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Northern MPP calls for Indigenous-led investigations into Ontario residential schools

‘Finding and locating our lost children is a sacred responsibility for our Peoples and must be led by First Nations communities and leaders,’ said Mamakwa
Sol Mamakwa
Sol Mamakwa is the NDP MPP for Kiiwetinoong in northwestern Ontario. (File)

Sol Mamakwa, NDP critic for Indigenous and Treaty Relations and MPP for Kiiwetinoong, said that in investigating the other residential schools, there is a ‘sacred responsibility,’ to consider.

He was referring to the discovery of the remains of 215 children on the grounds of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in May.

In a letter to Premier Doug Ford and Ontario Indigenous Affairs Minister Greg Rickford, Mamakwa said it is of the utmost importance for residential school investigations to continue and that “given the amount of trauma and death associated with the schools and the cascading result on generations of our families, there is no other choice.”

“Finding and locating our lost children is a sacred responsibility for our Peoples and must be led by First Nations communities and leaders,” said Mamakwa in the letter.

In an interview with Sudbury.com, Mamakwa expanded on the importance of indigenous-led investigations. It is about trust, transparency and healing, he said. It is also about avoiding systems that were “never for the benefit of Indigenous people.”

“I think for many years, decades, for many centuries, we've worked under a very colonial, oppressive system,” said Mamakwa. “Those systems were never built for our people. That's one of the issues that we want to address, making sure that it's Indigenous-led experts providing service to the communities and the survivors and leadership as well.”

Mamakwa said there is also a question of cultural safety and ceremony involved with work like this. Not only will people have to relieve painful memories in order to provide needed-information, but significant research must be done and done in a sensitive, transparent and culturally-sensitive manner. 

“We need data, access to archival documents, research, interviews,” said Mamakwa, “The Truth and Reconciliation process, we have to go revisit that and we don't want to start re-traumatizing people. 

“There were also other schools that were not part of that Indian Residential School settlement agreement. We need to be able to bring those children back. We need to search the sites and we start looking for the missing indigenous children across Canada.”

Mamakwa’s letter mentions comments made to the media by Minister Rickford on June 8, in which Rickford said there were “at least a dozen” burial sites and 426 children who died in Ontario residential schools. 

Mamakwa’s letter asks, “If this has been known, why has there been no commitment to act before now?”

Mamakwa is not only clear that government decisions made without consulting Indigenous communities will be “unacceptable,” but that he has the utmost faith in those communities to offer “the knowledge, experience, and technical expertise to lend to this process.”

“We must begin immediate and decisive action for the children who are still missing from St. Anne’s, Pelican Lake, and McIntosh Indian Residential Schools, and at others across Ontario.” 

You can read the letter in full below. 

June 9, 2021

Dear Minister Rickford and Premier Ford,  

I am writing to you today on behalf of the residential school survivors, family members of those who went to residential schools, and our community members. 

In light of the government’s commitment to locate the burial sites of Indigenous children around the province in a manner that is Indigenous-led and rises above politics, I am convening a list of Indigenous specialists and leaders who will come together to figure out next steps. This undertaking must be done in ceremony and in a good way. Our children deserve nothing less. 

Finding and locating our lost children is a sacred responsibility for our Peoples and must be led by First Nations communities and leaders. Given the amount of trauma and death associated with the schools and the cascading result on generations of our families, there is no other choice.

After reading Minister Rickford’s comments in the media, I hope the government understands this. I am also aware the minister told CTV last night that there are 426 children who died in Ontario residential schools, and that there are at least a dozen burial grounds. If this has been known, why has there been no commitment to act before now?

The approaches by Canadian governments – including Ontario – on this matter must be Indigenous-led, community-based, Survivor-centric and culturally sensitive.  I would like to be very clear: unilateral decisions by the government of Ontario in this regard are unacceptable to Indigenous people. First Nations Peoples have the knowledge, experience, and technical expertise to lend to this process.

We must begin immediate and decisive action for the children who are still missing from St. Anne’s, Pelican Lake, and McIntosh Indian Residential Schools, and at others across Ontario. 

I am available to discuss next steps with you when you are available. 

Sol Mamakwa
MPP, Kiiwetinoong