According to the editors, Sean Carleton and Niigaan Sinclair, "Residential school denialism is on the rise … and has been growing in intensity af…
According to the editors, Sean Carleton and Niigaan Sinclair, "Residential school denialism is on the rise … and has been growing in intensity af…
Only through truth can there be reconciliation.
The Indian Residential Schools Research Group (IRSRG) seeks to gather and promote research into the residential, industrial, and day school systems run by or in conjunction with the Government of Canada for a 113-year period ending in 1996.
The Latest
This paper was provided to the IRSRG by a member and comments on three aspects o…
On December 4, 2023, Amazon began selling the book Grave Error: How the Media Mi…
Hymie Rubenstein
Originally published by History Reclaimed on 01/09/2023 and …
Canada wanted to close all residential schools in the 1940s. Here’s why it could…
Originally published on the Canadian digital media platform "True North", on Nov…
Quesnel city councillors are suppressing the truth, claim the editors of the boo…
On May 27, 2021, Chief Rosanne Casimir of the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Natio…
This essay is a slightly revised response to an opinion piece entitled "The real…
Common Misconceptions
Misconception: Indigenous children were forced to attend residential schools against their wishes and the wishes of their parents.
For a student to be accepted to a residential school, the parents needed to complete an application requesting enrollment for their child and send that application to Ottawa for approval. Demand was such that many applications were declined due to a lack of capacity. 1 For the first 37 years of the Residential School operation […]
Misconception: The “knowledge keepers” are the only ones who can truly say what happened at the schools.
The term “knowledge keeper” has become common in recent years in discussion of Indian residential schools (IRS), unmarked graves, and missing children. The phrase may be defined in different ways, but it always refers to those versed in the traditions of First Nations, whether they are elders or have been instructed by elders.1 It is […]
Misconception: The Indian Residential School system was a tool to commit Cultural Genocide.
The use of the terms “assimilation” and “integration” to describe the purpose of the Residential Schools system has declined in recent years, replaced by the emotionally and politically inflammatory term “cultural genocide,” a concept synonymous with ordinary enculturation – learning about and internalizing features of a different culture — but one intended to maximize the […]
Misconception: The Residential School system was a tool to commit Genocide.
With both Pope Francis and the Canadian Parliament using the term “genocide” to describe Canada’s treatment of its Indigenous people, it is not surprising that many people believe it is an accurate descriptive term. However, in all established interpretations of the term “genocide,” an intent to eradicate a particular group of people must be shown.1 […]
Misconception: The residential schools were considered harmful by all former students.
Many former residential school students have spoken publicly about the benefits they received from their Residential Schools experience.1 Some have said that their residential school years were “the best years of my life.” 2 The Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report has a section, entitled “Warm Memories,” that is devoted exclusively to former students who spoke positively about […]
Misconception: The residential schools were responsible for a higher rate of disease and death among First Nations children.
All Canadian children suffered very high mortality before the twentieth century. From the early 1900s onward the Residential Schools were in the forefront of the battle to reduce childhood mortality, and were pioneers in several measures that helped achieve that end. In 1600, when Europeans began arriving in North America, the First Nations population of […]
