Lost children lead to reckoning in Canada

Canada marked a sombre national holiday on July 1. Charlotte County joined communities across the country in cancelling planned Canada Day activities following the discovery in May and June of more than 1,000 unmarked graves, mostly of children, at the sites of three former Indian residential schools in British Columbia and Saskatchewan.
Canadians are bracing for more discoveries as searches continue with ground penetrating radar at the grounds of other former Indian residential schools, which Canadian taxpayers funded for more than a century before the last one closed in Marieval, Sask., in 1997. An estimated 751 bodies were discovered at that site on June 24, in addition to 215 discovered at Kamloops, B.C., on May 27. Another 182 were found near Cranbrook, B.C., on June 30, the eve of Canada Day.
The Roman Catholic Church operated the institutions at these three sites, but Anglican, Presbyterian, Methodist, United and other denominations ran schools in this system. New Brunswick never had its own Indian residential school, but aboriginal children from the province, also some from Maine, were sent to the residential school run by the Roman Catholic Church at Shubenacadie, N.S., from 1930 to 1967.
The government of the new Canadian nation, founded on July 1, 1867, devised Indian residential schools with the stated purpose of taking Native children from their families to turn them into members of the dominant colonial-settler, mostly Caucasian, society.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the fact that children died at these institutions is not really news. The final report of Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2015 relates accounts of children taken to these schools who never came home, often with no explanation to parents. The report, available online, also cites poor food, sickness, harsh discipline, separating siblings and banning children from speaking their own languages at these schools.
However, the discovery of actual bodies seems to have caught Canadian attention, possibly the same way that the death of George Floyd caught American attention. Some people place children's shoes at memorial sites, and others wear orange shirts to show solidarity. Flags are at half mast across Canada, including in Charlotte County. There are reports of Roman Catholic churches set on fire in western Canada. Trudeau, a Catholic, acknowledges the anger but says that burning places where people go in time of trouble does not help.
New Brunswick Southwest MP John Williamson expects these grisly discoveries to form a big part in the national election campaign, which he and many others expect this year. "There is no doubt that these discoveries have both shocked and saddened millions of Canadians across the country," he says. He hopes that, in the future, people can look back and say they did more than cancel Canada Day for one year. "If the only thing we did is stop Canada Day, then it will be another black mark on our country."

Charlotte County joins movement
In St. Andrews, Deputy Mayor Kate Akagi and Judith Moses, who holds high offices in the Anglican church, spoke at a special service on July 1 at All Saints Anglican Church. The service was recorded and can be seen online.
And Charlotte County communities joined the movement to take a pass on Canada Day this year.
Says Grand Manan Mayor Bonnie Morse, "After the discovery of more graves at the residential school in Saskatchewan, it didn't seem appropriate to continue with a celebration. It's hard to understand the impact of having children taken from families and communities and not knowing what happened to them. We did an email poll of council to see what their thoughts were, and there was clear support for taking a year off from Canada Day activities. I think it was the right choice, and it was supported generally by the community."
Campobello Island's Canada Day Committee cancelled celebrations but plans on holding activities possibly around the New Brunswick Day weekend in August, according to Mayor Harvey Matthews.
Deer Island did not plan to hold Canada Day activities this year due to COVID 19. "However, we would have cancelled our plans as others had done if we had," says Deer Islander Valerie Justason.
On the mainland, St. Stephen Mayor Allan MacEachern posted an open letter to citizens explaining that he spoke to Peskotomuhkati representatives, town councillors and staff about the decision to cancel all planned Canada Day activities. He encouraged people to use the day as "a time for reflection, contemplation and empathy."
"The recent discovery of the unmarked graves of over 1,000 Indigenous children has forced our country to come to terms with our country's past. While no person, or country, should be defined solely by the decisions of their or their ancestors' past, the best learn and grow from those decisions. This can best be done through quiet contemplation and reflection," he writes.
"While we all long to recapture the celebrations of the pre COVID days, this year is not the year to reach that goal. This year is the year for Canadians from coast to coast to coast to demonstrate the kindness and heart that characterizes the very best of Canada. I encourage everyone to use July 1 as an opportunity to gain an understanding of our past, so that we all may work together to build a Canada that is inclusive, diverse and demonstrates the very best of who we are as Canadians," he writes in the same letter.
Mayor Brad Henderson encouraged St. Andrews residents to wear orange on Canada Day. "July 1 will be a time of reflection for Canadians. With the support of council and staff, I am announcing the cancellation of special Canada Day activities and events this year," he posted on the town's website.
"Taking the time to think about how our country, that we are passionately proud of, made the mistake to fund the monstrosity of residential schools is the best we can do on Canada Day to make sure that history will never get repeated," St. George Mayor John Detorakis says.
"The village will be joining communities across the country by cancelling regular Canada Day activities this year. This will give all an opportunity to pause to reflect on darker times in the history of Canada based on the tragedy we are coming to know," Blacks Harbour Mayor John Craig says. "July 1 is still Canada Day. Canada is still a great country. That is exactly why this year we should spend the day quietly grieving with the First Nations who have suffered so badly."