Monday, 17 January 2022

Lies Relating to the Supposed Discovery of the Bodies of Children who Attended Indian Residential Schools Finally Revealed

The present author has, since the first reports of unmarked graves of children who attended Indian Residential Schools appeared in June 2021, challenged these results (see earlier postings to this blog).  The flow of information began with the report of 215 unmarked graves discovered near the Kamloops Indian Residential School.  It was initiated by a local First Nations Chief who, with an operator of a ground penetrating radar (GPR) device, "discovered" these supposed unmarked graves (often termed "mass graves" by the media) and reported their findings to a Kamloops newspaper.  The findings were eagerly picked up by virtually every media source in Canada.  The result was that Canada was accused of genocidal actions, and colonialism.  43 churches were burned, since the Catholic and Anglican Churches operated these educational institutions and were blamed for unspeakable crimes.  The truth is that the schools were opened at the behest of the Chiefs and Clan mothers, or in order to conform to the terms of treaties which required that schools for the children be created.  The lies and woeful distortions of the "Truth and Reconciliation Commission" were trotted out as the only facts that mattered, and other First Nations people whose motives were apparently financial stepped forward with stories (speaking "their truth") that at face value were outlandish, and the public were willing to accept what they were fed uncritically. The woke mob became involved and the matter became a side show where Canada's good name was besmirched and put in the same category as the Spanish Conquistadors of Central and South America. All of a sudden orange T shirts representing "Every Child Matters" were seen everywhere, flags were left at half mast for months, memorials were established at the sites of the residential schools, and on and on - all based on nothing but blips on the screen of a very crude device (GPR) that does not do what is claimed by these Chiefs (suggesting that it can see graves).  The author pleaded with members of the archaeological establishment in Canada to step forward and reveal the fact that without actual excavation, and the examination of any bone material examined by a physical anthropologist, the GPR findings are worthless.  This was to no avail - since this profession has been infected by the same woke - cancel culture mob that has carved its destructive path across all professions.

The author pleaded with the editors or most of Canada's mainstream newspapers, that if they would not publish the author's letters to the editor and opinion piece submissions, to please request that one of their journalists explore the validity of these GPR claims.  June 2021 to January 2022 and dead silence prevailed.  This appears to be a classic example of subtle censorship in the service of politically correct dogma.  The irony is that anecdotal stories from "survivors", which were in essence conspiracy theories that would make believers in Q-Anon blush, were lapped up by the media like kittens at a saucer of milk.  Objective evidence or cross validation was never considered to be necessary.

Finally, a (well documented) report stating in no uncertain terms that no bodies of children who attended residential school had yet been found has been published.  The article of 11 January 2022 in The Dorchester Review, entitled, "In Kamloops Not One Body Has Been Found", as seen here, was written not by a journalist, but by an emeritus professor of history at Universite de Montreal, Jacques Rouillard.  Being retired means that he is impervious to the woke mob's cancel culture which has caused fear and intimidation (literally that their jobs would be jeopardized if they dared to provide facts / evidence and speak the truth relating to the claims of a perceived "protected hands off group" - First Nations Chiefs and spokespersons).  The media, and professors at all universities across Canada, have been paralyzed by the woke movement which has literally grabbed the reins of the spoken word, and control what can and cannot be said.

It is encouraging to note that an article of 17 January 2022 in The National Post, what might be considered "mainstream media", picks up on the above article by Professor Rouillard.  The article is entitled, "What we don't know about unmarked graves at residential schools" by Barbara Kay, as seen here.  The article excoriates the latest woke fads which support the belief that "all Indian causes must be legitimate" asserted with cult - like religious fervour.

What must be emphasized is that most of our early ancestors are buried in unmarked graves - at least those of us who are "old stock" Canadians.  There are abandoned cemeteries dotted across the entire country.  If there were markers installed at one time they may have decayed, been swept away in a flood, or have been vandalized to the point where any markers are in so many pieces that they have been discarded.  This is precisely the situation with the burial place of the three first generations of my family in Ontario.  By the time I first visited the site it was a corn field.  Old timers recalled about 100 burials there back in the 1940s - but by 1963 there were no markers remaining, and the owner of the surrounding land simply incorporated the cemetery into his farming operation.  After many years of legal wrangling, even with family members, the sacred ground where bones and coffin handles were churned up by every ploughing operation, has experienced a more benign fate.  It has been explored by a licensed archaeologist, officially declared a cemetery under the laws of the Province, surveyed, and posts installed along the margins with a marker describing the cemetery.  Family have access, and the author drives his truck across the Grand River flats when there is no corn in the fields in order to pay their respects.  Another 100 or so ancestors lie in unmarked graves in local cemeteries but there is no way to mark sites that are somewhere among the existing markers - but where?  Many authors act as if it is unusual or disrespectful to have unmarked graves.  They simply do not understand the history of Canada, and entertain only their own distorted version of what "should be".  

Hopefully the above very important articles, one by an academic and the other by a journalist, will receive wide recognition and serve to suppress the destructive impulses of the "noisy" leftist - Marxist - anarchist - woke set whose current grip on what gets published will hopefully be swept aside by the truth, based on fact based evidence and scientific methodology - as opposed to party dogma and fear of cancellation.  Without a shadow of a doubt all of the above applies to the work being conducted at the Mohawk Institute, for which Six Nations leaders such as the present elected Chief must take responsibility - considering the amount of Canadian taxpayer money being spent greedily and frivolously (considering all of the past GPR work done there and the burial records of St. Paul's Chapel of the Mohawks showing the respectful burials of children who died at the Residential School).

