First Nation and Catholic Church agree on the truths of residential schools

WARNING: This story contains details of residential school experiences.

Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc and the Vancouver and Kamloops branches of the Catholic Church have released details of a signed document agreeing to a historical record recognizing the damage caused by residential schools and the role the Catholic Church played.

On Easter Sunday, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vancouver, the Diocese of Kamloops and the First Nation gathered to Holy Covenant outlining how it will work with the First Nation toward reconciliation.

“The signing of this sacred covenant is a step in the right direction,” Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc Kúkpi7 Rosanne Casimir said during a press conference on Wednesday.

“We all need to rebuild our relationships at every level and walk this journey together.”

Archbishop J. Michael Miller said the church plans to work with Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc on a path to healing.

Agree on the truth

The bulk of the Sacred Covenant consists of a set of agreed upon truths about the history of the institution.

The covenant reads:

“The Catholic Church now recognizes that the impact of Indian residential schools has been profoundly negative and has had a lasting and damaging effect on Aboriginal culture, heritage and language. While some former students have spoken positively about their experiences at Kamloops Indian Residential School, these stories are overshadowed by tragic tales of the emotional, physical and sexual abuse and neglect of helpless children, and their separation from their families and communities, including Secwepemc , Sylix, Nlaka’pamux and St’át’imc Nations.

Furthermore, it says that regardless of what comes to light in the future, the Catholic parties agree that separating children from their families was harmful and “contrary to Catholic social teaching.”

The covenant also includes a commitment by both parties to take further measures to honor the truths and reconciliation, including erecting memorials for children forced to attend boarding schools, providing mental health care and cooperating with the ongoing investigation to what happened in the institution.

This comes after Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation shared that preliminary findings from a ground-penetrating radar survey in May 2021 found approximately 200 potential burial sites on the site of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.

“Elders and survivors have always spoken about children who died and disappeared while they were in school,” Casimir said.

Residential schools were often underfunded and overcrowded, and according to the National Commission for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR), the education provided was poor.

Children forced to attend residential schools were punished for speaking their own language and engaging in different cultural practices, the NCTR says. Many suffered verbal, physical and sexual abuse from staff and other students.

“The schools are hurting the children,” the NCTR says on its website website.

“Children were deprived of healthy examples of love and respect. The diverse cultures, traditions, languages ​​and knowledge systems of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples were eroded through forced assimilation.”

The Kamloops Indian Residential School operated from 1890 until 1969, when the federal government took over control of the Catholic Church to operate it as a day school residence until it closed in 1978.

“The residential school system has wreaked havoc on the language, customs and traditions of this community, and we see its continued impact today,” Miller said.

“The church was wrong in the way it went about implementing colonialist government policies that resulted in the separation of children from parents and their families.”

Template for other agreements

The final action in the covenant is a plan to extend this work to other First Nations and dioceses.

Both Casimir and Miller are hopeful that other Indigenous and Christian communities across the country will forge relationships and take steps toward reconciliation.

“We encourage all Catholics and indeed all Canadians to learn more about the ongoing challenges facing Indigenous people,” Miller said.

Casimir said she believes the covenant sets a precedent for other communities.

“It takes everyone at every level to walk that path and journey together,” she said.

“I would encourage others to also build and establish those relationships to be able to take those meaningful steps.”

A national crisis line for Indian residential schools is available to provide support to survivors and those affected. People can access emotional and crisis referral services by calling the 24-hour service at 1-866-925-4419.

Mental health and crisis support is also available 24 hours a day, seven days a week through the Hope for Wellness hotline at 1-855-242-3310 or via online chat.