FORT ALBANY - Nearly half a century after the doors to one of Canada’s most notorious residential schools closed, a search for unmarked graves has started at the site.
The search for unmarked graves at St. Anne’s residential school in Fort Albany First Nation began Monday (Nov. 18).
Fort Albany Deputy Chief Terry Metatawabin spoke with TimminsToday about the emotional and historical significance of this search, which is expected to take at least three years .
The search for unmarked graves is a massive undertaking, involving ground-penetrating radar (GPR) technology to scan large areas where survivors have identified high-priority sites. At least six high priority sites will be investigated at the site of the former school in the fly-in community on the James Bay coast.
Some of the areas the size of football fields.
“When you step in those areas, you feel that chill,” Metatawabin said. “It’s very close.”
He said elders and residential school survivors in his community are “100 per cent certain” of the existence of unmarked graves within the grounds of the school.
“I have no doubts that we definitely will come across the patterns of this truth that was hidden,” he said.
Metatawabin described how the community worked with elders to ensure that the search is done with with respect.
“We had very serious conversations with our elders, and that took some time for us to get to the point where we can now physically search,” he said.
This is not a small undertaking, Metatawabin emphasized.
“This is a very comprehensive, emotional journey for all of the residential school survivors,” he said.
“We are fuelled by the support from all of the communities across Canada that are sending us messages right now of prayers and strength, and that's the way we will proceed.”
Metatawabin acknowledged that healing from the trauma of cultural genocide will take time.
“Fifty to 70 years of this injustice, the treatment of our residential school survivors, this is going to take a long time to heal,” he said. “But we’re committed to it. And this is the way we will continue this work for many, many decades.”
One of the major components related to the search is the Nee Kee Wa Nan initiative, which means “We Are Going Home.”
This survivor-led initiative is focused on locating and memorializing the children who never returned from St. Anne’s residential school and ensuring their stories are told.
“We could have a monument, or we could have a natural environment facility that we can walk through the doors and have conversations of truth and healing," said Metatawabin.
He explained that the quest for justice for the survivors and people impacted by St. Anne’s residential school started long before the discovery of 215 unmarked graves at the Kamloops residential school in 2021.
St. Anne’s residential school was established in 1906 and operated until 1976. It was one of the largest institutions in the country.
“For our ancestors, our grandparents, and uncles and aunts that went through this, it’s deeply rooted. And there was a lot of injustice for the survivors, and it’s still fresh today,” he said.
The community has also been pursuing legal action to access more than 10,000 government and church documents, many of which had been withheld for decades, he said.
He emphasized the need for the Canadian government to release the documents it is withholding.
“That would be a really, really big step for the residential school survivors in getting all those documents back to Peetabeck Inninowuk. That's what we're referenced as a community,” he said.
Peetabeck Inninowuk is the traditional way to reference Fort Albany First Nation.
Looking ahead, Metatwabin said everyone needs to work together.
“We need a lot of help on the mental health side. We need to work on the spiritual side, the emotional side, the physical side, and the mental. For all those four pillars, we have to create that strategy and support," he said.
