Statement on the detection of unmarked graves at former residential school sites

Content warning: discussion of anti-Indigenous racism, genocide

If you are in need of support, please call:

• The National Indian Residential School Crisis Line: 1-866-925-4419
• KUU-US Crisis Line: 1-800-588-8717
• Tsow-Tun-Le-Lum Society toll-free line: 1-888-403-3123; main office 250-390-3123
• Indian Residential Schools Survivors Society main office 604-985-4464; toll-free 1-800-721-0066

Over the last several weeks, following the detection of 215 unmarked graves at the site of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School, over 1300 unmarked graves have been located at 6 residential school sites across Canada. Today, Cowessess First Nation announced the detection of 751 unmarked graves near the former Marieval Indian Residential School. It is important to note that the knowledge that Indigenous children were killed at residential schools – by neglect and abuse, and as an act of cultural genocide – is not new. Indigenous survivors and their communities have testified for years about the violence of residential schools, and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s final 2015 report estimated thousands of deaths of Indigenous children at residential schools, many of them whose names were not recorded. Nevertheless, the grief and horror of having these and other deaths confirmed is immense.

The BCHVN recognizes this is an enormously difficult time for many. We recognize that words alone cannot ease the suffering of the past or the present. We recognize that distress is rational response to the violence of colonization – including not only the traumatic legacy of the residential school system, but the ongoing occupation of Indigenous lands and disenfranchisement and criminalization of Indigenous communities. As a grassroots network supporting people who hear voices, see visions, experience extreme states, or who have other unusual sensory experiences, we believe in the importance of understanding mental and emotional health within the context of people’s lives. This includes reckoning with Canada’s colonial past and present.

We encourage non-Indigenous readers to review the findings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s final report, linked above. We also encourage you to review the TRC’s Calls to Action report to learn more about what steps you can take towards justice. If you are able, we also encourage you to donate directly to Indigenous-led organizations and initiatives. You can donate to the Indian Residential School Survivors Society here. You can browse a list of Indigenous organizations in BC here.