Edit of 24 January 2022:  Once again the Six Nations of the Grand River have whined sufficiently to extract over $10 million from the Canadian Government to go on a wild goose chase as seen in an article published today in The Hamilton Spectator, entitled, "Survivors of Mohawk Institute Residential School in Ontario get $10.4 M from Ottawa to look for unmarked gravesas seen here.  Greed knows no bounds since they also expect the Province to kick in monies for this unwarranted effort. Please read previous postings to this blog to understand the futility of such an endeavour.  The children were buried in consecrated ground in the Anglican Cemetery at St. Paul's Chapel of the Mohawks across the road from the Mohawk Institute Indian Residential School - this author has provided the information in this and other venues (including the sending of the information to the Rez newspaper, Two Row Times).  It matters not what I or others say if it does not comport with the "party line".

Friday, 7 January 2022

Troubling Sexual Impropriety Allegations Lodged Against the "Face" of the "Land Back Lane" Occupation in Caledonia

It is often the case that when a high profile issue emerges, one person steps forward and becomes the "face" or spokesperson of a movement or a protest.  This was certainly the case in the two year long occupation of the property in Caledonia known as McKenzie Meadows, which the Six Nations protesters have renamed "1492 Land Back Lane".  Here the media by in large interviewed only one person, and it is this person whose face was seen in the newspapers and on television.  His name is Skyler Williams, and presumably his "authority" came from the Haudenosaunee Confederacy Chiefs Council (Hereditary Chiefs) who do not have legal authority on the Six Nations Reserve, but claim moral authority and that they alone should speak for the Six Nations of the Grand River.  The Six Nations Elected Council ultimately bowed out of the matter and the Hereditary Chiefs and their extortion arm, the Haudenosaunee Development Institute, appear to have called the shots in the last year or more.  

The "face" of the movement / protesters clearly does not speak for the majority of the Six Nations Reserve, but in listening to him one might get the impression that he was the representative of the people of the Reserve and reflected their views.  He seemed to be invincible and the media hung on his every word.  His actions and/or those of his followers, in for example stealing $2 million dollars worth of heavy equipment and trenching all the roads and the highway into Caledonia from the south, as well as the railway tracks, were enabled by the ineffective and feeble efforts of the Ontario Provincial Police who made the occupied land a no - go zone.  This meant that whatever went on at McKenzie Meadows was not subject to any policing - typically a situation that is ripe for anarchy.

Considering the evidence of a massively inflated ego and background (criminal history) of the leader of the protesters (a motley crew of Six Nations, other Indigenous people, White "settler allies", and agitators from other groups), it is not surprising that many illegal activities were permitted and encouraged.  While rumours circulated around the Reserve about the antics happening at Land Back Lane, it took until early January for the sh*t to hit the fan and the dirty laundry began to be aired.  The sordid details, as they presently exist (goodness knows that there is probably a lot more questionable or illegal behaviour yet to be exposed) can be seen in the 4 January 2021 issue of Two Row Times in an article entitled, "Sexual assault allegations rock Land Back Lane and spokesperson Skyler Williams" as seen here.

Those of us who respect the truth have fought this man tooth and claw for two years, enduring his lies about the land occupied by his group (known as 1492 Land Back Lane) not having been surrendered to the Crown. In fact all of the occupied land, including Douglas Creek Estates (now a homeless encampment) as well as the more recently occupied site at McKenzie Meadows (now a shanty town), was surrendered to the Crown on 18 December 1844 by 45 Six Nations Chief in Council. I have the surrender and the signatures on a pdf from Library and Archives Canada from the "Indian Affairs Papers". Once the Federal Government gets its act together and comes down to the Territory to seek the truth, these lands will (if there is any justice in this world) have to be returned to their rightful legal owners. In addition, the protesters must pay the multi millions of dollars in damages and lost revenues accrued between the years 2006 and 2021!

On the facebook page of the person identified in the Two Row Times article, there are upwards of 100 supportive comments to his self serving apology which blames everyone but himself for these assertions by various women - and men. Only two of these commenters question his behaviour. However, what about the victims? What about the pain and trauma he has caused. No one even alludes to this - but this is the tragedy which cannot be erased with a few well chosen words of mea culpa. His true colours are seen in the interview with Nick LaMarsh (see link in above article). His apparent victims are not just Six Nations and other Native women locally, but across Canada where he appeared as far west as British Columbia as the face of the "movement". Again, why the lack of concern for the women he hurt, by the commenters on his facebook page? It must be noted that as of 8 January 2022 this posting and all related comments have been removed from public view of the account.
The spin he spun in interviews where he positioned himself as the center of attention (the spokesperson and only "face" of the protesters) garnered the attention of all the journalists and media sources. They all ate up his fiction and never questioned his sources (of which there are none) or his character (his criminal record). He served his time - but the charges relating to the occupation of private property (McKenzie Meadows) still must be faced.
Locals and Six Nations residents have had enough of his antics and it is truly time to pay the piper (fines and jail time). It is very encouraging that the matter was brought to the attention of the public by a Kanienkehaga (Mohawk) research group who were in quest of the truth. Nia: weh gowagh to this group and to the Two Row Times for publishing the findings. Also a shout out to Alex Jamieson who has made it crystal clear in a comment to this article that the "face" does not represent the people of Six Nations. As yet the "mainstream" media have been entirely silent about this matter - likely the matter is too hot to handle in the woke and cancel culture context which hangs over Canadian journalism like the Sword of Damocles.

