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Robyn Harper
Reggie Bushie was one of the titular “seven fallen feathers” who disappeared and whose body was later found in one of Thunder Bay, Ontario’s rivers. After a night out drinking with his brother Ricki Strang in October of 2007, Reggie disappeared. Ricki had blacked out and regained consciousness in the middle of the McIntyre River—he had no memory of what happened, but he believed that his brother was in the river. Reggie’s family struggled to get the NNEC and the Thunder Bay Police to adequately investigate Reggie’s disappearance and death. After Reggie’s death, Indigenous elders began calling for an inquest as to why five Indigenous students had died in Thunder Bay in less than a decade.
Reggie Bushie Quotes in Seven Fallen Feathers
The Seven Fallen Feathers quotes below are all either spoken by Reggie Bushie or refer to Reggie Bushie. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 7: Brothers
Quotes
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.
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Chapter 9: Less Than Worthy Victims
Quotes
After the attack on Darryl Kakekayash, Alvin and Julian saw a clear and disturbing pattern. They could not help but wonder if First Nations kids were being targeted and murdered. It was extremely rare to hear of Indigenous kids drowning on their reserves. Most First Nations people were born and raised on the water. Equally perplexing was how quickly the Thunder Bay Police wrote off investigations into the deaths. For Jethro, Curran, Reggie, and Kyle, police had issued press releases that came to the same conclusion: foul play was not suspected. Each of the deaths was classified as accidental: death by drinking too much and then drowning. To Thunder Bay Police, no one was readily responsible for the deaths of the students.
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Get the entire Seven Fallen Feathers LitChart as a printable PDF.
Reggie Bushie Quotes in Seven Fallen Feathers
The Seven Fallen Feathers quotes below are all either spoken by Reggie Bushie or refer to Reggie Bushie. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 7: Brothers
Quotes
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.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 9: Less Than Worthy Victims
Quotes
After the attack on Darryl Kakekayash, Alvin and Julian saw a clear and disturbing pattern. They could not help but wonder if First Nations kids were being targeted and murdered. It was extremely rare to hear of Indigenous kids drowning on their reserves. Most First Nations people were born and raised on the water. Equally perplexing was how quickly the Thunder Bay Police wrote off investigations into the deaths. For Jethro, Curran, Reggie, and Kyle, police had issued press releases that came to the same conclusion: foul play was not suspected. Each of the deaths was classified as accidental: death by drinking too much and then drowning. To Thunder Bay Police, no one was readily responsible for the deaths of the students.
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