Warning: the statement deals with topics that may cause trauma invoked by memories of past abuse. A National Residential School Crisis Line has been set up to provide support for former residential school Survivors. You can access it by calling the 24-Hour line at: 1-866-925-4419.
Our country is experiencing a time of deep reckoning and mourning. This is a time for reflection.
That is why, this year for Canada Day, I will join millions of Canadians for a day of reflection and learning. I plan to visit the Museum of History to learn more about the destructive legacy of the residential school system, where thousands of Indigenous children lost their lives, language, and culture. I will also pay my respects at the memorial on Parliament Hill that was created following the discovery of unmarked graves at former residential schools in British Columbia and Saskatchewan.
I feel strongly that we all need to learn the truth of our shared history before we can continue the journey of reconciliation together, as a country.
Various forms of residential schools for Indigenous children existed in Canada from the 17th century until the late 1990s. This system only ended a few decades ago. They were administered and funded by the Federal Government and largely operated by certain religious organizations and, in time, existed in almost every province and territory in Canada. It is estimated that at least 150,000 First Nation, Inuit, and Métis children attended the federally-run residential schools in Canada. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission has found that at minimum 3,200 Indigenous children died while attending residential schools. Experts acknowledge that this number could be much higher, and as we now understand - many were undocumented, their graves tragically unmarked.
This system was imposed on Indigenous peoples as part of a deliberate effort to assimilate them and destroy their cultures and identities. Tragically, many Indigenous children were forcibly removed from their homes and communities to attend these institutions.
The hurt and the trauma caused by this system is Canada’s responsibility to bear, and the government will continue to provide Indigenous communities across the country with the funding and resources they need to bring these terrible wrongs to light. While we cannot bring back those who were lost, we can – and we will – tell the truth of these injustices, and we will forever honour their memory.
I urge you to learn more about the Residential School System, and read the official reports on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's website including the 92 Calls to Action, which the Government of Canada is actively implementing. You can review the progress towards implementation online here.
It is important that we, as Canadians, finally see the colonial legacy of our relationship with Indigenous Peoples and why reconciliation is so vitally important for all of us – Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike.
- Mona Fortier
