Debates of June 3rd, 2021

Opposition Motion—Action Toward Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I do not know the specific answer, but I want to emphasize one last point.

We hear about the 94 calls to action that came from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. We know there are 231 individual calls for justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. If members want to get a sense of obligations and some of the stakeholders, the national inquiry report has highlighted who has the responsibilities. I really like that. It is highlighted in colour so it is very easy to see. They will see that it is not one level of government. To have it resolved is going to take a while, but it is going to take people, agencies and governments working together to get it done right. That is how I would conclude my remarks. We all have to do something to work toward full reconciliation.

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

Mr. Speaker, today I join members from Treaty 5 territory, the territory of the Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation, from my home in Thompson. I would like to share my time with my colleague for North Island—Powell River.

Today I rise along with with my NDP colleagues to call for immediate action by Canada for justice in memory of the 215 children found in a mass grave at the Kamloops Indian Residential School on the Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc territory, and in memory of the countless other indigenous children who were victims of Canada's genocide against indigenous peoples.

The news of the shocking reality of the abuse and murder of these 215 children has shaken our country to its core. People are in shock. People are mourning. People are asking how this could have happened and how such unspeakable cruelty, horrific violence and abuse and deliberate, culpable negligence could have been part of an official state policy. It was a state policy of genocide. First nations in our region have been grieving. Survivors, their children and their grandchildren have been reliving unspeakable trauma. They are sad and they are angry.

A couple of days ago I received a call from Eunice, a respected elder from Tataskweyak Cree Nation. She is a survivor. I asked her at the beginning how she was doing. She told me she was sad and that she was angry. In residential school, “they taught us not to cry”, she said, but she wanted to. Eunice was clear, as a survivor, that there must be action for current and future generations. Every single survivor I have heard from has been clear. Their children and grandchildren have been clear. There must be action.

Today, we in the NDP are standing in solidarity with first nations, survivors and intergenerational survivors, and calling for truth, action and justice. Pimicikamak Cree Nation has called on the Prime Minister to fund the search of the site of the residential school that was imposed on them for decades. They are certain more bodies of children will be found. They want to bring them home. York Factory First Nation has called on the federal government to protect each of the sites for proper investigation, ceremony and commemoration. They have said that burial sites must be found, school records must be available and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's calls must be fulfilled.

Every single first nation in our region is clear: There must be action and there must be truth.

There has not been truth for indigenous peoples in Canada. The truth starts with making it clear that Canada's treatment of indigenous peoples is genocide. The genocide of indigenous people was a deliberate state policy of colonialism and ethnic cleansing. Let us be clear that the Government of Canada had an agenda to intentionally take over the lands of indigenous peoples to exploit them for profit. This included a policy of deliberately starving people off the land and killing their leaders, and a policy that seized children from their parents and communities and placed them in church-run institutions that devalued their way of life, their culture and their lives.

The story of Canada is rooted in genocide. The discovery of a mass grave of 215 children is further confirmation of that genocide: a genocide that is ongoing. There must be truth.

It starts with calling residential schools what they were: detention centres, prisons and, all too often, torture chambers. There was physical, sexual and emotional abuse perpetrated by staff, including clergy. The abuse was sanctioned by the state and was known about, but too often covered up. There were 215 deaths at a school that had only 50 recorded. There are hundreds, if not thousands, more children unaccounted for across this country. The victims were as young as three years old. Many of them died with no official records of death, their remains not even treated with dignity. They were buried in unmarked mass graves with no consideration of returning them home to their loved ones.

This was not in a far-away country. This is Canada. This is a system that was in place until the 1990s.

Let us be clear. These were not just unfortunate coincidences or incidents, or the actions of a few. What occurred was part of deliberate state policy. It did not just happen; it was a system designed this way.

There must be action. Two days ago in Parliament we had a chance to talk about the 215 children found at the Kamloops residential school. Instead of action from the government, we heard more words. The Prime Minister stated that Canada failed indigenous peoples. The Minister of Indigenous Services told us to speak to our kids, because they know what happened. This is not acceptable. This is gaslighting, as though Canada is not the one responsible, as though its current government does not have a direct responsibility for this genocide.

To the Prime Minister I say this is a genocide against indigenous peoples.

The irony is that we in Canada lecture the world on human rights, peace and justice, but we ignore the brutal history of colonialism and the vile racism and white supremacy at its root. We lecture the world while we gloss over, even deny, the genocide against indigenous peoples here at home. We talk about reconciliation, but we do not mean it. We ignore the truth.

