Month: November 2023

Louis Riel

On this day in 1885, Louis Riel was hanged for High Treason by Canadian authorities. Riel was a Metis leader who led the resistance of his people against the Canadian government in the Red River Rebellion of 1869 and the North-West Rebellion of 1884. Few Canadians can come even close to Riel as a divisive figure in Canadian history. Riel was portrayed as an enemy of Canada by the government of John A. Macdonald, a view that was held by many anglophone Canadians for many years, and still by some today. On the other hand, Metis was a hero to the Metis, to indigenous people in general, and to many French Canadians, and anglophone Catholics. To them Riel represented those that would stand up against the elites whose vision of Canada was dominated by white people, English speakers, and Protestants of Anglo-Saxon heritage. Today more Canadians look favourably upon Riel, a complex figure whose life is entwined with so many problematic issues from Canada’s history that still challenge us today.

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Songs of Peace: “Hero of War”

“Hero of War” is a 2009 song by the American band, Rise Against. Many of the most well known peace and antiwar songs that are most prominent in popular culture come from the 1960s and 1970s, particularly protest songs against the American war in Vietnam. However, there are also many other more recent songs that look critically at more contemporary wars, including the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Have a listen, and spend some time thinking about your response. What do antiwar songs, and songs of peace and alternatives to violence, have to say to us in 2023?

Other “Songs of Peace” in this series:

Happy Bandi Chhor Divas

Happy Bandi Chhor Divas and Happy Diwali

source: SikhNet

On Bandi Chhor Divas, Sikhs celebrate Guru Hargobind, the 6th Guru, who was released from prison, along with many other prisoners, in 1619. The name Bandi Chhor Divas means “Liberation of Prisoners Day.” Sikhs in Canada, India and around the world will celebrate this holy day, which coincides with the Indian holiday known as Diwali.

From the BBC:

According to tradition, Guru Hargobind was released from prison in Gwalior and reached Amritsar on Divali. He would only agree to leave prison if 52 Hindu princes who were in prison with him could also go free. The Emperor Jahangir, said that those who clung to the Guru’s coat would be able to go free. This was meant to limit the number of prisoners who could be released. However, Guru Hargobind had a coat made with 52 tassels attached to it so that all of the princes could leave prison with him.

The story reminds Sikhs of freedom and human rights and this is what they celebrate on Bandi Chhor Divas.

Source: BBC

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Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day is November 11. Today at LTSS we will observe Remembrance Day Assemblies.

Armistice Day was established to honour the fallen of the First World War, which formally ended at “the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.” Later, the name of the day was changed to Remembrance Day. Canadians served and died in another World War, as well as other wars and peacekeeping missions around the globe. Remembrance Day is a national holiday to honour the memory of those Canadians who have fallen in war.  

On Remembrance Day we pay our respect to those that have paid the terrible costs of war. Remembrance Day is not meant to celebrate war or glorify war. War has brought untold suffering and pain to the world. Those who has experienced war, especially those that have lost loved ones in war, know that war is not something to celebrate.

It is also important to remember that Remembrance Day is not one of the those holidays that is just a chance for rest and recreation. Please take some time to reflect on what Remembrance Day is all about. On November 11th at 11:00 AM, plan to take some time to honour those that have died and those that have served. Whether you attend a ceremony in person, or check out the television coverage of the ceremony in Ottawa or other parts of Canada, take some time for Remembrance.

Kazuo Ishiguro

Nobel Prize winning author Kazuo Ishiguro was born on this day in 1954. Ishiguro was born in Japan, but moved to the U.K. with his parents when he was five years old. He grew up to become one of most critically acclaimed authors in the English language, winning a variety of prestigious awards including the Booker Prize in 1989 for his novel, The Remains of the Day, and, for his entire body of work, the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2017.

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Happy Diwali

Happy Diwali and Bandi Chor Divas

‘Tuhanu Diwali diyan boht both vadhaiyan’

Keval Tank, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Diwali is celebrated by millions of people in India, Canada and around the world. Hundreds of millions of Hindus celebrate “the Festival of Lights.” People of other faiths, including Sikhism, also celebrate.

For Sikhs the festival has added significance as it generally coincides with a Sikh celebration known as Bandi Chhor Divas. In 2023 this takes place on November 12.

Many people will celebrate a five day festival from November 10 to 14 in 2023, with the main celebration of Diwali on November 12 . However, it may be celebrated at different times, and in different ways, by various groups in India, South Asia, and in the Indian diaspora.

Diwali may also be rendered as Deepavali or Divali.

For more information on Diwali, check out:

Songs of Peace: Ohio

One of the most famous and influential songs of the antiwar movement of the 1960s and early 1970s is “Ohio”, written by Neil Young and performed by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. So many aspects of youth counter-culture, protests against the Vietnam War, and deep divisions within American society came together tragically as four university students were shot dead, and nine more wounded, at Kent State University in Ohio when the National Guard opened fire against student protestors. Neil Young wrote “Ohio” in reaction to the tragedy at Kent State, and the song was released in June of 1970. It has grown to become known as one the anthems of protest and antiwar activism.

November is Peace Month at your School Library.

Other “Songs of Peace” in this series: