Во Франции улице присвоено имя ветерана Второй мировой войны и вождя микмаков Питера Барлоу

2nd World War veteran and Mi’kmaw chief honoured with street name in France Peter H. Barlow of L’nui Menikuk First Nation in eastern N.B. took part in D-Day landing at Juno Beach A community in France has named a street after Second World War veteran Peter J. Barlow, a former chief of the Mi’kmaw community of L’nui Menikuk (Indian Island) in eastern New Brunswick. The Normandy town of Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer unveiled Chief Peter Barlow Lane earlier this month, in honour of his service with the North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment, which was one of the first Canadian units to land on Juno Beach on D-Day. Loretta Perley said her father, who died in 2000, “would be tickled” about the honour. “He was a easygoing guy, friendly and he was very intelligent.” Perley recalls her father talking about the grim experience of the landing in France on June 6, 1944. “When he was getting off the boat that brought them … when he looked down at the water, it was nothing but blood,” she said. “There was a lot of floating bodies and they still had to get off and go to the beach, and they were being shot at like sitting ducks.” Life during the war During his time in France, Barlow spent time helping a farm family with gardening and other farm chores, Perley said. “They really appreciated his effort because years later … a busload of tourists came down from France,” she said. “They came to thank him personally, and it was like the descendants of the family he had helped.” Joannie Fraser, who works at the Juno Beach Centre in Normandy, said there was a “special bond” between members of the North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment and the French. “Being a regiment from New Brunswick, there was of course a good representation of francophones,” Fraser said. “Having that affinity just through language, soldiers were able to communicate with civilians that they were coming in contact with.” Chief for 49 years In a written message to the community shared at the unveiling ceremony, the honorary colonel of the regiment expressed appreciation for the “exceptional act of remembrance.” "By naming a place in your municipality after Peter John Barlow, you are honouring the young Canadian soldier who landed on your shores on June 6, 1944, the Mi’kmaw leader he became and the man of conviction who dedicated his life to serving his community," Paolo Fongemie said. Barlow was born in 1920, he said, and inherited the role of chief at 14 after his father died. And when the role of chief became an elected responsibility in 1967, he still went on to serve another 18 years in the position. Fongemie said after the war, Barlow worked as a longshoreman, fisherman and farmer. He was also a founding chief of the Union of New Brunswick Indians and later earned the honorary title of Grand Chief of the Chiefs of New Brunswick. Barlow spent his life advancing the lives of Indigenous people through defending fishing, territorial and forestry rights, and helped establish training and health-care programs, Fongemie said. “He helped, arms in hand, to bring freedom to the Norman people. Then, returning home, he devoted his life to advancing justice, dignity, and the rights of his own people." Perley said the honour is meaningful to her family because her father’s efforts in the war were not recognized when he returned to New Brunswick. 'We weren't considered persons' According to the Veterans Affairs Canada website, thousands of Indigenous people served during the war, and many communities helped in the war effort by knitting socks, making war materials and donating money. However, once Indigenous veterans returned to Canada they were unable to receive grants or qualify for programs that were offered to other veterans. That included the Veterans’ Land Act, which provided funding to veterans who wanted to farm, allowing them to purchase land, stock and equipment. “We weren’t considered persons,” Perley said. “We were considered less than.” “We weren't, as Indigenous people, allowed to vote and although he was a veteran, he wasn't allowed to vote either until when we all got the right to vote in 1960.” Perley wishes her father were here to see the recognition now and said it’s the result of years of fighting for equal rights and treatment. “He was a good person. He helped people when he could.” With files from Information Morning in the Summer