Residents are invited to participate in City of Delta hosted Blanket Exercises taking place on September 30 and October 2 to honour the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
There is no registration fee to attend; however, pre-registration through Delta’s Online Registration System is required to confirm your participation. Note, there is a maximum of 40 participants per exercise, so space is limited.
What is a Blanket Exercise?
A Blanket Exercise is an interactive and experiential teaching tool that explores the historic and contemporary relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. Participants step onto blankets representing land, and into the role of First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples. The exercise facilitators, playing the roles of a European "settler" and narrator, walk the group through a script (there is an adult script and a youth script), telling the story of the first contact between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. As the script progresses, blankets are folded and made smaller, representing the results of the loss of land by treaty and newly legislated reserves. People are asked to step off their blankets, symbolizing disease, war, and extinction. Blankets are removed or moved to other areas, showing the way land was taken and peoples relocated. The exercise concludes with participants discussing the experience in a healing circle.
When & Where are the Blanket Exercises?
- September 30, 10am-1pm; Register for the Blanket Exercise in Ladner at the Harris Barn
- October 2, 10am-1pm; Register for the Blanket Exercise in North Delta at the North Delta Recreation Centre
What should participants bring?
The Blanket Exercise requires participants to remove their shoes before stepping onto the blankets. As such, participants that may be uncomfortable in bare feet should consider wearing socks or other foot covering.
Register now through Delta's online registration system by selecting one of the above scheduled Blanket Exercises.
Visit delta.ca/truthandreconciliation to learn about the actions undertaken by
the City to honour the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Contact
For more information about the City-hosted Blanket Exercises, please contact Paula Kolisnek, Senior Corporate Policy Analyst, by email at PKolisnek@delta.ca or call 604-952-3142.