Communities across Canada mark Indigenous Veterans Day

At a Métis cultural centre in Smoky Lake, Alberta, a solemn ceremony in honour of Métis veterans. An updated monument was unveiled with 7,500 names who fought in wars dating back to the early 1800s, including Lance Corporal Gordon White, who died while serving with the U.S. Marines in Vietnam. He felt he could do something because he didn't like the way the world was going. His sister remembers the night before he was deployed in 1968. He sat beside me and sang me the green, green grass of home. And then when he finished, he says, you know, I might not come back, but be strong because mom and dad are going to need you. The service was one of many held across the country to mark Indigenous Veterans Day. Veterans Affairs Canada estimates about 12,000 First Nations, Inuit and Métis people served in Canada's military during the 20th century. We'll Indigenous Veterans Day was established in 1994 to honour them and recognize that many of them were denied be the same benefits as non-Indigenous soldiers. Well, Indigenous people weren't allowed right to take part in Remembrance Day. They weren't allowed to join the Legion. This day was created by Indigenous veterans to point out the fact that there were some back. The injustices that were done to people. He says many veterans returning home to Indigenous communities lack the services they need. There is no authentic effort to go out to those communities and reach out to those people that have fallen through the cracks. And that is a big concern for me. He hopes one day there won't be the need for a separate day for Indigenous veterans and that their stories will be better incorporated into Remembrance Day. Stephanie Cram, CBC News, Smoky Lake, Alberta.