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A2 UP FRONT
Tuesday 26 July 2022
Continued from Front Americas was determined
More than 150,000 native to make this trip, even
children in Canada were though torn knee ligaments
forced to attend state- forced him to cancel a visit
funded Christian schools to Africa earlier this month.
from the 19th century un- The six-day visit — which
til the 1970s in an effort to will also include other for-
isolate them from the influ- mer school sites in Alberta,
ence of their homes and Quebec City and Iqaluit,
culture. The aim was to Nunavut, in the far north
Christianize and assimilate — follows meetings Fran-
them into mainstream soci- cis held in the spring at the
ety, which previous Cana- Vatican with delegations
dian governments consid- from the First Nations, Metis
ered superior. and Inuit. Those meetings
The Canadian government culminated with an April
has admitted that physi- 1 apology for the "deplor-
cal and sexual abuse was able" abuses committed by
rampant at the schools, some Catholic missionaries
with students beaten for in residential schools and
speaking their native lan- Francis' promise to deliver
guages. That legacy of an apology in person on
that abuse and isolation Canadian soil.
from family has been cited Francis recalled that dur-
by Indigenous leaders as a ing in April, one of the del-
root cause of the epidemic egations gave him a set
rates of alcohol and drug of beaded moccasins as
addiction now on Cana- Pope Francis puts on an indigenous headdress during a meeting with indigenous communities, in- a symbol of the children
dian reservations. cluding First Nations, Metis and Inuit, at Our Lady of Seven Sorrows Catholic Church in Maskwacis, who never returned from
The discoveries of hundreds near Edmonton, Canada, Monday, July 25, 2022. the schools, and asked him
of potential burial sites at Associated Press to return them in Canada.
former schools in the past Francis said in these months
year drew international she arrived at a school and of her mother's colorful rib- which many members of they had "kept alive my
attention to the legacy replaced with a uniform. bon skirts. the Church and of religious sense of sorrow, indigna-
of the schools in Canada Despite the solemnity of "Sorry is not going to make communities cooperated, tion and shame" but that in
and their counterparts in the event, the atmosphere what happened go away," not least through their in- returning them he hoped
the United States. The dis- seemed at times joyful: she said. "But it means a lot difference, in projects of they could also represent a
coveries prompted Francis Chiefs processed into the to the elders." cultural destruction and path to walk together.
to comply with the truth site venue to a hypnotic Prime Minister Justin forced assimilation promot- Event organizers said they
commission's call for him to drumbeat, elders danced Trudeau, who last year ed by the governments of would do everything pos-
apologize on Canadian soil and the crowd cheered voiced an apology for the that time, which culminat- sible to make sure survivors
for the Catholic Church's and chanted war songs, "incredibly harmful govern- ed in the system of residen- could attend the event,
role; Catholic religious or- victory songs and finally a ment policy" in organizing tial schools," he said. busing them in and offer-
ders operated 66 of the 139 healing song. the residential school sys- He said the policy margin- ing mental health counsel-
schools in Canada. One of the hosts of the tem, was also attending alized generations, sup- ors to be on hand knowing
Many in the crowd Mon- event, Chief Randy Ermine- along with the governor pressed Indigenous lan- that the event could be
day wore traditional dress, skin of the Ermineskin Cree general and other officials. guages, severed families, traumatic for some.
including colorful ribbon Nation, said some had cho- As part of a lawsuit settle- led to physical, verbal, Francis acknowledged that
skirts and vests with Native sen to stay away — and ment involving the gov- psychological and spiri- the memories could trigger
motifs. Others donned or- that that was understand- ernment, churches and tual abuse and "indelibly old wounds, and that even
ange shirts, which have be- able. But he said it was approximately 90,000 survi- affected relationships be- his mere presence there
come a symbol of residen- nevertheless a historic, im- vors, Canada paid repara- tween parents and chil- could be traumatic, but
tial school survivors, recall- portant day for his people. tions that amounted to bil- dren, grandparents and he said remembering was
ing the story of one woman "My late family members lions of dollars being trans- grandchildren." He called important to prevent indif-
whose favorite orange shirt, are not here with us any- ferred to Indigenous com- for further investigation, a ference. "It is necessary to
a gift from her grandmoth- more, my parents went to munities. Canada's Catho- possible reference to Indig- remember how the poli-
er, was confiscated when residential school, I went to lic Church says its dioceses enous demands for further cies of assimilation and en-
ARUBA The Associated Press as he provided more than $50 and personnel files of the included the residential
residential school," he told and religious orders have access to church records franchisement, which also
waited for Francis to arrive. million in cash and in-kind priests and nuns to identify school system, were dev-

CLEAN "I know they're with me, contributions and hope to who was responsible for the astating for the people of
they're listening, they're add $30 million more over abuses. "Although Christian these lands," he said.
watching." the next five years. charity was not absent, and Later Monday, Francis was
Felisha Crier Hosein trav- While the pope acknowl- there were many outstand- scheduled to visit Sacred
eled from Florida to attend edged institutional blame, ing instances of devotion Heart Church of the First
in the place of her mother, he also made clear that and care for children, the Peoples, a Catholic par-
who helped create the Catholic missionaries were overall effects of the poli- ish in Edmonton oriented
museum for the nearby merely cooperating with cies linked to the residential toward Indigenous people
Samson Cree Nation and and implementing the gov- schools were catastrophic," and culture. The church,
had planned to attend, but ernment policy of assimila- Francis said. " What our whose sanctuary was dedi-
died in May. tion, which he termed the Christian faith tells us is that cated last week after be-
"I came here to represent "colonizing mentality of the this was a disastrous error, ing restored from a fire,
IS MORE her and to be here for the powers." incompatible with the Gos- incorporates Indigenous
DUSHI elders and the community," "I ask forgiveness, in par- pel of Jesus Christ." language and customs in
said Hosein, who wore one ticular, for the ways in The first pope from the liturgy.q