Furor from Inuit sees church plaque on inuksuk taken down
“There were a number of historic and cultural inaccuracies on the plaque, which was disrespectful to the Indigenous community”
A plaque about inuksuit on the side of an inuksuk erected in 2006 in front of the John’s-Stevensville United Church in Stevensville is chipped off after a photo of the plaque circulated widely on social media, enraging many. (Photo courtesy of Rev. Cheryl Wood-Thomas)
A plaque about the history of the inuksuk has now been taken off the side of an inuksuk that has stood in front of St. John’s-Stevensville United Church in Stevensville, Ont., since 2006.
That’s after Rev. Cheryl Wood-Thomas said she woke up on Sunday morning to many emails from Inuit and others criticizing the plaque for what it said about the Inuit stone constructions, including the claim that Father Pierre Henry built the first “humanoid” inuksuk in the early twentieth century, “out of his lifelong experience among the Inuit people.”
“This was the first I knew about the media storm around this,” Wood-Thomas said.
A photo of the plaque had been circulated widely on social media.
Wtf? ??? I cant believe this is a plaque somewhere. The erasure of Inuit is never ending. (Got this picture from Veronica Puskas on Facebook) this is outside a church ?? pic.twitter.com/ue8rmOQxcY
— Iviviq ❄️ (@UrbanInuk) August 15, 2020
In comments and posts, many slammed the plaque for its inaccuracies, condemning it as a “colonial whitewashing” and an example of misguided appropriation.
“Tear down this plaque and the inukshuk! It’s not Inuit-made. It’s not about Inuit and it’s definitely not about Inuit customs and traditions! The statements in here are totally erroneous,” said elder Pita Irniq, former commissioner of Nunavut, in a Facebook post.
The inuksuk next to the St. John’s-Stevensville United Church in Stevensville, Ont., was put up in 2006. (Photo courtesy of Cheryl Wood-Thomas)
Wood-Thomas issued a statement today to respond to the many critical messages she received.
“There were a number of historic and cultural inaccuracies on the plaque, which was disrespectful to the indigenous community,” Wood-Thomas said.
The inuksuk was commissioned in consultation with Indigenous artist Carl Beam and the “then-chair of the official board from the Mi’kmaq nation,” she said.
The inuksuk was installed in 2006 as an acknowledgement of those who worshipped in the space before settlement, she said.
Wood-Thomas, who took on her role at the church less than a year ago, said the plaque was the product was of an earlier time and that “it absolutely had a number of cultural and historical inaccuracies.”
Wood-Thomas said the plaque was placed in the back of the inuksuk.
Most of her congregation probably didn’t know the plaque was there and “most would be shocked to know what it says,” she said.
But now, it’s gone.
“We chipped it off. It is disappointing to me because the plaque itself is quite disrespectful,” Wood-Thomas said. “At some point, I would like to put on another plaque.”
But for now, like many churches, St. John’s-Stevensville United Church in Stevensville remains closed, while plexiglass is installed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 when the church reopens.
This is pretty bad, truly.
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On the upside, without it the twitter hysterics would not have been possible.
Like the Edmonton Eskimos, we have another big win here for reconciliation. Major news. Big story. Generational changes will be sweeping.
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just another distraction from real issues like poverty on the Iqaluit Beach, fetal alcoholism, TB, domestic violence and other issues no one wants to discuss or take ownership of. Congratulations on sending enough harassing emails to get a plaque on private property that apparently almost no one could see anyway get changed.
I will be nice if someone put up a factual version of the plaque as a teachable moment for us. I read the erroneous version-but will like to read a corrected version, only if that is acceptable to do.
I fully agree, that the plaque removal was the right thing to do, given inaccuracies. But keep the inukshuk. Pita Irniq said it’s not inuit made. Hey beer is not inuit made either , the kind sold in northern beer stores, remove that too.
Wow. Really? Give your head a shake. Or maybe read a book to educate yourself. So unfortunate that you could share your hate so publicly. If you need to talk I can provide you with information to mental health supports. I hope you deal with whatever is causing you to be angry.
P.S You should probably ask an Inuk about the Inuksuk, then you’ll understand why Piita wants the Inuksuk to be taken down.
Give your own head a shake and spend more time in this great country of ours.
Inukshuk are no longer solely Inuit and can be found made by people of all ethnicities all over Canada. They have become part of the greater Canadian culture. Hell, they are made by Boy Scouts and youth groups all over the country. They might have been Inuit at one time, now they are Canadian. They might have different meanings to non-Inuit as they do to Inuit, but that is neither here nor there.
Accept this wonderful development and move on.
A quick scan of the internet will show that Inukshuks have grown beyond being merely Inuit and have become part of wider Canadian culture. The meaning among traditional-minded Inuit may be different, but they are no longer purely Inuit.
Most people know them for their utilitarian purpose and have little knowledge or interest in their roots among the Inuit.
We demand a formal apology and reparations of some sort. This is simply outrageous that a white man could take the honor of the 1st unukshuk.
Has anyone checked in with Kugaaruk for their views on this? Seems like they might have some important context.
But then again, why let a little context get in the way of our righteous apoplexy?
Piita Irniq, Thank you for your comment on this travesty. The wrong time and place for cultural appropriation…how it went unnoticed for so long is a mystery to me.