Edmonton’s newest sports team has unveiled a mural as a way of celebrating the team and paying homage to the area’s Indigenous roots.
The Edmonton Riverhawks commissioned artist Lance Cardinal to design the mural, which is painted at the entrance of Re/Max Field.
“It is called Riverhawks, and it’s all about the hawk, the lower mainland, this whole area, the river valley,” Cardinal told CTV News Edmonton. “So we have five different types of hawks represented in this mural, and these are all hawks that live in this area, and of course we have an Indigenous elder as well on that mural who’s there blessing the land, offering a smudge, and sort of working towards that reconciliation and healing of this area, which has been very important to Indigenous people for a very long time.”
The baseball diamond is located at a very important site for the members of Treaty 6.
“This used to be a traditional burial ground from many years ago, so there’s a lot of controversy, and a lot of feelings around this area,” Cardinal said. “And I think it’s important for places like the Re/Max field and the Riverhawks baseball club to sort of acknowledge that.”
The Riverhawks next game is Friday at 7:05 p.m. against the Victoria Harbourcats.