It is often the case that when the head of the snake is severed, the body of the creature will slither around for a short while, but ultimately die. It will be interesting to see what happens in the to the Land Back Lane group over the next few months and what, if any, allegations will surface. Are we merely seeing the tip of the iceberg?

Facts and the truth matter.

Edit of 13 January 2021: In a bold, balanced, sensitive manner, in a form reminiscent of the investigative journalists of old, Susan Clairmont, a journalist with The Hamilton Spectator, has investigated the matter, and today the Spectator published her article entitled, "Land defender Skyler Williams target of sexual impropriety allegations", as seen here. Although the piece could certainly have been more "hard hitting", kudos to this journalist for tackling this matter at all.

Sunday, 26 September 2021

Why Have the Professional Journalists Abandoned Their Responsibility to Critically Examine the Evidence Relating to the Canadian Indian Residential Schools?

 It is becoming crystal clear that journalists, as found in bygone eras, have gone the way of the dodo bird and the dinosaurs - they are extinct.  This unfortunate circumstance can perhaps best be seen in the reporting of anything relating to the Indian residential schools in Canada.

First it is important to acknowledge the contributions of true journalists over time.  A great example is to be found in the movie "The Post" with Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks where the decision was made to publish the content of the Pentagon Papers during the Vietnam War era.  I was spellbound at the dedicated, leave no stone unturned, bulldog approach of journalists in that day (the 1970s).  The goal was to uncover the truth, irrespective of political or other pressures.  The Washington Post was soon to follow up with the ground breaking and risky reporting of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein of the Watergate scandal during the Presidential years of Richard Nixon.  These journalists were lionized for their ethical approach and dogged determination, and subsequently the applications for admission to schools of journalism skyrocketed.

Alas, with the death of Christie Blatchford in 2020, a true Canadian journalist in the mold of Woodward and Bernstein - we may have seen the last of the journalists who believed in uncovering the truth, as uncomfortable as it may be, and taking risks by becoming a thorn in the side of those who would ignore the facts and subvert the truth for their own political gain or to foster their pet cause.  She was disliked by the woke mob who, for example, protested her book profiling the suffering of the citizens of Caledonia, Ontario at the hands of Six Nations activists and the Ontario Provincial Police - instead of focusing on the alleged victimization of the Six Nations of the Grand River in their land claims.  This group of students from Sir Wilfred Laurier University and elsewhere did everything they could to silence Ms. Blatchford (e.g., disrupting and forcing the cancellation of her speaking engagements).  To her credit, Christie Blatchford refused to be silenced by the cancel culture nipping at her heels - ultimately only death would silence her.

Since the July 2021 finding of ground penetrating radar anomalies at the Kamloops Indian Residential School, and the announcement by the local First Nations Chief that 215 unmarked graves of children who attended the school had been discovered, not one mainstream journalist has stepped forward to question this report and the misleading findings.  To date no remains of any children from a series of residential schools who also reported radar findings have been unearthed.  There is nothing more than speculation as to what the radar anomalies actually mean since the output of this equipment only shows areas of soil disturbance - not graves directly.  Why have all journalists bought into the story line that is being promulgated about the finding - and essentially taken the beliefs of the Chiefs who reported the findings at face value as the gospel truth?  None have used critical thinking skills, or considered, as my doctoral supervisor insisted on every time I asserted something - "what is the evidence?"  Apparently it is disrespectful to question the reports of First Nations brass, or even those who claim to be "survivors" of residential schools (as if they had survived the Halocaust).  No reporter, apparently, has chosen to challenge the use of the term "survivor" as it relates to children who attended residential school.  Those of us who know "attendees" are well aware that many say that their residential school days, whether in Ontario or Saskatchewan, were among the best years of their lives (that would be apparently some sort of heresy to report).  So we are left with only reporting, not journalistic investigation - a sad development which would doubtless trouble true journalists of the past.

Today it appears to be imperative that a journalist be woke or marginalized in some way (if White), or BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Colour) - nothing else is acceptable.

The most recent example comes from a reporter from the Hamilton Spectator who on 25 September 2021 wrote an article on the upcoming "truth and reconciliation" day (30 September) and what we should be doing to commemorate it.  This is a day where we are to reflect on the "horrors" of the Indian residential school history of Canada, and related skewed topics of "genocide" and "colonialism".  If White, this means accepting systemic racism, White fragility, White ..... well, you get the picture.  The author, as is standard, showed the lack of investigative reporting, only expressing the "party line" or woke accepted view of the matter as reflected in the following passage, "the confirmation of unmarked, mass or otherwise undignified graves of Indigenous children and youth connected to residential schools".  Nothing, other than unidentified radar blips has been "confirmed".  No First Nations Chief has stated that "mass graves" have been found, and reporting a very very loaded term such as this (harkening back to the Nazis murdering and tossing civilians into pits) is completely irresponsible without sourcing.  Clicking on the author's name provides a two sentence biographical sketch wherein is found the statement, "She brings her queer perspective to equity and inclusion issues".  So apparently knowing that this reporter is queer is more important that knowing their academic credentials.  How far and how fast we have fallen.

