Our Celebrations
ROBINSON HURON 1850TREATY GATHERING By Steven McCoy
When you stand on the shore banks of the St. Mary’s River today, a place known to Anishinaabe people as Bawating, there’s nothing telling the visitor about the significance or the history of this sacred area and what it means to Anishinaabe people. Bawating is an Ojibway term translated into English meaning ‘the place of the rapids’ and Anishinaabe teachings say this is where creation took place; it is the place where life began! Anishinaabe people from all over Turtle Island used to travel for days to gather at Bawating and have continued to do so for millennia. Bawating is also the place where the 21 Lake Huron First Nation Ogimaak came together and entered the Robinson Huron Treaty on September 9, 1850, with the settler governments. This was a very significant moment in time when two nations entered an historic partnership based on a resource sharing agreement, known as the Robinson Huron Treaty, that led to the development of current day Canada. Yet, when you stand on the shore banks of the St. Mary’s River today there are no monuments, there are no plaques, and there are no statues commemorating the historic events that took place here. The true history and stories of Bawating are now being told through the lens of Anishinaabe people and in 2016, the first ever Robinson Huron Treaty Gathering took place in Bawating on the shore banks of the St. Mary’s River. The Robinson Huron Treaty Litigation Management Committee wanted to find more effective ways to communicate to the First Nation communities, members, and the public about the importance of the Treaty and what the annuities case means for members and communities within the Treaty area. In response, a Sacred Council Fire was lit, and First Nation leaders, spiritual guides and pipe carriers gathered around and proceeded with a pipe ceremony to ask for guidance and clarity from the ancestral spirits. As the pipes made their way around the sacred fire, those in 50
| E-Wiindamaagejig: The Robinson Huron Treaty Times
attendance called upon their ancestors and asked how to proceed in a good way. From that ceremony, a decision was made to start an annual gathering to commemorate the signing of the Robinson Huron Treaty on the same anniversary date and to hold the first gathering at the same spot where the Treaty was signed.
THE TRUE HISTORY AND STORIES OF BAWATING ARE NOW BEING TOLD THROUGH THE LENS OF
ANISHINAABE PEOPLE AND IN 2016, THE FIRST EVER ROBINSON HURON TREATY GATHERING TOOK PLACE IN BAWATING ON THE SHORE BANKS OF THE ST. MARY’S RIVER.
The first Robinson Huron Treaty Gathering was created as a way for the Litigation Management Committee to unite all 21 Lake Huron First Nation communities who make up the Treaty area and exert their sovereignty while gathering strength and guidance from the ancestors through ceremony
