Residential school mass graves - traditional media silence
Grand Chief of the Assembly of First Nations Phil Fontaine has said that there may be Native protests during the 2010 Olympics similar to the pro-Tibet demonstrations taking place against China this year. link
"What that speaks to is the desperate situation in our communities," said MR. Fontaine, Grand Chief of the Assembly of First Nations. "We find the Tibet situation compelling. The Tibetans are disenfranchised people. The situation here is similar, but it's different in this sense - the poverty we're talking about exists in Canada's own backyard.
"It's OK to express outrage with the Chinese government's position against Tibet, but [Canadians] should be just as outraged, if not more so . . . with what is being done to First Nations here."
Fontaine is among several who signed an agreement between the Four Host First Nations, the Assembly of First Nations, and the Olympic organizing committee to "ensure successful 2010 Winter games and extend opportunities to participate in the 2010 Winter Games beyond the FHFNS (Four Host First Nations Society) to other First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples across Canada" .
Squamish First Nation Chief Bill Williams, whose signature is also on the document, said his band has agreed to work with the organizing committee.
However, that did not mean members of his nation would not be protesting.
"There will be some level of protest and I hope so too," he said. "We are going to be working with VANOC, but we have 3,500 members and not all want to be part of the Olympics. They want to talk about the children and the hardships in the community and they have the full right to do that."
Mr. Williams said First Nations across Canada have the highest attributes in all the worst life quality scenarios.
"We have the highest people incarcerated, the highest rate of children dropping out of schools, the highest rate of children in the child-care system and I could go on and on," Mr. Williams said.
Fontaine called for a day of peaceful protest on May 29 to raise awareness of Aboriginal issues. link Some of the comments in that linked CBC thread are illuminating, for different reasons.
I found that story in several traditional media outlets online, and in print. What I haven't seen is any mention since January about the mass graves of residential school children, despite the release of 28 alleged grave locations 9 days ago. It's conservatively estimated that 50,000 aboriginal children died in the residential schools. Disappeared. Not 400 years ago, but within some of our lifetimes.
Mass Graves at former Indian Residential Schools and Hospitals across Canada
A. British Columbia
1. Port Alberni: Presbyterian-United Church school (1895-1973), now occupied by the Nuu-Chah-Nulth Tribal Council (NTC) office, Kitskuksis Road . Grave site is a series of sinkhole rows in hills 100 metres due west of the NTC building, in thick foliage, past an unused water pipeline. Children also interred at Tseshaht reserve cemetery, and in wooded gully east of Catholic cemetery on River Road .
2. Alert Bay : St. Michael’s Anglican school (1878-1975), situated on Cormorant Island offshore from Port McNeill. Presently building is used by Namgis First Nation. Site is an overgrown field adjacent to the building, and also under the foundations of the present new building, constructed during the 1960’s. Skeletons seen “between the walls”.
3. Kuper Island: Catholic school (1890-1975), offshore from Chemainus. Land occupied by Penelakut Band. Former building is destroyed except for a staircase. Two grave sites: one immediately south of the former building, in a field containing a conventional cemetery; another at the west shoreline in a lagoon near the main dock.
4. Nanaimo Indian Hospital: Indian Affairs and United Church experimental facility (1942-1970) on Department of National Defense land. Buildings now destroyed. Grave sites are immediately east of former buildings on Fifth avenue , adjacent to and south of Malaspina College .
5. Mission: St. Mary’s Catholic school (1861-1984), adjacent to and north of Lougheed Highway and Fraser River Heritage Park . Original school buildings are destroyed, but many foundations are visible on the grounds of the Park.
In this area there are two grave sites: a) immediately adjacent to former girls’ dormitory and present cemetery for priests, and a larger mass grave in an artificial earthen mound, north of the cemetery among overgrown foliage and blackberry bushes, and b) east of the old school grounds, on the hilly slopes next to the field leading to the newer school building which is presently used by the Sto:lo First Nation. Hill site is 150 metres west of building.
6. North Vancouver: Squamish (1898-1959) and Sechelt (1912-1975) Catholic schools, buildings destroyed. Graves of children who died in these schools interred in the Squamish Band Cemetery , North Vancouver .
7. Sardis: Coqualeetza Methodist-United Church school (1889-1940), then experimental hospital run by federal government (1940-1969). Native burial site next to Sto:lo reserve and Little Mountain school, also possibly adjacent to former school-hospital building.
8. Cranbrook: St. Eugene Catholic school (1898-1970), recently converted into a tourist “resort” with federal funding, resulting in the covering-over of a mass burial site by a golf course in front of the building. Numerous grave sites are around and under this golf course.
9. Williams Lake : Catholic school (1890-1981), buildings destroyed but foundations intact, five miles south of city. Grave sites reported north of school grounds and under foundations of tunnel-like structure.
10. Meares Island (Tofino): Kakawis-Christie Catholic school (1898-1974). Buildings incorporated into Kakawis Healing Centre. Body storage room reported in basement, adjacent to burial grounds south of school.
11. Kamloops : Catholic school (1890-1978). Buildings intact. Mass grave south of school, adjacent to and amidst orchard. Numerous burials witnessed there.
12. Lytton: St. George’s Anglican school (1901-1979). Graves of students flogged to death, and others, reported under floorboards and next to playground.
13. Fraser Lake : Lejac Catholic school (1910-1976), buildings destroyed. Graves reported under old foundations and between the walls.
Alberta:
1. Edmonton : United Church school (1919-1960), presently site of the Poundmaker Lodge in St. Albert . Graves of children reported south of former school site, under thick hedge that runs north-south, adjacent to memorial marker.