Unfortunately this situation outlined above means that we have no objective source to consult in order to write the truth supported by the facts and evidence of the matter.  We only see in print that which is deemed to be non threatening to First Nations people thus putting their sensibilities above the truth.  The result to date has been the burning of 43 Catholic and Anglican Churches (the groups who ran the residential schools), defacing and destroying "unacceptable" statues such as that of Edgerton Ryerson who is (wrongly) deemed the creator of the residential school system, and basically erasing any contribution of White males who can be associated with the residential schools based on woke perceptions, not valid evidence.  A country advised not to celebrate Canada Day 2021, flags still flying at half mast from the Ottawa Parliament Buildings for these assumed child burials, but rather to wear an orange T shirt on "Truth and Reconciliation Day" - all this happening based on only unsubstantiated findings!  Pardon me if I suspect that the world (or at least Canada) has gone to hell in a handbasket.  We are in such trouble as the schools of journalism crank out clones of their woke and BIPOC professors who have completely lost sight of their mission - in the service of political correctness.  It seems unlikely that this "state of affairs" will change any time soon, thus we will be spoon fed Marxist inspired leftist propaganda while the truth is disparaged if it does not comport with the currently accepted political views - as opposed to the objective verifiable evidence demanded by journalists until recently. 

Saturday, 10 July 2021

Indian Residential Schools in Canada: Gross Distortions of Facts and Profound Lack of Journalistic Integrity


Purported Discovery of Hundreds of Children’s Remains on the Grounds of Former Residential School Sites:  On or about 29 May 2021 the world learned of the “preliminary report” concerning the purported discovery of the remains of 215 young children in unmarked graves on the site of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.  They were located by ground penetrating radar (GPR), a technique that only identifies “anomalies” in the soil, not human remains.  It wasn’t long before the media had universally accepted this report as representing a confirmed discovery and universal sadness and anger were emotions felt by readers from coast to coast.  Since the “discovery” first came to light, to the present day, it appears that no one in the mainstream media has called into question the GPR data (blips and waves on a screen), and the assertions based on this information.  Meanwhile, Canada is accused of “genocide”, with a liberal sprinkling of the words “colonialism”, and “racism”, as the country descends into mourning for what might or might not be – all on the basis of electronic data that has no merit without more in depth explorations.  The matter of the demise of journalistic integrity will be addressed later in this manuscript.

Since the initial announcement, other Chiefs are getting media attention by making the same unsubstantiated claim relative to finds in the grounds around a former residential school in their neighbourhood.  At this point in time Canada and the world seems perfectly willing to accept what any Chief anywhere in Canada states on this matter, without asking even a single question that might appear to question the legitimacy of the claim.  For example, the second find is of 751 unmarked graves at Cowessess, in Sasketchewan – again using ground penetrating radar.  In fact, both Indigenous and non – Indigenous people are reporting that their ancestors are buried there in unmarked graves.  Most early Canadian ancestors were buried in unmarked graves – or if they were marked by wooden crosses, the markers are long decayed.  The Prime Minister of Canada will be visiting this Reserve ostensibly to transfer powers over child welfare, but doubtless also due to the “shocking” news of the unmarked graves (see here).

Doubtless much to the chagrin of many, some elders from the Saskatchewan, Cowessesss Band who attended the school, and are thankful for the instruction they received there, are willing to tell a very different truth from the “accepted version”.  A facebook posting from the page of Band member Irene A. is highly instructive (as well the comments to her posting).  Below is her posting after the Band told the media that they have found 751 unmarked graves near the old residential school:

Irene A. – 24 June 2021

Dear Folks, 

Our leaders today are addicted to media sensationalism. I can see how the Marieval graveyard news is causing a lot of heartbreak and emotional breakdowns.

Please listen to your elderly folks as well.

We respected the Church, we respected the dead. We buried our dead with a proper funeral. Then we allowed them to Rest In Peace.

Please be aware that this cemetery is a community cemetery with all races and ages of people buried there.

The headstones were removed in 1966-1967, as a first step in refurbishing as the old markers were damaged by weather, age or animals.

The second step of replacing the old and broken headstones wasn’t completed. Parishioners had moved away or had passed on or were simply unable to put up a marker for various reasons.

Please know that it is the obligation of the family to put a marker there for their deceased. This is not the responsibility of the government or the church.

To assume that foul play took place would be premature and unsupported.

There is no “discovery “ of graves. All your elders have knowledge of every grave.

The Band office has records from the Bishops office, the Church board and from Cemetery workers who were in charge of digging graves and burials.

The Band office received a list of over 750 registered burials from the Bishops office.

Information is being put out there that doesn’t recognize these facts.

So please, people, do not make up stories about residential school children being put in unmarked graves. No such thing ever happened.

