Gilles Denis, Denis Palmer, and Diane Dugal at the “Where are the children?” exhibit. Credit : John Mackley
“Daily service is held morning and evening, at which all inmates of the institution are expected to be present.”
It sounds like a prison, but its name was the Calgary Industrial School, and the “inmates” were Indigenous children. Where are the children? is an exhibition by the Legacy of Hope Foundation, exploring the history and impacts of Canada’s Residential School system. It’s now on at the Cookshire-Eaton Art Gallery.
Viewing it is full of little shocks of new awareness or recognition, such as this one. It’s a bit like climbing through an electrical fence. Not fun, but unforgettable.
Walking into the luminous gallery filled with more than 70 photos and displays is a sort of spiritual experience. A tour of the room discloses multiple views, both through a wide-angle lens of the overall system, as well as a close-up look at individual Survivor stories. Both deliver shocks.
Revealed is a religious obsession with how people dress as a major aspect of destroying “the Indian.” How do you reconcile that with the sight of the deputy superintendent of Indian Affairs dressed in full Indian Costume for a historical ball on Parliament Hill, Ottawa, in 1869?
What do you make of this instruction to teachers? “The unnecessary use of textbooks to be avoided.”
In 1879, Prime Minister John A. Macdonald sent an envoy to Washington D.C. to learn about the American government “policy of aggressive civilization.”
“The day-school did not work, because the influence of the wigwam was stronger than the influence of the school,” the report noted. Residential schools were established across Canada, 139 of them. More in the west than in the east; but then—hey!—so many Indigenous people had moved west to escape the civilization of aggression that pushed them off their lands. Still, Quebec had six residential schools.
There is also healing. The exhibit displays a Personal Bill of Rights. Positive role models among Indigenous elders. Thoughts on healing as not only a personal process, but a collective action.
I encourage you to take in this exhibit, to reflect on the shocks it delivers, and how they relate to our lives today. This is an important experience, and I highly recommend it.
The Legacy of Hope Foundation is an Indigenous-led charitable organization. The exhibition is bilingual and open weekends from 12 to 4 p.m. at 125 Principale West (upstairs). It ends October 5.
