The Ontario government is vowing to identify, investigate, and commemorate residential school burial sites across Ontario.
The province has pledged $10-million over three years for the process, which is expected to include archeologists, forensic specialists and historians.
Indigenous Affairs Minister Greg Rickford says the recent discovery of 215 bodies in a mass grave at the former Kamloops Residential School was heartbreaking, but not an anomaly.
“Preliminary work done here in Ontario by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission has already identified 12 locations of unmarked burial sites in Ontario with varying levels of certainty and detail. We know there’s likely more to this story.”
The government’s three-phase plan will include mental health supports for survivors and an engagement process with elders and other community members.
“In searching for these sites, we know these are reopening wounds, some that have never healed frankly, and bring painful memories to the surface,” Rickford says. “it’s critical that any search and recovery efforts are community-led, led by Indigenous people and supported with respectful and respect for community protocols and the diversity of cultural practices across Ontario.”
There were 18 residential schools in Ontario, including the Mount Elgin Residential School, just west of London, which was in operation from 1886 to 1949.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission estimated that at least 426 children who attended Indian Residential Schools in Ontario are known to have died, while an unknown number are still missing.