The above was sent to the author on 5 July 2021, who attempted to verify the posting but by then is appears to have been “pruned”, as seen below:

Sacred Heart of Mary Parish Cemetery, Marieval Sask

Be aware that this cemetery is a community cemetery with all races and ages of people buried there.

The headstones were removed in the oldest part, as a first step in refurbishing as the markers were damaged by weather, age or animals, the second step of replacing the old and broken never happened. Parishioners were not in the area any longer, or had, themselves passed on, or were unable to complete the headstones for various reasons. I would like to say that it is the obligation of each family to place headstones on their deceased. It is not the responsibility of the Church or the government.

So, to assume that any foul play took place would be premature and unsupported.

There is no discovery, as many elders and community members had knowledge of every grave.

The Band has records from the Diocese, the Church Board and Cemetery workers who were in charge of burials. The Band received a list of over 716 registered burials from the Bishop’s Office.

There is information out there that does not recognize these facts. We need to be mindful of the facts and not jump to assumptions and wrong conclusions.

Many town offices and church cemeteries have maps posted for the public to study.

Oddly (or not), it appears that her above posting to the facebook page of the Humboldt Journal newspaper had been deleted prior to 5 July 2021, and only remained on her personal page.  Then on or about 8 July 2021 it was deleted from Irene’s personal page.  This likely speaks volumes as to the pressure put on elders who would dare to tell a story that is contrary to the accepted “party line”.

Genocide?:  The GPR findings have once again brought to the fore the role the Crown and Canada played in the alleged “genocide” of Indigenous people from the early days of European discovery to today.  It would appear that all the “dirty laundry” on this subject had been exposed in the “Truth and Reconciliation” report of 2015.  As found in Wikipedia, Murray Sinclair, an Indigenous former Canadian Senator, was appointed the chair of Canada's Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission in June 2009. The commission's mandate stemmed from the terms of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement as a means by which Residential School Survivors and former staff could inform all Canadians about what happened in Indian Residential Schools and document the accounts of survivors, former staff, families, communities and anyone personally affected by the Indian Residential Schools experience”.  A massive two volume report was generated, and terminology forever changed.  While some stories of those who had a positive experience are included, they are over shadowed by the ones with “drama”.  However this report has led to the interpretation that anyone who went to a residential school is a “survivor”, and we were told that Canada had committed “cultural genocide” in the attempt to educate Indigenous children (see here). 

So it seems that people in general have forgotten about this massive investigation, and the fact that three years ago “survivors” were given enormous hand outs for their “suffering” (the stories of those who had positive things to say about their time at residential school seemed to have little impact), then even those who attended day school on the Reserve became eligible for cash settlements as part of a class action suit, as if what they experienced was any different from that of other Canadians. 

Despite all of the above, Canada must again be raked over the coals – as if the GPR findings are some sort of new revelation that there were Church run residential schools across Canada where these alleged horrors occurred.  As most people realize, the “squeaky wheel gets the grease”, and those who yell the loudest and provide their “truth” (their stated experiences) complete with horror stories get all the attention.  No one listens to the elders, either at Cowessess or Six Nations, who claim that their time at residential school is recalled with fondness.  So those elders who have told of their experiences at residential school to the author are either silenced by community pressure, or ignored – and only those who claim to be “victims” can tell their “truth”.

Honouring the Treaties:  There are constant complaints about treaties being violated, yet ironically when a key provision of these treaties was honoured by the Crown / Government, it is accused of “genocide”.  The picture is one where the White man’s education was forced down the throats of the “victims” and where unspeakable horrors occurred.  It appears that Journalists and others have not read the treaty agreements, if they had there would be a realization that the Government was following through on the wishes of the Chiefs who signed the treaties – yet the Government is in a “no win” situation:  do what was required based on the treaty and be accused of “genocide”, or not do anything and be accused of failing to honour the treaties.

Those who wish to read the treaties can refer to, “Canada.  Indian Treaties and Surrenders from 1680 to 1890 in Two Volumes”, Ottawa, Queen’s Printer, 1891.  For example, Treaty / Surrender No. 124 (as numbered in Vol.1, p.282) is established between the Queen and the Chippewa and Swampy Cree Tribes between Lake of the Woods (Ontario) and the Winnipeg River and Manitoba Lake on 3 August 1871.  One of the provisions was, “And further, Her Majesty agrees to maintain a school on each reserve hereby made whenever the Indians of the reserve should desire it” (p.284).

The people who were part of these treaties resided in remote locations hundreds of miles from any other settlement which had services such as a place to purchase groceries.  There was no practical way to honour the treaty requirement for schooling for the children except to establish a central location and have children from far flung villages come to a residential school operated by those with experience in such matters (i.e., the Catholic and Anglican churches) – but on the Reserve if possible.  What seems lost in the "conversation" is that schools such as the Kamloops Indian Residential School (where the 215 anomalies were discovered by GPR) were physically on the Reserve and could be monitored by the parents and school employees.  The whole idea of some nefarious plan set in motion by for example Catholic priests to bury murdered children in unmarked graves on the site of the school makes no sense - except to conspiracy theorists.  There were too many eyes about, and no way that this could have happened without someone "leaking" the truth.  The author is a retired Registered Psychologist, licensed in Alberta and Ontario, specializing in forensics and neurosciences, and is providing a professional observation about conspiracy theories that is based on 40 years of experience working in this field.

