In commemoration of the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation on Sept. 30, UNB Saint John presents the Fall Indigenous Film Series.
Sept. 27, Ganong Hall Lecture Theatre, 7 p.m.
A powerful, documentary film that explores the Festival of Lights, an event in the Wolastuk / Maliseet community of Sitansisk (St. Mary’s First Nation, New Brunswick, Canada). What started in the 1990’s with a few individuals putting up Christmas lights on their houses has become a community event that represents a spirit of generosity, hope and a brighter future for their people and culture.
Sept. 27, Ganong Hall Lecture Theatre, 7 p.m.
A candid and powerful window in the movement to preserve and celebrate Wolastoqui culture and identity, including the calls to formally reclaim the name of the Wolastuq (Saint John) River.
Sept. 28, Ganong Hall Lecture Theatre, 7 p.m.
Host Shane Chartrand explores the iconic North Pacific Cannery on Canada's West Coast. Shane cooks a traditional seal meat stew.
Sept. 28, Ganong Hall Lecture Theatre, 7 p.m.
In her award-winning documentary, director Alethea Arnaquq-Baril joins a new tech-savvy generation of Inuit as they campaign to challenge long-established perceptions of seal hunting. Armed with social media and their own sense of humour and justice, this group is bringing its own voice into the conversation and presenting themselves to the world as a modern people in dire need of a sustainable economy.
Sept. 29, Ganong Hall Lecture Theatre, 7 p.m.
In a pounding critique of Canada's colonial history, this short film draws parallels between the annihilation of the bison in the 1890s and the devastation inflicted on the Indigenous population by the residential school system.
Sept. 29, Ganong Hall Lecture Theatre, 7 p.m.
In this feature film, the profound impact of the Canadian government’s residential school system is conveyed through the eyes of two children who were forced to face hardships beyond their years. As young children, Lyna and Glen were taken from their homes and placed in church-run boarding schools, where they suffered years of physical, sexual and emotional abuse, the effects of which persist in their adult lives. We Were Children gives voice to a national tragedy and demonstrates the incredible resilience of the human spirit.