This summer I visited the Grand-Pré National Historic Site in Nova Scotia. This UNESCO World Heritage site documents the settlement of Acadian French people on the traditional lands of the Mi ‘kmaq people in the 17th and 18th centuries, and includes exhibits about the Acadian deportations of 1755 by the British. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie is based on this history. I have connections to this land and this time period through a few of my ancestors.
I have been reflecting on my visit to this site, what I learned there, and how it relates to the times we are living in now. My takeaway is this: mass deportations don’t work. While they sow terror among the targeted group and project power, ordinary people are more resilient and brave than those in power can understand. To travel to Nova Scotia today is to see many Acadian names still there. Acadian culture is celebrated, along with Scottish and Mi’kmaq heritage, and many others who inhabit that place. While we mourn so many lives torn apart by immigration policies in the U.S., we must remember that these efforts and cruelty will ultimately fail.
You and I and so many others who care for our neighbors are the reason they will fail this time. Please give generously to Center for New Americans through my 30 Poems in November! campaign. Supporters will receive an email with one of my poems from each week in November.
