BC FORUM News - from the Kamloops and District Labour Council

215 Children Buried on the former
Kamloops Indian Band Reserve

Posted June 10, 2021

May 29, 2021 - We were saddened and shocked by the horrific discovery of 215 children buried on the former Kamloops Indian Residential School site.· Our hearts grieve with the families, survivors, and community for the loss of these innocent children.· It is both shameful and heartbreaking.·

We honour the Tk’emlups te Secwepemc, who are now the caretakers of these missing and loved children in their final resting place with the spirit of their ancestors. They will not be forgotten.

The Kamloops and District Labour Council (KDLC) acknowledges the horrors of colonization and stand with the indigenous community in support. Response and reaction to this tragic finding from the members and affiliates of the KDLC has been heartfelt. Harmony Raine, a member of the KDLC Executive said, “We all knew this had to be happening all along. It’s happened in orphanages and residential schools throughout history and we know it. Finding the remains and seeing the visual proof is a stark reminder of our country’s troubled past. It makes the knowledge visceral and gut wrenching, and brings it back to the forefront of our minds, where it needs to be if there is any chance of preventing such atrocities in the future.”

May the families, their community, and other communities affected by this tragedy and immense loss find peace and a path to healing, and may all of us make strides to learn the truth and do better.·

Lois Rugg, President
on behalf of the KDLC