Throughout Tanya Talaga’s Seven Fallen Feathers, the many rivers and other bodies of water that surround the city of Thunder Bay, Ontario symbolize how Indigenous youths are all too easily swallowed up and destroyed by a racist society that neglects their needs.
Between 2000 and 2011, seven Indigenous Canadian students (the titular “seven fallen feathers”) died while attending high school in Thunder Bay. Five of those seven were found dead in the city’s rivers—and in all five cases, Thunder Bay Police almost immediately reported that “no foul play” was suspected in their deaths, even though several of the students appeared to have recent bruises and burn marks on their bodies. The students, the book implies, may actually have been victims of racist attacks—many teenagers who travel to Thunder Bay from their home reserves to attend boarding school report facing racist harassment or physical violence while simply walking the city’s streets. The city’s rivers, then, become a potent symbol of how the system swallows these Indigenous teenagers up, both literally washing away their bodies and figuratively drowning out their stories in favor of narratives that the teens’ families and communities believe are false cover-ups.
Rivers and Bodies of Water Quotes in Seven Fallen Feathers
The Kam still draws people to its shores. Teens come down to the river's gummy banks to take cover under bridges or in bushes to drink and party. Here they have privacy, a space of their own, beside the giant pulp and paper mill that spews smelly, yellow, funnel-shaped clouds into the air. Here they are close to nature. They sit on the rocks and listen to the rush of the water, and they are reminded of home.
Dora remembers looking at Jethro and thinking that he didn't look as bad as the director had made out. But when she looked more closely, she saw a three-inch-wide gash, starting from the top of his forehead and ending at the middle of his head. There were round contusions on his cheek. She immediately thought it looked like someone had extinguished their burning cigarette butts on his face.
She checked his tummy. It wasn't bloated. She looked at his hands, which weren't purple or blown up with water.
Dora took in a sharp breath. She knew she was right: This was no accident.
Curran Strang's body was found in the Mclntyre River on September 26, 2005. The Ontario Coroner's Office officially listed his death as accidental, having determined the cause of death was by drowning. Authorities believe he decided to head into the water, alone, on a cold September night. Just like Jethro Anderson, who was afraid of the water.
There is absolutely no evidence that either Jethro or Curran ended up in the river of their own accord.
When he got to the river's edge, Ricki carefully squatted down, resting on his heels. He spent some time thinking before he slowly stretched his arms out over the water, his palms gently skimming the surface. Then he put his hands in the river, his arms spread out as far as possible. His body began to shudder.
It was as if he were reaching out for his brother.
The police were touched into silence. They backed away, giving the boy the time he needed before taking him back to the station.
Rivers and Bodies of Water Symbol Timeline in Seven Fallen Feathers
