A stretch of Highway 2 that runs through Deseronto and Napanee was witness to an Anishinaabe Water Walk on Friday as travellers crossed through the area on their way to Matane, Quebec.
Led by two walkers, one carrying a copper vessel full of the water, the other an eagle feather staff to spiritually guide the walkers, the group began their journey back on April 20 from Duluth, Minnesota. The walkers rotate throughout the trip, supported by a caravan of cars and a large van.
“We’re raising awareness about the importance of water,” said Josephine Mandaamin, who organized the walk. “We start at 3 a.m. and walk all day with the water. You can’t stop the water. We have to keep moving.”
Since they began the journey, they’ve walked every single day, setting up camps at night.
Literature handed out along the walk states the walk isn’t a protest or activist action. Instead it is first and foremost about the water and the Anishinaabe ceremony, which is a way to speak to the water spirits to ask for healthy rivers, lakes and oceans for generations to come.
“We’re hoping people understand that water is so important, that we have to do everything we can to protect it,” said Mandaamin. “Water, as it falls, we have to be appreciative of it and not waste the water as we do.”
Though they have no strict schedule, they are aiming to be in Matane by the end of July for a ceremony on the St. Lawrence River.
“We change (the water in the copper vessel) every time we go to a different lake,” said Mandaamin, noting the water they carried through Deseronto and Napanee was from Lake Ontario. “When we come to Kingston we’ll change the water to the St. Lawrence River.”
She says people have been supportive of their cause as they’ve travelled through different communities.
“The farmers around here are very conscious of the importance of water,” said Mandaamin. “They’ve come to us to tell us how really appreciate what we’re doing by raising awareness. Hopefully they can raise the same awareness we are.”
The walkers are hoping to encourage people to not only think of their own water supply, but what it means for the next generation to conserve clean water.
You can donate to their cause as well as get an up-to-the-minute tracker of their progress at www.MotherEarthWaterWalk.com.
“It’s our future that we’re working towards,” added Mandaamin. “The future generation is beginning to understand the importance of water. They’re starting to take it to heart. (The Water Walk) is for them, not for us.”