“What exactly is a Residential School?” Believe it or not, this is something I get asked quite often. My initial thoughts when I first recieve this question are, how can I share with this person what Residential School is, in a good way? I even ask myself, should I be the one to tell them what “exactly” it is? I usually share what I have learned thus far. My responses usually go something like this: “Residential Schools were the government and churches way of assimilating First Nations children into Western Society, because they thought that they were doing good for First Nations communities and society as a whole. An “Indian Agent”, was sent into communities to take children away from their communities and put them in these Residential Schools, far away from their homes, where they were no longer allowed to practice their culture, speak their own language, or see their families for a long period of time. Often times, these children were emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually abused. The last Residential School closed in 1996.” More often than not, the response I get is a blank stare, wide-eyes and then, “I can’t believe that happened in our country”, or, “I can’t believe I didn’t learn more about this in school.”
I personally think it is concerning that many people still do not know about the injustice which occurred, but at the same time I am glad that there are people who want to know and take the time to ask. The last thing I want is for people to be fearful to ask questions. Do not be afraid to ask questions. As long as you ask in a way that is respectful and honourable of the other person, I can almost guarantee that they will be more than happy to answer your questions.
Discussions about Residential Schools can go on for days, and the details pertaining to the intergenerational trauma that has occurred as a result, goes beyond the scope of this blog post. However, there are many survivors who share their experiences and it is even more valuable to hear from them about Residential Schools. There is a website you can visit which contains several videos of Residential School survivors sharing their stories. I also really enjoyed this TED Talk because this woman shares stories she has heard, as well as, her own story in being a non-Indigenous person, fostering awareness and understanding pertaining to Residential Schools.