More than 90 “potential” graves of Indigenous kids have been discovered at a former residential school in the western province of British Columbia. The graves come after a year of discovery of the bones of hundreds of Indigenous kids. Thereby, exposing Canada’s history of “cultural genocide.”
The preliminary results of the first part of a geophysical investigation at St Joseph Mission Residential School found 93 “reflections” with characteristics “indicative of potential human burials,” according to the Williams Lake First Nation, a population of about 800 Indigenous people.
According to WLFN, thousands of Indigenous children alleged attended St. Joseph’s Mission as a residential school. Several religious groups as part of a Canadian government system between 1886 and 1981 likewise managed it.
“There is much more work to do on the St. Joseph’s site, and we have every intention of continuing with this work,” WLFN Chief Willie Sellars said in a statement.
“Traumatized generations of Indigenous children”
The Ottawa government announced funds for the probe at St. Joseph’s mission in early January, totaling $1.9 million (the US $1.5 million).
“To date, $116.8 million has been committed to support First Nation, Inuit and Metis Survivors, their families, and communities and go toward locating and commemorating missing children who attended residential schools,” the government said in a statement at the time.
Several investigations into previous residential schools are underway across the country. However, authorities estimate that 4,000 to 6,000 children are missing.
From the late 1800s until the 1990s, about 150,000 Indigenous children were a part of 139 residential schools across Canada. Thereby, spending months or years separated from their families, language, and culture.
The strategy likewise traumatized generations of Indigenous children. It also forced them to renounce their original languages, speak English or French, and convert to Christianity.
Christian churches played an important role in the establishment and operation of the schools. According to the Indian Residential School Survivors Society, the Roman Catholic Church was likewise responsible for operating up to 70% of residential schools.