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	Truth about Residential Schools Needs to Be Told By Peter Duffy Chronicle Herald May 4, 2008 http://thechronicleherald.ca/Opinion/9006563.html IT'S going to be a long and painful process but it has to be done, for all our sakes. This week, Ottawa named the man who'll lead the Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Two more members will be named shortly and come June, the $60-million tribunal will begin its five-year mission to remove a terrible stain on Canada's past and heal a dreadful wound that numbs the aboriginal soul. Residential schools were sanctioned in the 19th century by government and administered by the churches. For almost 100 years, well into the mid-20th century, aboriginal children were taken from their families and subjected to what was, essentially, a cultural transplant. In all, an estimated 150,000 First Nations, Metis and Inuit children passed through the doors of these schools, and now stories of physical, sexual and emotional abuse are legion among the 90,000 survivors. The schools are gone now, but the ghosts remain, and it's these spectres that the commission wants to exorcise. To do that, public hearings will be held across the country, and witnesses will be encouraged to speak freely of their experiences. By the same token, those who stand accused have also been invited to speak, to give their side of things. The commission's goal is truth, not blame, and this is going to be really big. In conjunction with the hearings, there will be seven major events across the land, each focusing on the experiences of those who survived the schools. And it doesn't stop there. There will be countless grassroots events reflecting the same theme. In other words, there won't be any escaping this thing. It will seek us out where we live and rightly so. That there was harm done at these schools must surely be a given. Human nature being what it is, abuse occurs in most institutions where some have power over others. What needs to be answered is just how bad was it and how widespread. By the same token, however, it's encouraging that we'll also get to hear from those at whom the finger is pointed. We need to learn their stories as well and can only hope they find a similar strength to step forward. This won't be easy for anyone, least of all the commissioners. Ask yourself, for example, which "ears" do you wear while listening to allegations of physical abuse? By today's mores, a slap on the legs or a cuff around the ears may land you in court on assault charges but, back then, corporal punishment was the norm. Canadians today are "a wounded people" because of what happened at those residential schools. That description isn't original. It was used by Archbishop Desmond Tutu to describe South Africans at the time of their own truth and reconciliation hearings, after the end of apartheid. Tutu, who chaired his country's hearings, observed: "When we look around us at some of the conflict areas of the world, it becomes increasingly clear that there is not much of a future for them without forgiveness, without reconciliation." For Canada to have a meaningful future, we need the courage to look back at this disturbing part of our past without blinking. Come June, we're all going to have that opportunity. Latest figures from Statistics Canada show the rich in this country are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer, much to the dismay of social scientists and advocates for the poor who consider the imbalance nothing short of immoral. At first glance, they seem to have a point. Why should some have so much and others so little? And yet, on closer examination, the figures show that the majority of those earning hefty salaries are highly educated and that the majority of those earning $100,000 or more have university degrees. In other words, they've worked for what they have. Instead of wagging fingers at the high-flyers, let's find new ways to encourage those at the other end of the economic spectrum to better themselves. Interesting to note the hoopla surrounding news this week of an expected record $210-million profit for the Nova Scotia Liquor Corp. The message seems to be: booze is good. If you have any doubt, just wander around your local liquor store and see the kind of investment that's been made to promote its sale. It's a far cry from the government's nearcriminalization of tobacco sales, which, last year, were expected to generate $150 million in tax revenue. It's passing strange that, when it comes to the nanny state saving us from ourselves, some harmful behaviours actually seem to be encouraged! And finally, this is farewell for a little while. I'm taking a break for a couple of weeks but I'll be back May 25. See you then. Peter Duffy appears Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. Contact: pduffy@herald.ca
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