Remains of 215 Children Found at Former Canadian Indigenous Residential School Site

Past Indigenous Cultural Eradication Policy
Prime Minister Trudeau: "A Shameful History"

Past photo of the Kamloops Indian Residential School where the remains of children were found

AFP reported on the 28th (local time) that the remains of 215 children were discovered on the site of a Canadian Indigenous residential school that operated from the 19th century until the mid-20th century.

An Indigenous Canadian tribe stated in a press release that experts confirmed the remains through ground-penetrating radar at the Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia.

In the past, Canada forcibly segregated Indigenous peoples including Indians, Inuit, and M?tis?people of mixed European and Indigenous descent?into residential schools where they were subjected to language and cultural education aimed at assimilation into white society.

During this process, policies of cultural eradication were enforced, including the forced prohibition of Indigenous languages, and severe human rights abuses such as physical, mental, and sexual abuse occurred under harsh and strict discipline.

Approximately 150,000 Indigenous children were forcibly sent to 139 Indigenous residential schools, with the Kamloops Indian Residential School being the largest, accommodating about 500 students. The Catholic Church operated the school on behalf of the Canadian government from 1890 to 1969.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed on Twitter upon hearing the news of the children's remains, "This painful discovery breaks my heart," adding, "It reminds us of a dark and shameful period in our country's history."

Prime Minister Trudeau also issued an official government apology in 2017, calling the Indigenous residential schools "a shameful part of Canada's history."

The Canadian Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which has been investigating the Indigenous residential school issue, defined the schools as a "cultural genocide" in its 2015 report and presented 94 calls to action.

The commission confirmed that at least 3,200 children died from abuse and neglect in the residential schools, but the exact number remains unknown.