Victims, Survivors and Genocide:  The purported “fact” that victimization was endemic in the entire residential school scenario has resulted in the use of the term "survivor" and "genocide" as every day descriptions of what happened there.  This is a grotesque insult to those who are true survivors of genocide.  Millions of Jews were systematically murdered less than 100 years ago in the Holocaust whose goal was complete extermination of all Jews across the planet.  How is it even remotely possible to compare the atrocities of the death camps to residential schools?  The terminology relating to the true horrors (e.g., being used in medical experiments, starved to death, stripped naked and forced to stand over their own grave before being shot, gassed and the bodies put into ovens for cremation) at Buchenwald, has been appropriated and is being used in connection with what happened at the Kamloops Indian Residential School or the Mohawk Institute 100 years ago.  It is a warped comparison.  The survivors of Nazi atrocities are in no way comparable to the "survivors" of Indian residential schools.  The genocide carried out by the Germans surely cannot be put along side of the so - called "genocide" of the residential schools.  The original term of “cultural genocide” from the Sinclair report above is now seldom seen and “cultural” has been removed leaving only “genocide”.  This one word has an entirely different meaning – but is being accepted by Canadians as what the Canadian Government did to Indigenous people – thus distorting their perception of the truth.  It is perhaps surprising that the Jews who were involved (or their descendants) have not to this point called out the media and Native groups for using words that suggest an equivalency to what they were forced to endure.  A big difference is that the Jewish people have moved on and are focused on the future.  This is not the case with the "survivors" of residential schools who have taken on the role of perpetual victims and called for money, more money, more apologies, more guilt tripping to compensate them in the spirit of "truth and reconciliation".  The Canadian Government has played the role of enabler, offering up money, apologies, and prostrating themselves for the supposed horrors inflicted by Canada against First Nations people. Enough is never enough.  Nothing will ever change as long as the words “survivor” and “genocide” continue to have their desired effect.  Since no one seems willing to challenge this conceptualizing, therefore we will have perpetual victims with their hands out far into the foreseeable future.

Turning our attention back to the discovery of this past spring, no reports can be believed without a shovel in the ground.  In other words, a professional archaeologist and forensic anthropologist must dig and examine the remains, if any.  If human remains are found, how old were the individuals, what ethnicity (race), and what was the manner of their burial (coffin or otherwise).  We need answers and hard facts not weak preliminary reports based only on GPR. 

The Fall Out of One Preliminary Report Versus the Truth – A Hisorical Perspective:  Who might suspect the abreaction that this one precipitous announcement of an unsubstantiated allegation that 215 children’s remains have been located at the Kamloops Indian Residential School that followed.  It would lead down a path where “national shame” was promulgated, and Canada Day celebrations were either cancelled or muted due to the “genocide” and the perception of all the little children buried in unmarked graves who never came home.  If this had been true, then would the parents and community not have realized what was going on and petitioned for an investigation, or engaged in their own investigation – or yanked their kids out of the school?  To the inquiring mind, things don’t add up.  It is entirely possible that children died at the school of diseases that today are unknown (smallpox) or rare (tuberculosis) and buried in consecrated ground on site.  However, to interpret these burials as “genocide” is wrong and a gross injustice. 

The present author must ask whether anyone has actually studied the history of residential schools in North America.  During the 18th Century children from Six Nations, Delaware, Montauk and other Tribes attended the Moor Indian Residential School in Lebanon, Connecticut.  The records typically include a note beside the child’s name as to when and under what manner the child left the school, and the copious correspondence includes further details (see here).  In the latter case, with Mohawk children, they all reappear in the records back home in the Mohawk Valley upon leaving the school (Barbara Sievertsen, “Turtles, Wolves and Bears: A Mohawk Family History”, Bowie MD, Heritage Books, 1996).  No murdered children.

In Canada, there is no evidence that any priest (Catholic or Anglican) wanted to see their students die, or that they actually took part in murder.  Only the most paranoid mind could come up with this interpretation – without substantiating evidence.  One of the most egregious examples involves the Mohawk Institute Residential School on the Six Nations of the Grand River Reserve (near the City of Brantford, Ontario).  It was established (on the Reserve) by the Anglican Church during the 1830s at the request of the Hereditary Chiefs and Clan Mothers.  It ran until closed by the Canadian Government (despite the protests of the then Chiefs) until 1970.  Children who died there, and whose remains were not recovered by the parents (or perhaps the latter requested burial there), were buried locally but in consecrated ground.  This is clearly indicated in the surviving burial records for the Anglican Church (which the author located and published, see here).  The children were buried in the churchyard of the Anglican Her Majesty’s Chapel of the Mohawks across the road from the school.

None of this has stopped the constant allegations that there were other children buried surreptitiously in unmarked and unrecorded graves.  When a known conspiracy theorist, failed in 2008 to make a successful pitch to the local Chiefs to explore the Kamloops school grounds, he turned his attention to the Mohawk Institute.  The hoaxer produced bone (later proven to be animal in origin) and successfully convinced the Hereditary Chiefs to go ahead with ground penetrating radar followed up by “well over 1000 pits” dug based on “anomalies” seen with GPR.  Nothing at all found (see here).  The details seem so bizarre as to be unbelievable – but it is all true, and yet after the Kamloops announcement, the Elected Chief at Six Nations has asked for 10 million dollars to continue the work - despite all that was (not) found. 

