Taking care: We recognize this news release may contain information that is difficult for many and that our efforts to honour Survivors and families may act as an unwelcome reminder for those who have suffered hardships through generations of government policies that were harmful to Indigenous Peoples.
A National Residential School Crisis Line is available to provide support to former residential school students who can access emotional and crisis referral services by calling the 24-Hour National Crisis Line at 1-866-925-4419.
Indigenous Peoples can also access the Hope for Wellness Help Line by phone at 1-855-242-3310 or via online chat through the website at www.hopeforwellness.ca.
April 20, 2022 - Sipekne'katik First Nation, Nova Scotia, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada
The locating of unmarked graves at former residential school sites across Canada is a tragic reminder of the abuse Indigenous children suffered in these institutions. The Government of Canada is working with Survivors, Indigenous leaders and affected families and communities as part of efforts to address historical wrongs and the lasting physical, emotional, mental and spiritual harms related to the legacy of residential schools. Part of this work includes efforts being made to locate and commemorate missing children who attended residential schools, as well as responding to Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action 72 to 76.
Today, Chief Michael .P. Sack of Sipekne'katik First Nation; the Honourable Marc Miller, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Parliamentary Secretary Jaime Battiste are announcing funding of $326,700 from the Residential School Children's - Community Support Funding Program, in support of Sipekne'katik First Nation's "Shubenacadie Residential School Support Project for Sipekne'katik." This funding will assist with the research, knowledge gathering, commemoration, memorialization and fieldwork that will be undertaken by the First Nation on the grounds surrounding the former Shubenacadie residential school.
Sipekne'katik First Nation has already begun the difficult work. The project, titled "Shubenacadie Residential School Support Project for Sipekne'katik," involves local research and knowledge gathering with Elders, and fieldwork investigation on the surrounding areas of the school that were not included in earlier fieldwork investigation supported by Parks Canada. It will also include commemorative events such as the installation of a plaque honouring the missing children who attended the residential school.
The Government of Canada will continue to be there to support communities as they respond to and heal from intergenerational trauma and the ongoing impact of residential schools. Budget 2022 proposes to provide $209.8 million over five years, starting in 2022-23, to increase the support provided to communities to document, locate, and memorialize burial sites at former residential schools; to support the operations of and a new building for the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation; and to ensure the complete disclosure of federal documents related to residential schools.
Addressing the harms suffered by Survivors, their families and communities is at the heart of reconciliation and is essential to renewing and building relationships with Indigenous Peoples, governments, and all Canadians.