We still defend the people and the systems that upheld colonialism and genocide as state policy. Let us be clear. What happened to indigenous children, generation after generation, was a policy rooted in colonialism that was administered with unspeakable cruelty and inhumanity. If people are not part of the solution, they are part of the problem.

The world is watching. It is time for Canada to say the truth, to uncover the truth. It is time to state clearly that racism, colonialism and genocide are part of our history and our current day-to-day reality. It is time to commit to nothing less than decolonization.

It is time for actions, not words. It starts with justice for the children and working with indigenous communities to uncover every single site that children were abducted to, and to find them and bring them home. Let us treat this for what it was: crimes against children and indigenous people that should and must include the laying of criminal charges. Let us also stop using the court system to fight against indigenous children and people.

Let us ensure that the government pays its reparations for the incalculable damage and horror that this genocide has caused. Let us also not forget the many dimensions of this colonial system, both the historic legacy and current reality, and that there are first nations, to this day, that still do not have clean drinking water and adequate housing, that live in abject poverty and that have second-rate health care services, underfunded education, a lack of social services and a lack of recreation. In 2021, we still have states of emergency because children are taking their own lives because they feel hopeless.

In the memory of these children, in the memory of and in honouring all survivors, their children and grandchildren, there must be justice. As a mother of two children who are three, the age of the youngest victim in Kamloops, I cannot imagine what their mothers went through and what those children went through. In their names, there must be justice.

The colonialism and genocide that have caused and continue to cause immense suffering for indigenous peoples must stop. We must hear them when they say that they are here, that they are not going anywhere and that the history of the colonizers and their view of the world are not what stick. Colonialism is doomed to fail. Indigenous peoples deserve respect, deserve justice and deserve clear recognition of this being called what it is: a genocide.

Every child matters. The 215 indigenous children who died at the Kamloops residential school mattered. The indigenous children who died at residential schools across Canada mattered. We will not forget them. In their memory, we must and we will achieve justice and decolonization for indigenous peoples, for Canada.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I want to take a moment to congratulate you and pay tribute to you. You were probably one of the first people to say hello and welcome me to the House of Commons. I truly appreciated it and especially appreciated that you did so in French.

Getting back to my colleague's speech, I want to congratulate her on her dedication. She always speaks with such conviction, and I think that this debate requires great sensitivity.

She gave several examples of how we, as a people, may have mistreated indigenous peoples. She made recommendations. We should make these recommendations a priority, especially with respect to housing.

I also want to point out that the New Democrats are proposing actions that have the potential to receive unanimous support, and I commend them for that. However, how far does my colleague believe, deep down, we should go right now?

I think this is all connected to what happened with the Indian Act. Should we review this act, or even repeal it and start over?

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his words.

The decolonization process is a multi-stage process. We absolutely have to not only think, but also act to put an end to a colonizing law.

At the same time, we have to work with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples to really support first nations, who are doing everything they can for their people.

To be clear, this all has to happen with the engagement, investment and support of the federal government, not acting in a paternalistic way but as a responsible partner.

Regarding today's motion, it is clear that the Government of Canada is guilty of genocide. We must do everything possible to bring justice to indigenous peoples across the country.

[Paul Manly, Green, Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to add my voice to the voices of those who are congratulating you today. You have always been very generous in allowing me time to speak, so thank you. I would also like to congratulate the hon. member for her dedication and commitment to these issues.

My good friend Bill Yoachim is the executive director of Kw'umut Lelun, which is the delegated aboriginal agency for child, family and community services on Vancouver Island. One thing he reminds me constantly is that the number one reason children are apprehended by the system is poverty and a lack of affordable, adequate housing.

The residential school system is a legacy we are dealing with, but having children in foster care is an outrageous legacy we are dealing with. It is a continuation of this system of apprehending children from their families. About 4.9% of children in this country are aboriginal, but 48% of children in care are aboriginal.

I would like the hon. member to comment on the continuation of this legacy of removing children from their families and their culture and what we should be doing about it.

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

Mr. Speaker, poverty is a form of violence, and we know that in my part of the country, indigenous children face some of the highest rates of poverty in Canada. In a country as wealthy as Canada, we are talking about third world living conditions.

Today, we are saying there must be action in light of the news coming out of Kamloops of the 215 children who were found. We must do so in their memory. We must also put an end to the ongoing abuse of human rights of indigenous children and indigenous peoples in our country today.

