ESTEVAN - During his time as the chief of the Cowessess First Nation, located north of Broadview, Cadmus Delorme became well known for his leadership as he tried to create a better life for people on the reserve.
Delorme was the keynote speaker at the first-ever South East Summit, held May 23 at the Southeast College's Estevan campus. In his speech, There Can be No Reconciliation Without Truth, Delorme reflected on his experiences with his family, his time as the Cowessess chief, and stressed the importance of education. Despite the serious nature of the topic, Delorme often incorporated humour.
He stressed that nobody in the room created the residential school system, the Indian Act or the '60s Scoop. But everyone has inherited problems associated with these measures.
"When we inherit something, we have a responsibility to do something about it," said Delorme. "One of the things I find as a very proud Indigenous person and a very proud Canadian, is that the majority of Canadians, your heart is with reconciliation."
Delorme never attended a residential school but his parents did. He described his upbringing as a family filled with love.
As a youth, Delorme found a love for golf at the Cowessess golf course. He recalled competing at the Golf Saskatchewan junior provincials at Mainprize Regional Park near Midale when he was 16, and being the only Indigenous person entered.
"Nobody was rude to me or ignorant to me, but I, right away, talked myself into it that I didn't belong here," said Delorme.
He struggled at that event and at another, but became better, won provincial events and has represented Saskatchewan at 13 national events.
"I can stand here, with the confidence to share with you, knowing that I belong in this room, just from the fact that my father and mother raised me through sports," said Delorme.
He also told the crowd how the experiences of his parents and other members of his family led to a distrust of police. Delorme was worried each time he saw a police officer when he was young. He told the crowd that when his mother was six years old, she was kept at home by her grandmother. A couple of days later, an RCMP officer came and took Delorme's mother to the train to go to a residential school.
Delorme's parents were worried that he would eventually be taken and told where he had to go to school.
He graduated from high school at Cowessess, but he didn't see value in education. At the urging of his wife, he enrolled at the First Nations University of Canada at the University of Regina and took a class on Indigenous studies. It was the first time he ever heard of residential schools, despite his parents' experiences and the presence of a residential school at Cowessess until 1996. He became angry and frustrated as he heard about what happened.
"My parents held it from me to protect me," said Delorme. "Today, when we talk about truth and reconciliation, to my Canadian friends and family, you're on a rediscovering journey right now. But just remember, Indigenous people, especially us young ones, we're also rediscovering it right now, too. We can't assume that just one side knows the history."
He believes truth has to come before reconciliation, but many bypass the truth phase and become frustrated.
He cited several examples from Canada's past and modern times to demonstrate how Canadians need to be asking the right questions. Drawing on his own experiences, Delorme pointed to the discovery when hundreds of unmarked graves were found at the site of a former residential school at Cowessess nearly three years ago. Sixteen unmarked graveyards have been located in Canada, and he said more will be coming.
Unmarked graves represented validation of what he called the "pain, frustration, anger and tiredness" of trying to be Indigenous. Many people have since told him that what they viewed as the truth wasn't the case.
Generations of Canadians weren't taught about the trauma of residential schools, and many were taught erroneous things about Indigenous people. The younger generations have now heard of them.
"We're the students right now in this moment. Our teachers are our kids. The most important place to talk reconciliation in this province is the kitchen table every one of us goes to for our meals," said Delorme.
It's also important to teach people new to Canada about the history between Indigenous people and Canadians.
Generations of people on his mother's side of the family were taken from their families and sent to residential schools, rather than getting education from their family. They also missed out on affirmation of love, physical touch, quality time and the gift to serve.
Delorme highlighted two worldviews in this province. Everyone lives with a Western Canadian worldview, which Delorme said is so beautiful and has benefitted everyone in the room, but there is also an Indigenous worldview, which is just as beautiful. He said they can co-exist.
Using the example of two canoes, one with the Western worldview and the other with the Indigenous worldview, Delorme said the Indigenous canoe fell behind thanks to the Indian Act. Now they are trying to catch up.
"Pre-1867, when the Dominion of Canada was created … there was a beautiful Indigenous worldview here. There were doctors and nurses and a medical system. There was an economic system. There was an education system. There was a trade system. There was a sports system."
Indigenous people have been trying to share their culture with Canadians, but it's only now that Canadians are starting to understand that worldview. They want to partner with people on projects, but 75 per cent of his time during his seven years as chief from 2016-2023 was managing poverty and 25 per cent was dedicated to furthering business and partnerships.
"We have the talent to be in every room in this country. We lack the resources to lift us to those talented places."
While he was chief, his focus included political sovereignty, economic sustainability and cultural rejuvenation. He decided not to run for re-election in 2023, and has started the OneHoop consulting firm, which emphasizes the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada's Call to Action No. 2, business and reconciliation.
