Chiefs of the Wolastoqey Nation are calling on the province to stop ignoring New Brunswick’s history of Indigenous day schools.
A statement from Wolastoqey Nation asked the province to use ground-penetrating radar to survey the Sussex Indian School site for mass graves similar to the one found in Kamloops last week.
They also asked Premier Blaine Higgs to acknowledge the school’s existence and to “stop pretending” the province has no history of residential schools.
Higgs was criticized in the release for his 2020 comment that he doesn’t want to focus on New Brunswick’s history of injustices toward Indigenous communities.
“We believe that there is no fixing the future without acknowledging and being educated about the past,” the release reads. “Without this, the proper steps to effect meaningful change cannot be taken and collaborative action to properly address the deep-rooted systemic issues in this province and country cannot be made.”
The province is also being asked to speed up its implementation of the 94 Calls to Action that were part of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee in 2015 and to collaborate with Indigenous communities and leadership.
The Chiefs say they stand in solidarity with all First Nation communities across the country in mourning the 215 children found buried in a mass grave last week in Kamloops.
A national Indian Residential School Crisis Line has been set up to provide support for former residential school students. The toll-free line can be accessed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by calling 1-866-925-4419.