I am hopeful that MPs of all parties will recognize that this is a moment in time, a moment in history, when Canada must change course and must commit to decolonizing. That includes putting an end to the poverty and third world conditions that indigenous children and communities face.

[Gord Johns, NDP, Courtenay—Alberni, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for her passion and determination in getting action for indigenous peoples and for true reconciliation. We have heard some political parties talk about framing Canada's actions as a “cultural” genocide, but the UN convention on genocide is crystal clear: It meets all of the article II conditions for genocide.

Can my colleague speak about why it is important for the Government of Canada to make a clear statement that Canada committed genocide against indigenous people.

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

Mr. Speaker, very clearly, for there to be reconciliation there must be truth, and the truth is that this is genocide. We need Canada to acknowledge this, recognize it and act accordingly. These are crimes against humanity. This is inhumane state-sanctioned and church-sanctioned violence, gross negligence and even death. It is extremely serious. Canada lectures the world on human rights in all sorts of ways. Well, it is time to recognize what has happened here at home. That begins by recognizing genocide and committing to decolonization today and going forward.

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, today I will start my speech with a thank you. I want to thank and acknowledge my Granny Minnie who went to Lejac residential school for far too many years of her life. When I was growing up, she would say to me, “No complaining, Rachel. We are all still here. Get to work.”

It took me many years to fully understand that she understood that Canada had tried to kill her, had tried to kill her community and had succeeded in killing too many. She also recognized that, although she grew up indigenous in a country trying to kill indigenous people, they are still here. She built us strong, carrying a lot of multi-generational trauma, which my family continues to work through. We are strong and the preciousness of our children is powerful, even for the little two-year-old white girl they picked up along the way.

I want to also thank and acknowledge my husband, who is a survivor of a residential school. His love for all of his children and grandchildren is deeply tender and kind. He grapples bravely with the wounds he has, and he has succeeded in a commitment of making sure that not one of his children or grandchildren will ever see him under the influence of any drug or alcohol.

I also acknowledge how he has carried the tradition of his people, especially in his spirit baths. He has taken many people to bathe when they come into their maturity as young people and when they are grieving. This includes our two sons, Henry and Kai, who completed one full year of bathing daily in the river when their voices changed.

I want to thank the many elders who have guided me in my life. There are so many who are still with me, and some who are on the next step of their journey. I want to thank them for holding me up and setting me straight with a kindness and gentleness that I am still practising to emulate. I want to thank all the generations of indigenous children, and my children and grandchildren, who are so generous in their forgiveness for the wounds we are all trying to heal together. I am awed by their love and strength for what they must carry.

I also want to send a special moment of love to Rebecca, who lost her mother several years ago today. She was another victim of a colonial past that damaged her so badly and deeply that it was impossible for her to continue. I want to thank all indigenous parents, and my sister is one of them, who have had to tell their young children about residential schools sooner than they wanted to because of the public discovery of these 215 precious babies.

It is hard to know when to tell one's children that Canada has waged and continues to wage a war on them because of who they are and because they are indigenous. When is the time to tell one's children to be prepared for the racism in Canada because it is coming for them? At what age is it appropriate to tell one's children the one thought every indigenous parent must think about in this country?

I recently heard a non-indigenous person expressing their grief on the discovery of the 215 precious children. They spoke about the loss of innocence they were experiencing in Canada. An indigenous woman, much wiser than me, responded with such kindness, acknowledging that for this person and many Canadians, this revelation has been an awakening.

I hope all Canadians are having this awakening and that their perspective of Canada is fundamentally changing. This is what has happened and is happening in our country. We need to own that as Canadians because this is not a surprise or a shock for indigenous communities across this country. This is a confirmation.

Former senator and chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Murray Sinclair, said in an interview recently that survivors of residential schools called him and said, “I told you so.” I want to tell non-indigenous Canadians to stop trying to fix this and to help the nations carry it. They should carry with them this knowledge that generations of indigenous communities have had to carry by themselves. When they told, their voices were ignored and silenced.

Canadians should understand that this genocide happened and is happening in Canada. They should listen and amplify the voices of indigenous people and where there is injustice, they should help the fight. Many indigenous elders and leaders have told me that there can be no healing without justice and truth. It is hard to keep fighting when they are the ones who are wounded. What Canada needs now is for all Canadians to stand together and fight the injustice that is happening today and in the past.

Canadians can help by telling the Government of Canada, both historically and today, to stop putting the responsibility at the nation's doors and start looking for the truth.

