In This Together - by Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

The release of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's (TRC) findings and recommendations in the spring of 2015 was an immensely important day for the people of Canada. It marked the hopeful beginning of change--a change of thinking, a change of opinion, a change in understanding. But how do we begin?

Chief Justice Murray Sinclair, chair of the TRC, says that the most common statement the commission heard from the public was: "I didn't know any of this, and I acknowledge that things are not where they should be, and that we can do better. But what can we do? What should we do?"

This collection of fifteen true stories of real reconciliation by both Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Canadians is in response to that question. Written by journalists, writers, academics, visual artists, filmmakers, a city planner, and a lawyer, each of these writers expound on their 'light bulb moments' regarding Canada's colonial past and present. They look at their own experiences and assumptions about race and racial divides in Canada under a microscope in hopes that the rest of the population will do the same.

With an afterword that is essentially a candid conversation by renowned CBC radio host Shelagh Rogers and Chief Justice Sinclair about their time working with the TRC, this collection is one of the many ways to begin the work of reconciliation in Canada. Metcalfe-Chenail hopes that these voices will inspire other Canadians who want an open dialogue and to maintain the conversation long after the buzz of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's report has faded.

Review Quotes

A National Post bestselling book.

"In This Together... Deserves to be bought and read." --Walrus

"A poignant anthology ... An exceptional and important read." --Broken Pencil

"In This Together demonstrates that colonization is not a thing of Canada's past, and suggests that real reconciliation is only possible through an honest appraisal of our present." --Quill & Quire

"Why do some wounds take so long to heal? The answer, as it relates to Canada's indigenous people, becomes clear in this slim but worthy anthology ..." --Winnipeg Free Press

"In This Together ... reflects the new way of thinking, and the new concept of being Canadian. The stories in this book deal with harsh realities, and give a better understanding of the meaning of race, and the problems caused by racial divides." --Times Colonist

"In This Together is an extremely timely and thought-provoking collection of essays ... a powerful volume." --I Heart Edmonton blog

About the Author

Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail is Edmonton's Historian Laureate, author of Polar Winds and For the Love of Flying, and a columnist for CBC Radio Active.