'It's recent': Survivor reflects on last Sask. residential school closing 25 years ago
Warning: Some may find details in this story disturbing.
It’s been 25 years since Saskatchewan’s last residential school closed, but some are still healing.
Muscowequan Indian Residential School opened in 1889. It officially closed on June 30, 1997.
“Twenty-five years ago — it’s recent,” Geraldine Shingoose said.
Shingoose attended the school for nine years, between 1962-1971.
She remembers crying every September having to leave her parents and northern community to go to the government-run school.
“We knew that we wouldn't see them for a long time, and one of the huge impacts on me was the separation from our parents,” Shingoose said.
“They were the ones that were left behind and alone — they didn't have any children to take care of.”
Shingoose said she and her siblings weren’t allowed to go home for holidays and stayed at the school for 10 months of the year.
She said she experienced physical, emotional and sexual abuse at Muscowequan Indian Residential School.
“I have hearing loss from the blows and the hits and the punches to the head during school. Just randomly, we would get hit on the head,” Shingoose told CTV News.
Shingoose said she would be punished for speaking her Saulteaux language.
“I don't know my language. I don’t speak my language,” she said.
“When I went there, I only spoke Saulteaux. And when I came out, I only knew English.”
Federation of Sovereign Indian Nations (FSIN) Chief Bobby Cameron said the effects of residential schools follow not only the students but their children and grandchildren.
“There’s a misperception that it happened centuries ago. We’re still dealing with the aftermath and intergenerational trauma. It’s pretty recent,” Chief Cameron said.
“This is something that definitely is not going to be forgotten.”
At least 35 unmarked graves have been found at the Muscowequan Residential School.
The building has been saved from demolition and named a national historic site.
The school is located about 250 kilometres southeast of Saskatoon.
If you are a former residential school survivor in distress, or have been affected by the residential school system and need help, you can contact the 24-hour Indian Residential Schools Crisis Line: 1-866-925-4419
Additional mental-health support and resources for Indigenous people are available here.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
McGill University seeks emergency injunction to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Friday that Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
'We have laws': Premier Smith says police action justified in Calgary
The actions, including the decision to use non-lethal force, to disperse pro-Palestinian protesters from the University of Calgary campus were justified, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Friday.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.