I will give Canadians an example. Yesterday, the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations reannounced $27 million from the 2019 budget to help indigenous communities find their children who died in residential schools, to help bring them home. When the minister was asked why the money was only coming now, the minister said the communities were not ready before this time. I can promise members that there is not one indigenous community across this country that was not wanting their children to come home.

Today, in the indigenous and northern affairs committee, the chair of the governing circle of the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation was very clear in response to the minister and said that this is simply not the case. She told the committee that survivors have been asking for funds for years, especially through the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, but those requests have been severely underfunded and often not responded to.

I believe the chair of the governing circle of the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation. I believe the communities and the voices of indigenous leaders across this country, who have told us again and again that there are children buried. I have no doubt that all communities have always been looking for the children to be returned.

After hearing this, a chief asked me, “Are first nations now responsible for investigating their own genocide?” I agree. Whatever action that is taken should be done 100% with the lead of the nations every single time. However, the reality is that Canada is the perpetrator of this genocide. Canada has information that will guide them from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

In fact, former senator Murray Sinclair spoke to the work done to identify potential grave sites. This information is there, and I would suggest to the government that it is a very good place to start. All too often the government tells Canadians that indigenous communities have other priorities on one issue or another. I want to be very clear in this House that that is complete gaslighting. What is true is that, even with the work being done by the government, first nations children are still in court and a Canadian Human Rights Tribunal order is not being honoured.

I want to thank Cindy Blackstock for her amazing work on this, and I would say to the Government of Canada, it is time to let her put this burden down. It is time to make sure that no more first nations children lose their childhood. It is time to step up and do the right thing. It is time to get it done.

I also want to say that St. Anne residential school survivors are still being denied access to justice. They are survivors. They have a right to have a voice. For too long, the government has blindsided them with processes that continue to keep the agony alive.

The implementation of the TRC calls to action are not being honoured with the seriousness that they must. We are hearing that from indigenous communities. The people who are experienced in this are the experts. That is who we should be listening to.

It is time for there to be spaces for trauma healing centres across this country for indigenous communities. Former senator Murray Sinclair said it very well. He said it is time for us to have spaces where survivors and their families can come together and share this together. It is time for us to make space for that and honour that.

To all of the indigenous communities across this country, from this deep sadness, what I wish them all is joy. For so many generations, with every child that was taken and every child that is taken today, the joy has been stripped from the communities.

It is absolutely time for Canada to step up, recognize the basic human rights of indigenous communities and finally do the right thing, have justice and have truth, so these communities can finally have joy.

[Cathy McLeod, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I was in committee this morning when we heard from the commissioners. It was very powerful testimony. There was a few things that the member brought up in her speech that were particularly concerning.

Certainly, when they indicated that the attention, urgency and resources needed to be made available, the comparison was made to COVID and how quickly the government responded to the COVID crisis. That is what she described there being a lack of. It was also important that she indicated successive governments share the blame and that this is a non-partisan issue.

I come to the House today to speak to a motion that I think is important for us to move forward with, and I would appreciate any further comments my colleague might have about the testimony she heard today.

[The Deputy Speaker, Bruce Stanton]

We will go back to the hon. member for North Island—Powell River. I will just ask her if she could just move the microphone out slightly. We are getting a bit of distortion.

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I thank the interpreters who have to put up with this. I know it is so hard on them, and I would like to express my deep appreciation.

I thank the member, who I know is finalizing her time here, as a future retiree of this place. I want to thank her for her commitment and work on this file. I deeply respect some of the work she has done.

I could not agree more with the testimony we heard today about how the urgency we have seen for COVID needs to be applied across the board to indigenous communities in Canada. The reality is that we know we are not meeting basic human rights in Canada. Not one Canadian should be okay with that.

[Denis Trudel, Bloc, Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for that beautiful testimony. This day, today's debates are rather special. There have been some very moving testimonies just like the other evening when we had the take-note debate.

I think that, in a debate like this one, words matter. The other evening and today as well, to the question as to whether those children and indigenous peoples in general have experienced a cultural genocide in the past 150 years in Canada, I have no doubt. I get the feeling that my colleague has no doubt about that either. The House is not unanimous on this. People on both the Liberal and Conservative sides do not agree with that term.

My question is this: What do members of the first nations call this phenomenon?

What do they call the experience children had in the residential schools, in other words the fact that these children were kidnapped, transported across the world, uprooted and stripped of their culture?

