bringing up the bodies from unmarked graves julian matthews
“the only crime we committed as children was being born indigenous...we will find more bodies and we will not stop until all our children are found,” — chief bobby cameron, federation of sovereign indian nations, 2021 “hey, google define ‘unmarked’ “ “not marked or bearing identifying markings.” when they bring up the bodies from unmarked graves will you see the scarring of their raw flesh will you feel the violation of their fragile frames will you smell the branding of their pink tongues will you hear their muffled cries, alone in the dark, night after night when they bring up the bodies from unmarked graves in canada, will you think of the children in...every other former colony, every conflict zone, every disputed territory, every refugee camp, every squatter slum, every logged rainforest, every place you entered every patch of land you exploited will you think of the children in your city, town, suburb, neighborhood your neighborhood, your next-door neighbor's children, the children in your own home tonight “hey, google define ‘indigenous’ “ “originating or occurring naturally in a particular place; native.” When they bring up the bodies of children from unmarked graves will you google their names, their “tribes”, their culture, their claims will you apologize for the desecration of your forefathers will you forgive the sins of your fathers, and mothers will you start the healing of generation upon generation of unprocessed pain will you break the chain of trauma over trauma will you see through this insanity will you end it all here “hey, google define ‘bring up’ “ “look after a child until it is an adult” when they bring up the bodies of children from unmarked graves will you uncover their white, white bones, stained with guilt and fear and shame, will you unearth only shadows that their beautiful, warm souls left behind, or will you expose their hopes, their dreams, their truth in the sun, all they could have become will you see the sparkle of their eyes — in your own children's eyes will you hear their peals of laughter, their playful shouts of joy their mighty hearts still singing, still singing 16