2. Edmonton : Charles Camsell Hospital (1945-1967), building intact, experimental hospital run by Indian Affairs and United Church . Mass graves of children from hospital reported south of building, near staff garden.
3. Saddle Lake : Bluequills Catholic school (1898-1970), building intact, skeletons and skulls observed in basement furnace. Mass grave reported adjacent to school.
4. Hobbema: Ermineskin Catholic school (1916-1973), five intact skeletons observed in school furnace. Graves under former building foundations.
Manitoba:
1. Brandon : Methodist-United Church school (1895-1972). Building intact. Burials reported west of school building.
2. Portage La Prairie: Presbyterian-United Church school (1895-1950). Children buried at nearby Hillside Cemetery .
3. Norway House: Methodist-United Church school (1900-1974). “Very old” grave site next to former school building, demolished by United Church in 2004.
Ontario:
1. Thunder Bay : Lakehead Psychiatric Hospital , still in operation. Experimental centre. Women and children reported buried adjacent to hospital grounds.
2. Sioux Lookout: Pelican Lake Catholic school (1911-1973). Burials of children in mound near to school.
3. Kenora: Cecilia Jeffrey school, Presbyterian-United Church (1900-1966). Large burial mound east of former school.
4. Fort Albany : St. Anne’s Catholic school (1936-1964). Children killed in electric chair buried next to school.
5. Spanish: Catholic school (1883-1965). Numerous graves.
6. Brantford : Mohawk Institute, Anglican church (1850-1969), building intact. Series of graves in orchard behind school building, under rows of trees.
7. Sault Ste. Marie: Shingwauk Anglican school (1873-1969), some intact buildings. Several graves of children reported on grounds of old school.
Quebec:
1. Montreal : Allan Memorial Institute, McGill University , still in operation since opening in 1940. MKULTRA experimental centre. Mass grave of children killed there north of building, on southern slopes of Mount Royal behind stone wall.
Sources:
- Eyewitness accounts from survivors of these institutions, catalogued in Hidden from History: The Canadian Holocaust (2nd ed., 2005) by Kevin Annett. Other accounts are from local residents. See www.hiddenfromhistory.org .
- Documents and other material from the Department of Indian Affairs RG 10 microfilm series on Indian Residential Schools in Koerner Library, University of B.C.
- Survey data and physical evidence obtained from grave sites in Port Alberni , Mission , and other locations.
This is a partial list and does not include all of the grave sites connected to Indian residential Schools and hospitals across Canada. In many cases, children who were dying of diseases were sent home to die by school and church officials, and the remains of other children who died at the school were incinerated in the residential school furnaces.
This information is submitted by The Friends and Relatives of the Disappeared (FRD) to the world media, the United Nations, and to the International Human Rights Tribunal into Genocide in Canada (IHRTGC). The IHRTGC will commence its investigations on April 15, 2008 on Squamish Nation territory.
For more information on the independent inquiry into genocide in Canada being conducted by the IHRTGC, write to: genocidetribunal@yahoo.ca
Join the Facebook Group:Mass Graves of Residential School Children Identified- Where is the media?.
You know what to do.
Add your local paper and anything I've missed (I know there's lots) in the comments and I'll update.
Update #1 - Lhommevert's link for newspapers in Canada.
local papers
a list of newspapers per province
“Everyone talks about the weather, but no one ever does
anything about it.” Mark Twain
And unfortunately, in Canada we have our own little China
I guess Phil Fontaine is trying to capitalize on the current trend of Tibetan sympathy around the world but the two situations couldn’t be more diverse. Without going into so many details the Tibet situation is not what it seems on the surface, such is political reality in the 21st century. Our First Nations Peoples have enough of a case on their own without resorting to comparisons on the other side of the world.
When you look at all the conflicts in the world right now, Tibet is nothing more than the media darling of 2008, but I have followed this for thirty years, nothing will change in the life of the 14th Dali Lama. Period.
We’re just not that far along yet, hence the need to fight.
The common thread
however is the Olympics, and using the international focus to draw attention to the issues of abuse, poverty, and oppression past and present. If I were Phil Fontaine I'd capitalize on it too.
Great post at your place, btw. I've linked to it in the comments.
Great post at Bruce's
Go and read.
Thank You Prole
I should have cross posted here but I didn't have time. I'm blogging by the skin of my teeth these days. The money is great but the blogging is sporadic at best.
what's with Fontaine?
Is he more politician than Chief? He should be screaming - literally, bloody murder.
Unless these mass murders, tortures, rapes, and theft of culture are acknowledged and people punished in criminal courts as they would be for any other Canadian, aboriginals will always be viewed as less entitled to human rights.
Ignoring those appalling events makes a statement that aboriginals and their rights don't matter, and the Canadian governments can keep right on violating their rights.
Jesus fucking christ, what the hell will it take to shake Canadians up over the Original People?
I would have to say he's wearing the politician hat for now
In advance of the apparently forthcoming government apology for the residential schools abuses. I can understand that me may feel that he needs to remain 'diplomatic' at this time and wait for the next government move in relation to that. I've commented on that over a JJ's and elsewhere.
From reports late last week.
Incidently May 29 is the second annual National Day of Action..
But, Fontaine does have some serious concern that HarperCo will not deliver the apology inside the House etc...
Fontaine actually is a political leader and in that respect his best move is to resist making any intemperate comments while the ball is in Ottawa's court. If, and when, the apology turns out to be a feel-good politicized event filled with empty words - and I have no doubt that will be the case - we'll likely see and hear the bitterly angry Frank Fontaine calling for action.
And we'll be looking at a long, very hot summer.
Everything's cheaper than it looks.