The City of Victoria’s fifth public reconciliation dialogue in a series of six has been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The May 4 dialogue was cancelled following a public health order banning gatherings of more than 50 people. Other sessions in the series have attracted a few hundred people.
The dialogue was intended to reflect on the discussions that took place during a regional gathering on reconciliation held by the Victoria Urban Reconciliation Dialogues.
Mayor Lisa Helps said it’s too early to say when the event might go ahead or whether it might go virtual. Previous dialogues have been interactive, with facilitators posing questions to participants to reflect on in small groups.
“Part of the magic of the experience is being there in the room,” Helps said.
Sessions in the series focused on Lekwungen history and culture, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the role of newcomers in reconciliation and the place for monuments to controversial historical figures such as Sir John A. Macdonald.
A sixth event to discuss the future of reconciliation from the perspective of Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth is scheduled for July 6.
The goal of the dialogue series is to provide opportunities for community members to discuss how they can make the culture, history and lived reality of local Indigenous peoples more visible and valued in the city. The sessions build on each other and are designed to be attended as a series.
Archived webcasts of the first four dialogues in the series can be found on the City of Victoria’s website.
