Water is Sacred

In 2014, Toronto’s Essencia Art Collective (Fiya Bruxa, Shalak Attack, Bruno Smoky) along with fifteen other international artists painted a mural. In keeping with mural art’s tradition of tackling relevant socio-political concerns, the theme of this mural would be ‘Water’. Occupying an appropriate location, it runs along the west side of Jane Street where it intersects with Highway 400 and Black Creek, making a striking impression against the grey, concrete landscape. Its vivid hues of blue and bold depictions of marine life demand your attention when walking or driving past. The mural was made in tandem with an annual arts festival held by the collective in collaboration with more than 60 local and international artists, speakers and performers. Through the course of a series of events including a speakers’ conference, an exhibition featuring live performances and the painting of this mural, all who gathered were able to share their perspectives on the importance of our most precious resource. Water.   
 
Meanwhile, something else was happening in 2014. A Métis-Cree scholar by the name of Jesse Thistle, then enrolled in a York University anthropology course, was instructed to visit and write about Black Creek Pioneer Village which is located upstream, just north of the Water mural and east of York University campus. After Jesse’s visit, responding to what he felt was an irresponsible and historically inaccurate depiction of early settler life in Canada without any mention of the Indigenous inhabitants that had been living here for over 10,000 years before colonization, Jesse drafted a letter. It was addressed to the Education Manager at Black Creek Pioneer Village and was a scathing but poignant critique outlining the severity of the rampant eurocentrism on display. The letter was never sent but was read aloud by Jesse later that year at a panel discussion on the topic of environmental racism. It was this sequence of events which led Black Creek Pioneer Village, in co-operation with York University, to update their programming. ¹ 

 
Since colonization of this land by European settlers, Black Creek and Humber River have become some of the most polluted rivers in Ontario, causing the collapse/degradation of many species of plants and wildlife which Indigenous peoples had used to sustain themselves.² Since the 1960s, low-cost, high-rise development in the area has accommodated mostly new arrivals to Canada, placing people on the outskirts of the city where transportation is limited and access to fresh, culturally relevant food and essential items are scarce.³ In 2012 the Black Creek Community Farm was created as a direct response to food insecurity in the area, adopting a community-based and educational approach to farming and food cultivation.⁴  
 
As I look at the Water mural, I’m reminded of what’s at stake if we continue this path of development and extraction. Is it possible for new generations of settlers to reverse the damage that’s been done? Or will we continue to view our planet as nothing more than a commodity to subjugate and exploit?