When Piita Irniq picked up his handmade wooden drum to perform for Pope Francis last year in Iqaluit, he was reclaiming an Inuit tradition that the Roman Catholic Church tried to erase through its residential schools.
“I wanted him to know that this is what you cut off as part of colonialism,” Irniq said.
“You thought it was a witchcraft. You thought it was a pagan religion when, in fact, drum dancing has always been a celebration of life.”
One year later, Irniq and many other residential school survivors are still waiting for the Roman Catholic Church to outline the next steps it wants
