Residential School Student Reunion: Inukjuaq, Nunavik

Today I attended a reunion of former residential school students from the 1950's - 1970's in Inukjuaq, Nunavik. The objective of the gathering is to provide an opportunity for former residential school survivors from across Nunavik to come together as a group to share common experiences. Hopefully this will help begin the process of bringing closure to their residential school experience.

Through the residential schools program the Government of Canada sought to "re-socialize" and "assimilate" aboriginal children into English culture by removing them from their parents, their culture, and their language. This happened during their formative years, and while at these schools many suffered physical, sexual, psychological, and emotional abuse, that scarred them for life.

It took many years, but ultimately the voices of those students were heard.

In 1996 the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples outlined the history of abuse of Aboriginal children in the residential schools. It called for a mechanism that would enable former students to give voice to their experiences, and to be listened to with respect.

In 1998 the federal government responded to calls for action by creating the Aboriginal Healing Foundation which began to fund regional and community healing functions. In June of 2008 the Prime Minister of Canada stood in the House of Commons and issued a formal apology stating

".... today, we recognize that this policy of assimilation was wrong, has caused great harm, and has no place in our country."

There was a lot of hard work that went into each of the steps leading to that apology and towards personal and cultural healing however it must be remembered that the very first steps were taken by those first people who talked openly about their experiences, and by doing so showed others that they were not alone.

Prior to the coming of Europeans Inuit never questioned our language, our culture, our beliefs, or our practices however the residential school program and its relentless campaign against everything we were shook our belief in ourselves.

Mr Harper apologised for this saying that the policy of assimilation was ".. based on the belief that Aboriginal cultures and spiritual beliefs were inferior and unequal", and that it was "wrong". These were welcome words, and they left us with a shared responsibility to rebuild that which the Canadian government tried so hard to destroy.

As part of that responsibility we must ensure that every decision we, our local governments and institutions, and our Provincial & Territorial governments, make in this regard promotes the goal of rebuilding our language and our culture. We must continue to promote our language and culture as equal to any other within Canada.

There is much work to be done, but this too is part of the healing process.

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