On the day of Pope Francis's arrival in Canada, one residential school survivor shares his healing journey and describes how the act of forgiveness transformed his life.
Shortly after sunrise Sunday, a dozen elders from Tk'emlúps te Secwepemc boarded a small bus bound for Edmonton. They were headed to Alberta to take in the historic papal visit.
The institution – once the largest of its kind in Canada – was operated by the Catholic Church from 1890 to 1969. "I went here from the fall of 1966 and left in the summer of 1968. It was a very long and painful two years," he told CTV National News.While walking in front of the towering brick building, he pointed out where the girls and boys dormitories used to be.
Like so many others, McLeod's time in the residential system left him with a legacy of trauma. He says there were "whippings," but it was the more sinister things that "caused a lot of wounds." That anger would last long after he left the residential school and follow him into adulthood. He believes it also lead him to a heartbreaking divorce and an attempted suicide.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Opinion: The Pope’s apology will give us a little bit more faith in humanityAs a residential school survivor, this apology – no matter what form it takes – gives me hope
Read more »
Pope Francis to carry mass at one of Quebec’s basilicas, Indigenous pilgrim siteHundreds of people, including residential school survivors, plan to attend the Thursday mass
Read more »
Prospect of forgiveness stirs complex feelings among residential school survivorsThe Pope's upcoming visit to Canada is evoking complex feelings among many Indigenous people. Some residential school survivors and those living with the intergenerational trauma the institutions caused are ready to forgive the Roman Catholic Church for the brutality it inflicted on Indigenous peoples.
Read more »
Prospect of forgiveness stirs complex feelings among residential school survivors\u0027Some of those wounds are too far gone. We see our young generation today dying of drugs, alcohol, a lot of them in jails because of the effects of the trauma…
Read more »
Residential school survivors in Kamloops feel hopeful, despite the Pope skipping their communityDuring his historic trip to Canada, Pope Francis will visit several significant sites, but there are other important locations being omitted such as the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.
Read more »
‘It’s not for me’: Papal visit brings no comfort to some residential school survivors | Globalnews.caPerry Omeasoo hopes that the Pope's visit and his planned apology on Indigenous lands come as a comfort to some, but he says the papal visit will bring no solace to him.
Read more »