Do the first nations see this as cultural genocide?

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, this was absolutely genocide, and it continues to be genocide. When they find a mass grave of 215 children, all explanations end.

I encourage all of us as parliamentarians, regardless of party, to own this history. Until there is truth and until there is justice, indigenous communities will not be able to fully heal, and that is our responsibility.

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to pick up on something my colleague indicated earlier, and this is with respect to the role of the federal government and ensuring the federal government is directed by the wishes of the community.

I know she had not come up with a full answer because she was also grappling with it. Perhaps she could give us a bit more clarity on what that needs to look like in terms of the interactions and the support that the federal government needs to give, while at the same time, having the decisions directed by local communities.

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, former senator Sinclair was very clear in his testimony in INAN today, where he outlined the fact that there has been research done on where some of those graves are projected to be.

It is absolutely essential that Canada be very respectful in its conversations, but that it take a leadership role in making sure that if, for example, there is private property, that property is dealt with so we can get those babies home. That has to be a number one priority. Genocide was committed and continues to be committed by Canada. Canada must own it and take a lead on the steps to remedy this.

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for Parkdale—High Park. My hon. colleague, of course, serves as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice as well.

Mr. Speaker, let me just quickly take a moment to recognize your accomplishments in this House. I did not know the gravity of this and, of course, I have only had a short time to sit in this House, but I have found that our dealings have been jovial. I appreciate your leadership and wish you all the best in the days ahead.

I have said it before, but I will say it again. I have the privilege of representing three indigenous communities in my riding of Kings—Hants: Sipekne'katik, Glooscap and Annapolis Valley first nations. Particularly pertinent to today's discussion is the fact that my riding is home to where the Shubenacadie Residential School existed from 1930 to 1967. I have seen the legacy. This was the largest school in Atlantic Canada. It did not only tear children away from their families in the local area; it brought Mi'kmaq children from across Nova Scotia, indeed across the Atlantic region, to face the horrors of what residential schools represented.

I think for many of us in this House it is very difficult to try to understand because we do not necessarily have that lived experience. I am going to try to explain by using a quote I found from a member of my community, the late Isabelle Knockwood. She was the author of a book called Out of the Depths: The Experiences of Mi'kmaw Children at the Indian Residential School at Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia. There are a whole bunch of passages that I could quote, but this one was particularly jarring for me:

...from our first day at the school speaking our own language resulted in violent physical punishment. Since we knew no English we had to hide to talk to each other in Mi’kmaq. Even after a few years had passed and we had learned enough English to communicate with each other, it still was often dangerous to talk. We were forbidden to talk at night in the dormitory. Brothers and sisters were strictly forbidden to speak to each other.

There is a lot that I could quote, but it is about the language and culture, trying to take that away from indigenous children at that time. It is one illustration among many that I could point out that are problematic.

We recognize, of course, the harm in Kamloops, but we know that it is also in our own backyard. The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation recognizes the deaths of 16 children. I would like to read their names into the record here today, if I may. Let me also acknowledge that we know there could be more, and indeed that work has to continue. The names are as follows: Albert Pictou, Bryan Simon, Colin Bernard, Doris Acquin, Ella Cooper, Irene Mitchell, James Paul, Josephine Smith, Joyce Delores Mcdonald, Mary Agnes Ward, Mary Gehue, Mary Ginnish, Mary Madeleine Bernard, Mary Toney, Maurice Young and Nancy Lampquin. I wanted to make sure those were in Hansard, in our records.

This past Sunday, I had the opportunity to join members of the community of Sipekne'katik as they gave prayers and a smudging ceremony to those who have been impacted by the legacy of the residential school system.

Many in indigenous communities of course knew that what was found in Kamloops was a likelihood, and indeed this will not be the only type of tremendous harm we will find. We need to prepare ourselves, as Canadians, that this is not an isolated incident. I say this recognizing that we have to continue the work in this domain.

I have asked myself over the last number of days how best I can be an advocate in this particular space. The member opposite last mentioned the $33 million the government had set aside in budget 2019 to be able to do the important work of finding these burial sites. For instance, my understanding is that in Kamloops it was the funding that helped find these individuals, and hopefully bring home even more children.

There is ongoing work right now in Shubenacadie, through The Confederacy of Mainland Mi'kmaq, at the Shubenacadie site. It is a large area, 250 acres. Despite this being a national issue, I ask myself how best I can help in my community, in my riding. That is where I am going to turn my attention, in terms of working with indigenous leadership in Kings—Hants and indeed across Nova Scotia on how we can make sure that this particular site has the recognition it deserves.

