Honouring the Story of Wenjack Theatre Namesake with Screening of The Secret Path at Trent University
Community invited to screening event and reconciliation panel discussion; Sunday, October 23
Chanie Wenjack, a twelve-year-old boy who passed away escaping from a residential school in Northern Ontario, and the namesake of Trent University’s Wenjack Theatre, will be honoured and remembered on Sunday, October 23, 2016 at a special panel discussion, and live screening event of Gord Downie’s film The Secret Path.
The screening, which will aptly take place in Wenjack Theatre, named in Chanie’s honour when construction on Otonabee College began in 1973, will be preceded with a panel discussion about Canada’s history of residential schools, their lasting impact, and how we move forward through reconciliation. Panelists include: Shirley Williams, professor emeritus, and residential school survivor; Dr. John Milloy, professor emeritus and special advisor to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission; Karissa Dawn Martin, Indigenous Studies and History student, Trent University; and Liz Stone, executive director of Niijkiwendidaa Anishnaabe-Kwewag, a not-for-profit organization that delivers counselling and healing services for Indigenous, Aboriginal, First Nations, Metis, and Inuit women and their families.
“We are pleased to be able to show the film and discuss the legacy of Indian Residential Schools as well as the many efforts underway to help to heal,” explains David Newhouse, faculty member, and chair of the Department of Indigenous Studies at Trent University. “It is through understanding our history that we take steps to ensure that this does not happen again. We all have a part to play in reconciliation. It starts with educating ourselves.”
The film, which will be live-screened 50 years ago to the day that Chanie’s body was discovered, was created by Gord Downie, lead singer of the Tragically Hip as a means of shedding light on the story of Chanie Wenjack.
The event is presented, and supported by the Indigenous Studies department, the Centre for Teaching and Learning, the First Peoples House of Learning, the Office of the Provost, the Trent Colleges and the Trent School of Education and Professional Learning. This is a free event, however organizers ask those planning to attend to RSVP via the Facebook event.
About Trent University
One of Canada's top universities, Trent University was founded on the ideal of interactive learning that's personal, purposeful and transformative. Consistently recognized nationally for leadership in teaching, research and student satisfaction, Trent attracts excellent students from across the country and around the world. Here, undergraduate and graduate students connect and collaborate with faculty, staff and their peers through diverse communities that span residential colleges, classrooms, disciplines, hands-on research, co-curricular and community-based activities. Across all disciplines, Trent brings critical, integrative thinking to life every day. Today, Trent's unique approach to personal development through supportive, collaborative community engagement is in more demand than ever. Students lead the way by co-creating experiences rooted in dialogue, diverse perspectives and collaboration. In a learning environment that builds life-long passion for inclusion, leadership and social change, Trent's students, alumni, faculty and staff are engaged global citizens who are catalysts in developing sustainable solutions to complex issues. Trent's Peterborough campus boasts award-winning architecture in a breathtaking natural setting on the banks of the Otonabee River, just 90 minutes from downtown Toronto, while Trent University Durham – Greater Toronto Area delivers a distinct mix of programming in the east GTA.
For more information contact: Kate Weersink, media relations & strategic communications officer, Trent University, 705-748-1011 x6180 or kateweersink@trentu.ca