Meanwhile statues are vandalized and torn down (e.g., Edgerton Ryerson, Sir John A. Macdonald. James Cook, Queen Victoria, Queen Elizabeth), buildings with "unacceptable" names are being renamed, memorials with for example 215 pairs of shoes are being established based on a questionable preliminary GPR finding, people are wearing orange shirts to show their solidarity, large orange ribbons are being placed on poles lining main streets across Canada, many municipalities refused to celebrate Canada Day due to the "genocidal treatment" of the First Nations (an out and out lie), apologies are flying from every direction (but not the Pope or Queen Elizabeth yet), Catholic and Anglican Churches are being torched across the west, and St. John's Anglican Church on the Six Nations Reserve (Ontario) near this author’s residence.  Canada is participating in an orgy of self – flagellation for imaginary or unproven crimes.  Who is there to question the basis upon which this behavioural response is based?  At one time it would be investigative journalists that would peel back the layers to reveal the truth.  Not so on this matter.

The Death of Mainstream Journalism as We Once Knew it:  There was a time, not so long ago, before social media emerged to dominate the conversations and intimidate critics, that we could depend on journalists to keep us apprised of what was happening in the world.  We trusted them to be unbiased, and even to take risks to ferret out all relevant details, and ultimately inform us as to what the facts were, and where the truth lay.  A classic example is to be found in early 1970s during the President Richard Nixon administration in the United States where two reporters, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, of the Washington Post, uncovered the “web of crimes” which resulted in the resignation of President Nixon.  Their efforts stand as the prime example of journalistic integrity and dogged determination to get to the truth. 

As the 21st Century dawned, social media (e.g., facebook, Twitter, Instagram) emerged out of cyberspace to challenge newspapers for being the primary source of information flow to readers.  Online pundits of questionable authority emerged to present more enticing, but utterly skewed viewpoints.  Generally they were not seen for what they were – poseurs with an agenda but no background in journalism.  True journalists came under increasing pressure to compete, and thus to sensationalize their reporting, and instead of seeking facts, to slant their reporting such that it would be more sell more newspapers.  No longer were facts and the truth important, only what would sell newspapers.  What also became increasingly important, and peaked with the circumstances surrounding the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, was that it became imperative to placate and appease the vindictive guilt - ridden White woke mob, and report only those “facts” that would not offend their BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Colour) allies.  Any deviation from the accepted spin would be punished by these self – righteous purveyors of “correct thinking”.

The danger to legitimate journalists was the emergence of “cancel culture”, where journalists or even university professors who dared cross the line and report objective facts that ran counter to the woke agenda, would have their reputations smeared, their careers put in jeopardy, and essentially cancelled.  Thus over time the few reporters who had been conforming to the traditional tenets of their profession were coerced by fear to only report what was “acceptable”.  Activists from the Marxist linked departments of Sociology and Political Science had captured the stage, and only their views were to be heard.  Their plan to destroy any opposition was quite simple – toss the epithet “racist” at anyone (journalist, professor) who opposed them.  The present author can say this because it has happened to him time and time again – for daring to tell the factual truth.  Today it matters not whether there is any semblance of truth to the allegation – the mere threat of being labelled a racist would typically keep potential opponents in line.  These self - appointed adjudicators could then make or break a career by the use of a single, very powerful, word - racist.

In 2010 the late, and much respected, journalist Christie Blatchford was slated to speak at the University of Waterloo about her book documenting the suffering of the people of Caledonia, Ontario during an insurrection by members of the Six Nations of the Grand River in 2006.  Since true free speech is not a concept that the woke / antifa / cancel culture can tolerate, the far - left element from Wilfred Laurier University (this and York University being local bastions of this movement) orchestrated a demonstration to keep her from speaking, and so silence her.  As quoted in JSource here:

The University of Waterloo called off a speech by Globe and Mail columnist Christie Blatchford last Friday night after a small group of protesters accusing Blatchford of racism occupied the stage.

Blatchford was there to talk about her book “Helpless: Caledonia’s Nightmare of Fear and Anarchy, and How the Law Failed All of Us”. As readers of her Globe column will know, Blatchford has been vocal about the problems faced by residents of Caledonia, Ont., during the aboriginal land dispute there.

The protesters labelled the views she expresses in the book as racist.  Furthermore, Tallula Marigold, who was identified as the protesters’ media representative, was quoted in the Wilfrid Laurier University student publication “The Cord”: “We don’t want people who are really, really racist teaching [the people we love]. And we don’t want that person to have a public forum because it makes it dangerous for others in the public forum.”

University of Waterloo officials said they chose not to proceed with the talk because it appeared Blatchford would not be able to speak, and, according to Michael Strickland, assistant director of media relations, “We also had no interest in providing a photo op of our security dragging three people off the stage.”

So cancel culture succeeded in silencing an enemy, here someone who was not racist as they asserted (the single most overused word to disparage and demean and damn the person) but someone who dared go against the prevailing assertion that the only story worth telling was about the Indian land dispute (apparently not the domestic terrorism that went along with it).