For the members in this House who may not be familiar with the area, there is nothing there right now that actually gives credence to the horrors and the tragedy that happened in that place. Although it is not my place to say exactly how that should happen, as it has to be through the eyes of the survivors who had gone to this school, I do think it is important and it will be my focus in the days ahead.

There has been progress, and I say that hesitantly. We should not shy away from the fact that we have moved the yardsticks on reconciliation in the right direction. I am proud to be a member of a government and caucus that I believe have done more than any government in Canadian history in this particular work to reconcile with indigenous people. I say that recognizing and certainly making very clear that there is more work to be done, and that includes of course not only the work in Shubenacadie that I will undertake with my colleagues and indigenous leaders, but indeed a lot of the work that has to happen to be able to implement the TRC calls to action.

I want to highlight some of the work that I believe is important and is going to be fundamental for us, above and beyond the particular issue of the residential school system, to continue to build that relationship, because members and indigenous community members would say it is absolutely important that we recognize and we do right by the harm, but we also have to build on a better future.

I look at UNDRIP, the legislation that was passed in this House and is now before the Senate. It represents a historic opportunity for us, as a government, to continue to move and build partnerships nation to nation with indigenous communities. I look at Bill C-5 and take notice that all members of this House supported the fast-tracking of that particular legislation to establish a national day of truth and reconciliation in this country. Those, although alone they will not be enough, are important to being able to move the yardsticks in the right direction.

I look in my own community. Recently, I sat down with Chief Sack. We had a very important housing announcement through the rapid housing initiative, where we were able to make investments in the community for 20 units. Is there more work to be done? Absolutely, but this is an important investment I am proud our government has made to try to improve the lives of the indigenous communities I represent.

I look at Annapolis Valley First Nation and the ability for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to work with that community to make sure there is access through Canada Creek for their fisheries and their opportunities to exist in that domain.

I look at Glooscap Landing. Although it was a project that was advanced under my predecessor, Scott Brison, in partnership with the Glooscap community, it is a prime example of the opportunities that exist to be able to move and build commercial partnerships with the Glooscap community.

I have about 90 seconds left by my clock, so I will conclude by saying this.

My commitment to the members of my community, both indigenous and non-indigenous, will be to continue to advocate for and advance the priorities of indigenous communities in Kings—Hants, and of course beyond, with my colleagues in this House.

Reconciliation will not be an easy path. We know that. There will be remaining challenges and there will not always be agreement on the best pathway forward, but it is the spirit of being willing partners and working with each other that will be crucial.

To the survivors of the residential school system in my riding, and those who were impacted at Shubenacadie, I will do my utmost to ensure that this tragic legacy and the harms that have been done are known so we can all move collaboratively to reconcile and be able to advance and move forward from this darkest period of Canadian history.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. We cannot overlook the current court challenges with regard to compensation for the victims of St. Anne's residential school. I would like my colleague to say a few words about the time, energy and especially the money that has been devoted to this challenge. Could it not be used for something else? Does this not also send the message of a step backward instead of a step toward reconciliation?

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, as I understand, it relates to the decision from the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal. I think the government has made it very clear that it is committed to compensating the individuals who have been impacted by the residential school system.

The background here is whether or not the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal had the jurisdiction under the statute to be able to move this forward, so it is less about the particular decision at hand and more about the consequences of allowing the tribunal to be able to award in this fashion, which has traditionally been the place of the courts.

Our government is committed to finding that settlement and that compensation. I believe that is important, and I know the members of my community believe it is as well.

[Paul Manly, Green, Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC]

Mr. Speaker, one of the things I have brought up here is that this genocide that occurred with our residential school system carries on with children being apprehended and removed from their homes based on poverty and lack of affordable housing. There has been a call for indigenous housing designed by indigenous people that is culturally appropriate. In my riding, Tillicum Lelum and the Nanaimo Aboriginal Centre have both put forward proposals for housing and want to see more funding for culturally appropriate indigenous housing, to ensure that indigenous people who face poverty or inadequate housing do not have their children removed from them for those reasons.

Does the hon. member think that we should have a fourth leg to the national housing strategy for urban indigenous people designed by urban indigenous people?

