A sacred fire marked the effort to return the disturbed spirits of those buried in an Indigenous grave dug up by a construction crew in east Toronto. Philip Cote III, a recognized young spiritual elder representing the Anishinaabe and Ojibwe people said the fire was the doorway to other side where the ancestors awaited them.
The vigil was organized by Anishinaabe Indigenous Peoples to honour the ancient remains found at Withrow Avenue, in the Gerrard Street East and Broadview Avenue area, an archaeological site since about 1886.
The neighbourhood gathered and participated to show its support on Jan. 8.
“The descendants of the Ojibwe are still here,” Cote III said. “The Indigenous community at the vigil fed the sacred fire with tobacco and food.
“We have come today, acknowledged the ancestors, fed them,” he said. “They know we’re okay and continue assisting us.”
The site where ancient Indigenous remains were found on Withrow Avenue. Photo credit: Abhijit Alka Anil
Cote III said the anthropologists on site are estimating the remains to be around 5,000 years old.
The vigil was organized in front of Withrow Avenue resident Kristin Briggs’ house, where the remains were found.
“It was surprising and stirring to know. It’s easy to forget history,” Briggs said. “Some years ago they discovered that the public school across the street was an Indigenous encampment and it is not unlikely that they will find more such remains at some point.
“These findings make the history alive,” she said.
The sidewalk where the remains were found is open and police are supervising the site until it can be more secure, Briggs said.
Ariyha Syvret, left, and Rain King pose after the Indigenous vigil where ancient remains were found. Photo credit: Abhijit Alka Anil
Cote III, referencing a city report on the Danforth Avenue area, said through text message that the Withrow Public School sits on an Indigenous encampment where an archeological survey found a spear point carbon dated to about 7,000 years ago.
Cote III said he would like to have a plaque put at the site of the remains with an Indigenous narrative rather than an archaeological narrative.
“We’re going to put the Seven Grandfather’s flags before they’re going to bury them here. They will go in the ground with the bones as an offering to the ancestors,” Cote III said.
He said he wants to create an action plan with local politicians to rebury the bones at the site and allow easy access for rituals like the sacred fire held on Jan. 8.
Shane Gerard, a communications coordinator for the City of Toronto, said in an email that Toronto has been instructed by the Registrar at the Ministry of Public and Business Delivery to appoint a licensed consultant archaeologist to undertake an archaeological investigation into the site.
Gerard said the investigation will provide the City and the Registrar with a detailed report of its findings, including a probable cultural origin, religious affiliation, boundaries of the burial site, and any artifacts that are a part of the burial site.