Page 32 - Michael August 2021

Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to:
Head office:
MICHAEL
1101 Principale St.,
Rougemont, QC, J0L 1M0 CONVENTION 40063742
Canada

Printed in Canada

Make sure to renew your subscription before the expiration date. (The first line on the label indicates the year and month.)

The Truth About the Indian Residential

School Program of the Canadian Government

In early June 2021, a bombshell lects, and the children remained
exploded in Canadian media: the with their families).
discovery of anonymous graves A regularly updated website,
of 215 children on the grounds of titled “The truth about the Indian
a former First Nations residential residential school program of the
school in Kamloops, British Colum- Canadian government , sheds light
1
bia. Immediately, the media joined on what really happened in these
in accusing the Catholic Church, schools, and shows that the truth is
which was responsible for this resi- quite different from what the main-
dential school at the time, of mistreating indigenous stream media report. We strongly urge anyone who
children. On June 4, Canadian Prime Minister Justin wants to know the truth about these residential schools
Trudeau added more fuel to the fire, declaring: “As a to visit this site. Among other things, we learn that tu-
Catholic (who is pro-abortion), I am deeply disappoint- berculosis epidemics caused the deaths of many chil-
ed by the attitude of the Catholic Church,” and he de- dren in the years 1910-1920 due to federal financial and
manded apologies, not only from the clergy, bishops, medical negligence in state-funded residential schools
religious communities, but also from Pope Francis in Western Canada. Then the federal government re-
himself... Three weeks later, another bomb: it was an- fused to pay for the transport of children’s bodies to
nounced that 750 anonymous graves were discovered their places of origin; the transport costs were too high.
during excavations on the site of an ancient Native The Catholic Church was not involved in the deaths of
residential school in Marieval, Saskatchewan. young Native people as Justin Trudeau alleges.
Social media are on fire, and churches are burnt The historical circumstances are described in detail
down. It seems fashionable these days to break sugar in a 1907 report by Dr. Peter H. Bryce, then Chief Med-
on the back of the Church, but the problem with all of ical Inspector for the Federal Department of Internal
this is that it is not mentioned that the authority mainly and Indian Affairs. He wrote a book in 1922 called The
responsible for this situation is the Canadian govern- Story of a National Crime to publicize the great federal
ment itself, who created these schools and the harsh financial and medical negligence in this case. In this
conditions that indigenous children had to endure from book, Dr. Bryce explained that not only his inspections,
the 1880s until a few years ago, and that it is the Can- investigations, reports and recommendations on tuber-
adian government that should apologize, instead of culosis in Indian Residential Schools were ignored, and
taking religious communities and the Catholic Church then hidden by the federal government, but that he was
as a scapegoat. It is the Canadian government’s Indian also actually forced to retire against his will.
Act of 1876 that forced First Nations Peoples to enroll
in the Indian Residential School program. For example, For justice to be done for Indigenous peoples
Missionary Oblates were firmly opposed to the federal (as well as the Catholic Church), it is important to
government’s Indian Residential Schools project and uncover the truth and set the record straight. To
ended up being forced to take charge of them because do so, you must visit and publicize the site www.
their own pre-existing system of schools was cut off veritepensionnat.ca v
from government grants (these Oblate schools were
run close to where the Indians lived, in the Indian dia- 1 www.veritepensionnats.ca/indian-residential-schools.html