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, of course housing is top of mind for individuals across the country, and indeed for indigenous communities. While the member opposite represents an urban riding, my riding is primarily rural and remote. I agree with him about creating a program around trying to serve the needs of indigenous communities. I know we have done a lot of work in this domain, but there is more to be done. Working toward giving ownership to indigenous communities to make their own decisions in this regard is something I support, so on the broad principles of what the member is advancing I agree with him.

[Marci Ien, Liberal, Toronto Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in the meetings that my hon. colleague has had with the community since this happened, what is he hearing from young people in particular, who no doubt see themselves in this tragedy? What are their needs? At a time when we have been going through and continue to go through COVID, the mental health of young people is at stake. With the number of admissions to hospitals and so forth being so high right now, what is he hearing from young people in the communities about what they need?

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I might not have mentioned it at the opening of my remarks. I was nervous because this is one of the most important speeches I have had to give in the House.

I actually joined the community on Sunday night, and a number of young people addressed the member's question. What I would say is there was a desire to come together. We know that through COVID, beyond this particular challenge and, frankly, this national tragedy, people want to be together writ large. There is a pride and a desire by young people to be proud of where they came from, a desire to make sure these stories are told, and to make sure that the history, the culture and the language of these particular communities is taken up by this generation.

That is the work that our government has done, and that is the work we need to continue, to embolden and to make sure that next generation of leaders has the tools to be able to maintain their culture, unlike what has happened in years past.

[The Deputy Speaker, Bruce Stanton]

Before we get to resuming debate, it is my duty pursuant to Standing Order 38 to inform the House that the questions to be raised tonight at the time of adjournment are as follows: the hon. member North Island—Powell River, regional development; the hon. member for Bow River, Canadian heritage; and the hon. member for Saanich—Gulf Islands, the environment.

[Arif Virani, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, let me start by congratulating you on your 10-year anniversary in that chair as Deputy Speaker and your distinguished service as a parliamentarian in this chamber, respected by every one of your 337 colleagues.

I want to speak today about something that is critically important, not just now but all of the time, that has come to the forefront given this opposition day motion that we are discussing, and that is the events at Kamloops in terms of the shocking discovery of the mass grave of 215 children who belonged to the Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation.

After hearing about it on the radio, and the sheer magnitude, my first reaction was simply one of horror, and I had to explain to my kids why I was reacting the way that I was.

My second response was as someone who came to this chamber as a lawyer who has some experience with international law, particularly with Rwanda at the UN war crimes tribunal. I thought of how we usually associate mass graves with foreign conflicts and not with Canada. Then I started to think of what we have done vis-à-vis indigenous people of this land and how sometimes it is not much different in terms of the overt assimilation that we have propagated against them, and when the declared policy of the government at the time was to “take the Indian out of the child”.

I also reacted as a parliamentarian who has not been in this chamber as long as you, Mr. Speaker, but for six years now, who feels like he has gathered some understanding of the situation. I had gone through the calls to action, but I was still shocked and surprised. However, we do not have to dig too far to realize that there were a lot of people who were not surprised, and a lot of those people are indigenous people of this land, particularly elders.

This led me to the question of how we value knowledge and recognize its legitimacy, and how this Eurocentric idea has been passed down that unless something is reduced to writing or photographic or video evidence, it probably did not happen. This is a bias that we bring to the table that we have to acknowledge. I thank a constituent of mine who wrote to me about the issue of Canadians, including Canadian parliamentarians, who need to learn to embrace oral histories as legitimate histories so that we can truly come to terms with the magnitude of what we are dealing with.

I also reacted as a father, as I mentioned, when I heard the news that morning on CBC Radio while my children were eating cereal in front of me. My boys are very dear to me. I mean, everyone's children are dear to them. My wife, Suchita, and I are raising two young boys, Zakir and Nitin, and we try and do right by them. However, it one thing for me to imagine my children being removed from my home against my will, but it is another thing entirely to imagine them never returned to me and to never know their whereabouts, which is exactly what has transpired over and over again with indigenous families of this land. This is the true tragedy that needs to be dealt with and understood, and it needs to be accounted for, which can only start with a very strong, historical, educational exercise.

There are some people in this House who are younger than I am, which is the tender age of 49, who had the benefit of actually being educated on this. However, I went through every level of school, including post-secondary education and through law school, and never once was I instructed about the history of the residential school legacy in this country, which is quite shocking for a guy who graduated law school in 1998.

