to remember and mark 55 years since the death of Chanie Wenjack.
Chanie was a 12 year old Anishinaabe boy from Ontario who ran away from his residential school near Kenora on October 16, 1966 with two of his friends during their time on the playground. It was a week later his body was discovered by a passing train engineer, dying from exposure and hunger. Chanie was found with only seven matches and a small glass jar.
This tragic event led to the first national inquest into the treatment of Indigenous children in residential schools. The inquest involved five individuals who determined it was important to look into the emotional and physical effects that occur to children who are in residential schools.
The event has inspired many tributes from Canadian artists including late Tragically Hip frontman Gord Downie, who in 2016 released the project The Secret Path. It included a film, graphic novel, and album.
This is a statement Downie released just over a year prior to his passing:
Chanie haunts me. His story is Canada’s story. This is about Canada. We are not the country we thought we were. History will be re-written. We are all accountable, but this begins in the late 1800s and goes to 1996. “White” Canada knew – on somebody’s purpose – nothing about this. We weren’t taught it; it was hardly ever mentioned.
Oct. 17-22 is now recognized as Secret Path Week. It includes students participating in the ‘Walk for Wenjack’ which helps the younger generation understand residential schools and the lasting impact they have had on Indigenous communities across the country.
The Saturday gathering in Kenora will feature a sacred fire and drum. All who attend will have to show proof of double vaccination, and all public health protocols must be followed.
Chanie’s legacy is survived by what is now an extensive Wenjack family that has over 200 members across Canada.