On tragedy, grief and unmet needs

Rough week and it’s only Wednesday.

Yesterday the labour movement was shocked and shattered by the news of the death of a colleague and activist that many of us have known and worked with for decades.

Today I woke up to two pieces of news - a murder-suicide in nearby Kitigan Zibi in which a father shot two children and then himself. It is a community our family is very familiar with as we stop there for necessities enroute to our cottage. It’s a community that has dealt with tragedy before , including the disappearance of two teenage girls. I have see that community rally in response to grief and loss - like the dozens of orange shirts that lined the highway that runs through it following the Kelowna discovery.

It’s a community whose elders and knowledge keepers I and other colleagues and friends have turned to for guidance and wisdom on many occasions. There are so many leaders that have come out of Kitigan Zibi - Claudette Commanda, William Commanda, Albert Dumont, Bridget Tolley… and many more.

My heart goes out to every person in and from Kitigan Zibi today.

The second piece of news was about the mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge. More children lost, as well as a teacher, a mother and a sibling. More guns used to kill and maim. A community left grieving, traumatized and devastated. And a different community put at risk because of toxic misinformation and disinformation.

I am trying to be gentle with myself and acknowledge the feelings - the confusion, the sadness, the despair and the rage.

It’s going to take some processing time for all of us. What I am processing at the moment includes some thoughts about unmet needs, who systems leave behind, and what real, meaningful prevention, care and support look like.

This is the time for grief. But then we need to turn to change, to political will and to real leadership. That day will come, but today I am sending and receiving virtual and IRL hugs.