I know that people are now getting that education, and that is important. I also know that people are taking steps, and we heard the member for Kings—Hants talk about what was happening in his community in Nova Scotia. In my community of Parkdale—High Park in Toronto, there was a vigil just yesterday about this very issue, which raised awareness, and that is important. I thank my constituent, Eden, for organizing the vigil. She took the reins on doing so, because she felt so strongly about it. I took my oldest son to that event, because I wanted him to be there to understand, to learn, and to see how others were reacting to what we had learned on Friday morning.

It is one thing to read stories, and I do read him stories, particularly the orange shirt story of Phyllis Webstad, the woman who wore that infamous orange shirt, which was removed from her at that residential school. She is also a member of the Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation. However, it is more than just the stories, and I wanted him to get that. It is not just past or distant history, it is still unfolding around us, which is very important, because we should not deem it relegated to the past. It was also important for him and for me to see the turnout, the number of young people who were there, and to hear the demands, and there were many.

There were many directed at the federal government, the government that I represent. There was outrage, shock and horror, but it was important for me to hear the demands. It was important for my son to hear the demands. If I could summarize it, which is difficult to do, but they want justice, accountability and transparency and they want it now, not at some date to be determined in the future.

I hear that sentiment and I very much share that sentiment. I say that in all sincerity in this chamber for those who are watching around the country. In particular ,what I think is most critical is just having a sense that if this happened to the Tk'emlúps First Nation, in Kamloops at that former school, we know that there are 139 sites around this country where it may very well have happened there as well. That forensic investigation, that radar investigation must be done and it must be done immediately.

I know that we have dedicated as a government almost $34 million to address some of the calls to action we have heard extensively about during the course of today's debate. If more money is needed, it must be provided forthwith. That is what I am advocating for.

Others have also said to me just get on with every single one of those calls to action, get it over with now. It has been far too long. I hear that outrage and that sense of urgency. I pause because I know in looking at the calls to action that some of them relate to us at the federal level, us as parliamentarians in the House of Commons. Some of them relate to provincial governments, city governments. Some of them relate to institutions and school boards. Some of them even relate to foreign entities.

I, for one, would be dearly appreciative to see a formal papal apology. That is call to action 58. That is a call to action that the Prime Minister squarely put to the Pope on a visit to the Vatican and that has not yet been acceded to. I think that stands in stark contrast to what we see with other denominations of Christian churches in this country that have formally accepted and apologized for the role that the church played in terms of administering many of these residential schools. That needs to be forthcoming and Canadians are demanding that, rightfully so.

Others I believe have been met at least in part if not fully. I count myself as very privileged to have served in the last Parliament when I was the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Heritage. We worked on and co-developed with first nations, Métis and Inuit leaders what became Bill C-91, Canada's first ever Indigenous Languages Act.

I personally count that as one of my most significant learning opportunities as a parliamentarian. It took that lawyer who was not educated about this stuff in law school and it turned him into a parliamentarian who was dealing directly with first nations, Inuit and Métis leaders about the difficulties of not having that connection to one's language and what that does to one's psyche, one's level of mental anxiety, one's connection to one's culture.

We have remedied that. It speaks directly to TRC calls to action 13, 14 and 15. We have also made great strides with respect to indigenous child and welfare legislation. That was Bill C-92 in the last Parliament. The most important piece there is that the norm now based on that legislation is if we must remove a child, then we keep them within their group, within their first nation, among their community and only as an absolute last resort would they be removed.

We have worked on UNDRIP with members of the opposition parties including the NDP. We have worked on Bill C-22, which I count myself privileged to have worked on as parliamentary secretary to the current Minister of Justice. It deals with curing the overrepresentation of indigenous people in this land. Much more remains to be done. I do not discount that and it needs to be done quickly. We need to do that work together.

I welcome this debate. I welcome the discussions we have been having literally all week, not just today about this important topic, because they are critical. I do feel at my core that we will only gather sufficient momentum when all Canadians are talking about this stain on Canada's history and Canada's legacy. That is critical to see. We have seen it over the course of this pandemic where people, non-white and white, people who are racialized or not racialized have taken up the call for addressing systemic racism and systemic discrimination in wake of George Floyd and in this country people like Regis Korchinski-Paquet.

I am seeing that again now. I am seeing that massive outreach now and that is a good thing because it gives us momentum. It gives us the initiative to keep working hard at these issues and to keep focused on these calls to action in addressing the needs of indigenous people, but always in a manner that is led by indigenous people and done on their terms, because gone must be the paternalism where Ottawa dictated to indigenous people the appropriate remedies. We must be listening and responding.