'Evidence of a genocide' found during search of Alta. residential school: First Nation investigators
'Evidence of a genocide' found during search of Alta. residential school: First Nation investigators
GRAPHIC WARNING: This article contains details readers may find disturbing.
An organization investigating unmarked graves near a residential school in eastern Alberta says it has uncovered "physical and documented evidence of a genocide."
The Acimowin Opaspiw Society (AOS) released details of its preliminary report Tuesday into "missing children and unmarked burials" at the former site of the Blue Quills Residential School in Saddle Lake.
"The investigation's theory regarding the missing children of the Saddle Lake site, is that they are buried in undocumented mass graves," the report states.
"One of the undocumented mass graves was located by accidental excavation, in 2004, at Sacred Heart cemetery. The mass graves will require a second excavation, and repatriation of remains followed by the identification by the coroner once DNA is collected from living descendants."
The report includes allegations that a "disciplinarian" who worked there from 1935 to 1942 was seen killing children.
"The investigation has received disclosures from intergenerational survivors, whose parents witnessed homicides at the Saint Paul site," the report states.
That staff member is accused of pushing boys down the stairs, killing them.
"[He] would then threaten to kill the boys that witnessed if they said anything," it says.
The report states the accused died in 1968.
Leah Redcrow, executive director of AOS, also believes that many of the children at the school died after they were forced to drink unpasteurized milk that was contaminated with bovine tuberculosis.
"How I know it's deliberate is because the school administrators weren't dying, the children were. And the school administrators didn't eat the same food as the children," Redcrow told reporters.
"A lot of what this is, is getting spiritual justice for our family members who are missing. I myself didn't know that my grandfather had 10 siblings die in this school."
Genealogical work is being done to determine how many children disappeared, she said.
Last May, the group held a press conference to announce that it was "actively researching and investigating" the deaths of at least 200 residential school children who never came home.
At the time, a residential school survivor and researcher with AOS said he found documents for 215 students who died between the ages of 6-11, but whose remains are still unaccounted for.
"The amount of missing children is extensive...The institution was strife with violence, illness, starvation, abuse and death," said Eric Large.
A councillor in the community also spoke about finding body parts in unmarked graves at the Sacred Heart Cemetery in Saddle Lake, and the report states skeletal remains including those of young children were found in the area.
If you are a former residential school student in distress, or have been affected by the residential school system and need help, you can contact the 24-hour Indian Residential Schools Crisis Line at 1-866-925-4419, or the Indian Residential School Survivors Society toll-free line at 1-800-721-0066.
Additional mental-health support and resources for Indigenous people are available here.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered a brief initial response to the final report from the Mass Casualty Commission (MCC) into Canada's worst mass shooting, which claimed the lives of 22 people in Nova Scotia in 2020. Vowing changes will come, here's what Trudeau said.
A Toronto man, whose neighbours vanished eight years ago and left their home completely abandoned, said he's fed up living next door to a property that is in complete disarray.
The federal Liberals are trending downward on three key measures while Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has surpassed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau when it comes to the question of who Canadians would prefer now as their prime minister, according to Nanos Research.
When two skiers collided on a beginner run at an upscale Utah ski resort in 2016, no one could foresee that seven years later, the crash would become the subject of a closely watched celebrity trial.
A coroner has denied a request from a former Toronto police officer to explore a theory that a distraught teen he shot was committing "suicide by cop."
U.S. authorities are investigating a group of people swimming toward a pod of spinner dolphins off Hawaii's Big Island. The department alleges that the swimmers were 'harassing the pod' as the dolphins were swimming away.
A Saskatoon murder trial is being adjourned to allow police to follow-up on "significant information" that just came to the Crown prosecutor's attention Wednesday.
A community-focused historian has found several potential ancient artifacts along the Saskatchewan River, including a bison bone that is over 8,000 years old.
The Vatican on Thursday responded to Indigenous demands and formally repudiated the 'Doctrine of Discovery,' the theories backed by 15th-century 'papal bulls' that legitimized the colonial-era seizure of Native lands and form the basis of some property law today.
Two-and-a-half years after it was established, Nova Scotia’s Mass Casualty Commission has recommended sweeping changes to everything from gun control to mental health services, although there’s no guarantee any will ever be implemented.
A Toronto man, whose neighbours vanished eight years ago and left their home completely abandoned, said he's fed up living next door to a property that is in complete disarray.
A coroner has denied a request from a former Toronto police officer to explore a theory that a distraught teen he shot was committing "suicide by cop."
It's been two weeks since a major fire ripped through a heritage building in the heart of Old Montreal, killing seven people and forever altering the lives of families across the globe. For the families of those who died, the grieving process is only starting.
A young man found wounded late Wednesday night in the parking lot of a shopping centre in northeast Montreal is believed to be the victim of an earlier shooting in the same area. Montreal police (SPVM) reported Thursday morning that the 18-year-old man's life was no longer in danger.
A new regulation that comes into effect Thursday in Quebec prohibits the feeding of white-tailed deer outside of hunting season, from Dec. 1 to Aug. 31, except on l'ile d'Anticosti.
Parents had their say at a Vimy Ridge Public School town hall as the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board addressed concerns around harassment and bullying.
A judge has acquitted a now-retired priest of forcing himself on a residential school student more than 50 years ago, saying she believes an assault happened but could not determine beyond a reasonable doubt who did it.
A bylaw officer in Manitoba is facing fraud charges for allegedly keeping the surrender fees when people gave up their pets, according to the Brandon Police Service.
Candice Bergen has signed on to co-chair the Manitoba Progressive Conservative election campaign, weeks after resigning her seat in the House of Commons.