Since 2006 there have been continuous blockades of Caledonia’s main roads in support for any of a number of "causes".  The lie about unceded land in Haldimand County continues to cause suffering – but only the Indigenous twist on the story gets any traction.  The vandalism, the theft of for example a school bus which was trashed, and 2 million dollars worth of heavy equipment, along with the chaos, anarchy, arson, and tire fires, the trenching of every single artery to the south of Caledonia (and that is just for starters) has seen initial support for the suffering of the people of Caledonia evapourate with the support for indigenous causes theme by all reporters.  The author resides in the south side of Caledonia and has direct personal experience with all the key events that have occurred there. 

There was a day when journalists would be the ones to seek out facts and the truth.  Today in Canada the only "truth" is what Native groups tell them is correct - and that is what gets printed.  Numerous interviews with the "face" of the "land protesters" in 2020 – 2021 are seen weekly in local newspapers and television, providing false allegations as to what the Ontario Provincial Police have done to harass them.  With two exceptions relating to The Hamilton Spectator and the Haldimand Press, nothing has been reported about the facts of the matter despite the author presenting them to the media - specifically that the land in question was ceded to the Crown for sale on 18 December 1844 by 45 Six Nations Chiefs in Council.  To the credit of these sources, they did publish articles by the author (see here) and a lawyer from Hagersville (see here).  These are rare exceptions, and never seen in media outside the local area.  Copies of the original documents and signatures have been provided.  The Toronto and other city newspapers in the "Golden Horseshoe" and beyond refuse to print anything except sympathetic pro - Native articles and so that is what the public is fed.  Where are the journalists doing their own independent research?  The research that does occur invariably presents only what supports the Indigenous view, with any reference to the suffering of locals being a mere aside.

So at present, it is not possible to question, for example, whether the claim of 215 children’s remains is based on faulty “science”.  As this author has learned, not one single journalist has stepped forward to question the findings despite the fact that they are preliminary and fail to have any archaeological and forensic anthropology support – this being absolutely key to validating the claim.  The mere report by a Chief of a First Nations Band in Kamloops, British Columbia has been taken at face value by each and every journalist / reporter in the country – despite this author’s attempts to educate them as to the science of the matter.  However, reporter Kate McCullough has come the closest to initiating an investigation.  In an article entitled, “Residential schools:  The science of searches” in the 29 June 2021 issue of The Hamilton Spectator (see here), she interviewed Archaeologist Paul Racher who explained how this technology works, but issued cautions.  He, said “GPR is typically used as a supplement to other archeological methods”, and further that, “It’s a really interesting technology,” he said. “The data is extremely difficult to read and we try to be very careful with it.”  Thus the first step has been taken, and the next is to come out and say without qualification that it is not possible to state that the remains of 215 little children have been found without the actual excavation of the area of interest – otherwise all one has are “anomalies”.

The present author contacted the editors and reporters from the following newspapers:

1)     Globe and Mail

2)     Toronto Star

3)     Hamilton Spectator

4)     Ottawa Citizen

5)     Vancouver Sun

6)     Kamloops This Week

7)     National Post

8)     CBC

9)     Edmonton Journal

All letters to the editor, and opinion pieces relating to the GPR finds submitted to the above failed to be published.  A request was made that if my efforts were not to bear fruit, then please print something, anything on a critical analysis of the initial “report” from Kamloops.  Emails were also sent to reporters from the above media pleading with them to explore the facts upon which this claim was based.  Not one single response from anyone – it was as if the subject was toxic.

The Growing Belief that Indigenous People Always Espouse Just Causes and We Must Support Them: The image being promulgated by media intent on keeping readers coming back for more, in the frenzy sell their wares to appear woke and sympathetic to indigenous causes and the cancel culture (the truth has lost its luster in the minds of today's journalists), is clear and consistent.  Since social media began to swamp traditional media sources clear trends emerged.  One is that Indigenous causes were always just, and supersede whatever facts might call this into question. 

The accepted belief now is that unquestionably there are callously disposed remains of little children who attended Indian residential schools littered about all such institutions placed there by the hand of Government and church leaders who were indifferent to their own actions.  This may make sense to some who are perpetually gullible, but not to those whose critical thinking skills and quest to determine what is reasonable and rational, remains intact.  It is a case of providing actual human remains that can be linked to the Residential School, or admitting that none were found.  In other words it is critical to locate solid evidence that will support a dramatic claim, or apologize and admit that the original finding was a false alarm.  One might question how likely the latter scenario is considering the potential ramifications.

Update to 12 July 2021:  Since the author first published this manuscript, on 5 July 2021, three articles have come to his attention.  It appears that others have been questioning the legitimacy of the findings and the response of Canadians to a “preliminary report”.  Alas, except for the latter, these inquiries, while excellent in content and perspective, are not from “mainstream” Canadian news sources.  Apparently we must now turn to other news media to find “journalistic integrity”. 

The first article is from Candace Malcolm of “True North”:    

1)  Six things the media got wrong about the graves found near residential schools” - see here.

The second is from a publication in the United Kingdom, “The Telegraph”, written by Eric Kaufmann, a Canadian journalist –

 2)   “Canada is the worlds first woke nation” - see here.

The most recent is again by Candace Malcolm but published in the "Toronto Sun"

3)  "MALCOLM:  It is important to bring accuracy to residential schools conversation" - see here.