Mount Royal Spirit Walk brings hope, healing to Indigenous women and children

For Lynn Skawennati Jacobs, healing means reconnecting with the sky, water, trees and stones — the bones of her ancestors and the record keepers of Indigenous knowledge. 

In July, Jacobs will travel into the mountains — the wilderness, an extension of her family — but she will not go alone. For the second straight summer, she is heading a retreat for Indigenous women and their children overcoming intergenerational traumas.

"In the women, I see an inner power that needs to be reignited. It's always there and spirit is always there, but sometimes life circumstances can almost [make it] feel like it's being snuffed out," said Jacobs.

On Saturday, the Native Women's Shelter of Montreal — a shelter dedicated to providing First Nations, Inuit and Métis women and children with front-line services — organized the ninth edition of the annual Spirit Walk and so far has raised over $40,000.

The goal is to send women at the shelter on the five-day retreat with Jacobs and fund other projects like a housing facility and a social pediatric centre.

Nakuset, executive director of the Native Women's Shelter of Montreal, calls the retreat "an exercise in reconciliation." 

As part of the retreat, the women at the shelter and their children will take part in sweat lodge ceremonies, workshops and a range of other activities led by other Indigenous community members.

A survivor of the Sixties Scoop, Nakuset called on Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples to walk side-by-side on Mount Royal for 2.5 kilometres in common cause to support the women.

"The women who come to the shelter have an incredibly difficult time. They're leaving their communities to come to the city. They're trying to find solutions to their problems. They're fighting all the systemic racism and discrimination," she said.

"It's almost like an avalanche of issues that they're facing and they never get a chance to just stop and breathe," Nakuset added. "When you come back, you'll be ready to face these issues and you'll have the tools to do it."

In August, the Native Women's Shelter of Montreal will be home to the social pediatric centre as well as a 23-unit housing project for women once they have regained stability, said Nakuset.

For Kanien'kehá:ka (Mohawk) elder Otsitsaken:ra Patton, the event was about a multi-generational gathering of Indigenous peoples embracing cultural identities silenced by residential schools and colonial rule.  

"Our people have wounded identities. We have wounded spirits … they say there's a hole inside of our heart here when we don't have a solid identity," said Patton.

The retreat, Patton said, is an opportunity to reconnect with one's roots and heal as a community. Spiritual healing happens through sharing stories, songs and a common language, he said.

Walking on the mountain path Saturday, Marti Miller wanted to show her support.

"I think that Indigenous women's housing should be important to everyone," said Miller. "It's an excellent cause and it goes to, yeah, really helping women on the front lines."

Sarah Nesbitt also said she wanted to do her part.

"We live on stolen Indigenous land and Indigenous women are at greater risk of having their children taken from them for much less reasons than other people," she said. "And I think it's the least we can do to show up for them."