Forensic experts are working to identify and repatriate the remains of children from boarding schools in British Columbia

Forensic experts are working to identify and repatriate the remains of children from boarding schools in British Columbia

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Warning: This story contains some details that bother some readers.

A provincial indigenous leader said that plans are being developed to find and repatriate the remains of more than 200 children buried in the site of a former resident school in the interior of southern British Columbia.

Terri Taige, head of the Aboriginal region, said that the “Indigenous Peoples Alliance” hopes to carry out “painful work” in order to finally tell the stories of the children and bring peace to their families.

He said that this work may involve the British Columbia Coroner’s Court, the Royal British Columbia Museum and forensic experts.

Tiger said that he has been meeting with indigenous leaders from across the province to decide the next steps.

He said in an interview with Prince George: “Indeed, I think what needs to happen may be some kind of discovery, and forensic medicine about who these children are and where they come from.”

He said: “Maybe deported back to their respective communities, because the students are not only from the Tk’emlúpste Secwépemc area, but also from neighboring communities and the northernmost Fort Nelson.”

“Unbelievable loss”

Rosanne Casimir of Kukpi7 (chief) of Tk’emlúpste Secwépemc First Nations said that with the help of ground penetrating radar last weekend, the remains of 215 children were confirmed, some of whom were less than 3 years old.

She described the discovery as “an incredible loss that people have talked about but never recorded at the Kamloops Indian boarding school.”

The memorial on the steps of the Vancouver Art Gallery commemorates the remains of 215 children who were buried in the former Kamloops Indian Residential School of the Tk’emlúpste Secwépemc First Nations First Nations in the Ministry of Interior in Southern British Columbia. (Ben Nilms/CBC)

Teegee said he talked to Casimir about the discovery of the remains and provided support from indigenous leaders and groups from across Canada.

He said they discussed how to continue the search and provide support to the Tk’emlúps Nation and those who may have lost their loved ones.

“There is always a story”

Casimir said on Friday that more bodies may be found because there are more searchable areas on campus.

Teegee said the investigation may need to cooperate with the Royal British Columbia Museum to best manage the area, which may also mean the excavation of remains with the goal of repatriating children to their communities.

The main administrative building of the Kamloops Indian Boarding School is shown in the picture, drawn in 1970. (Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration-Information Division / Canadian Library and Archives)

He said the discovery of the remains confirmed many of the comments made by school survivors about the missing children.

He said: “I think it has something to do with the stories of those children. They said:’There are always stories of these burials, and this child disappeared in a so-called random way, what happened.'”

Vancouver Memorial

Several people gathered at the Vancouver Memorial Museum this week, where children’s shoes and some dolls were placed on the steps of the Vancouver City Art Gallery.

Gunargie O’Sullivan, a school survivor at the memorial residence on Friday, said that the news triggered many school survivors.

She said: “I am lucky to say that I am still alive.” She added that her mother was also a survivor of a boarding school.

The Pacific Natives Association put hundreds of pairs of shoes on the steps of the Vancouver Art Gallery. (Ben Nilms/CBC)

O’Sullivan said that the survivors repeatedly talked about the deaths in the school.

She hopes that the memorial can help people understand that death is real, as are the traumas that many survivors continue to suffer.

Search archives

Dan Muzyka, chairman of the Royal British Columbia Museum, said his team searched the records kept in the British Columbia Archives to obtain historical information related to school deaths or funerals, thereby providing first nations with stand by.

Muzika said in a statement: “The most important and relevant record in the British Columbia Archives is Mary Immaculate Conception, the religious organization that ran the school.”

“The museum is committed to providing full support to the country through this archive research.”

Nicole Schabus, a law professor at Thompson Rivers University, said that every first-year law student at Kamloops University spends at least one day talking to survivors in this former boarding school. .

She said: “I am very grateful to the survivors who generously shared their stories.”

Shebbers said she did not hear survivors talking about an unmarked grave area, “but they all talked about children who did not enter the grave area.”

Severely traumatized mouth

She said that when the discovery was made public, the survivors began to call her, saying that they could not sleep because these reports triggered terrible childhood memories.

Teegee said the Kamloops discovery provided more insights into Canada’s dark boarding school history.

He said: “This really reproduces the boarding school problem and the harm caused by the genocide of indigenous people.”

Kamloops boarding school operated between 1890 and 1969. The federal government took over the operation of the facility from the Catholic Church and operated it as a day school until it closed in 1978.

The National Truth and Reconciliation Commission recorded incidents in which at least 51 children died in school between 1915 and 1963.

provide support

Support can be provided to anyone affected by the lingering effects of residential schools, as well as those triggered by the latest reports.of Indian Boarding School Survivors Association You can contact (IRSSS) at 1-800-721-0066 for free.

A nationwide Indian boarding school crisis hotline has been established to provide support to former students and those affected. Call the 24-hour national crisis hotline: 1-866-925-4419 for emotional and crisis referral services.

In British Columbia, the KUU-US Crisis Line Association provides Aboriginal and Aboriginal specific crisis lines that are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.It is a toll free number, you can call 1-800-588-8717 or visit online kuu-uscrisisline.com.

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