Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize another tragedy in our history. One hundred years ago, the Spanish influenza swept across the world. It was especially devastating to the people of Labrador.
The Inuit communities of Sandwich Bay, Lake Melville, Hebron and Okak were left decimated by the pandemic. It took months for news of the disaster to reach the Newfoundland government and the response of the colonial secretary of the day was to send a telegram asking if any white settlers had died.
After hearing of the horrible details, the months of suffering and hardship, no statement was ever made in the legislature to acknowledge the deaths and the impact of the tragedy on the people of Labrador.
I would like to acknowledge former CBC broadcaster and Newfoundland and Labrador author Anne Budgell on her new book detailing the Spanish influenza in Labrador.
It is important, on our road to reconciliation, to acknowledge our failures and commit ourselves to learning from our history.