Media finally covering immense crimes against indigenous peoples in Canada known of for decades. Why now?
By Eva Bartlett | RT | July 4, 2021
The reprehensible issue of what many deem “mass murder” of indigenous children in Canada’s Catholic school system has been in global headlines in recent weeks. But this should have been in the headlines decades ago.
The nearly 1,000 bodies of indigenous children in mass graves were recently found by ground-penetrating radar, said the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous First Nations (FSIN) and the Cowessess First Nation.
A reported 150,000 indigenous children were abducted and imprisoned in the Catholic schools, where they were tortured with the intent of erasing their culture and language, as were also sexually abused, had needles driven through their tongues for speaking their own language, were sterilized, among many other horrific practices.
After these findings made the news, people were rightly outraged. Catholic churches in British Columbia and Alberta have since been vandalized and set afire, including churches currently used by indigenous communities as meeting places, acts met with disgust by many indigenous, saying vandalism isn’t justice.
The vandalism continued on Canada Day, with another 10 churches in Calgary targeted.
The premier of Alberta, Jason Kenney, denounced the vandalization of an African Evangelical Church, noting that the congregation is “made up entirely of new Canadians, many of whom came here as refugees fleeing countries where Churches are often vandalized & burned down.”
While some have justified the vandalization of the churches as a push for justice, others questioned whether vandalized or burned mosques or synagogues would also receive the same approval.
After Prime Minister Trudeau spoke of “reconciliation” and how “our relationship with indigenous peoples” has evolved, people rightly called out the government of Canada for empty talk, noting indigenous communities around the country frequently lack clean drinking water. Then, there’s the issue that aside from an official apology, the government hasn’t charged or tried anyone for these crimes.
A report first published in March 2016 by the International Tribunal for the Disappeared of Canada (ITDC) has since apparently been heavily censored and removed from Google search results.
It addressed the “Truth and Reconciliation Commission” carried out by the government and churches, calling it “a rapid in-house response by church and state designed to present their own self-serving narrative of their Indian residential schools crimes,” noting it “was created by the same institutions of church and state that were responsible for the residential school crimes being investigated.”
The synopsis notes that the crimes were “legally authorized, sanctioned and protected by every level of government, church and police in Canada,” and “amounted to deliberate genocide.”
It refers to horrifying facts that the average Canadian likely doesn’t know, including that “Native children began dying in droves the very first year the residential schools opened in 1889, at an average death rate of nearly 50%.” This, it emphasized, continued for the next five decades, “despite constant complaints and reports by doctors who inspected the schools.”
The deaths were caused by “a continual denial of regular food, clothing and proper sanitation to children interned in the schools, amidst a regime of routine and systemic rapes, beatings, tortures and killings: conditions that continued unabated for over a century, from 1889 to 1996.”
Why now?
While I fully stand with the push for justice for the manifold crimes committed against the indigenous peoples in what is now Canada, I do wonder, why is this making headlines now? It’s not like these are new revelations.
Ostensibly the reason these mass graves are in the news now is due to their recent discovery. But, others point out that indigenous have for decades said there were mass graves, but were met with silence.
Indeed, an article first published in May 2008 – and according to the author, rejected by Canadian media – spoke of a 1996 lawsuit launched by residential school survivors on the issue of the death and torture at residential schools. It noted that “residential school children were being buried ‘four or five to a grave’, and that the death rate in these schools stayed constant at fifty percent for over forty years.”
It rightly asked: “Why is the disappearance of tens of thousands of native children in these schools not the subject of a major criminal investigation?”
That was 13 years ago, the lawsuit over two decades ago.
This is just one of, I’m sure, countless examples over the years, decades even, of calls to investigate the missing children and the criminal practices of the schools they were forced into.
So, while it would seem a good thing that the media is highlighting the issue of the barbaric ‘residential schools’, the fact that the media – and not just Canadian, but global media – is covering this should make us take pause. These are the same outlets that sold us WMDs in Iraq, chemical weapons in Syria, and innumerable lies to justify wars and invasions against sovereign nations.
Again, for me, the question is, why now is Canada discussing this issue? I don’t know the answer to that, but before getting swept up in toppling statues for ‘justice’, it is worth considering this and whether justice is really served by vandalization and the PM’s empty words.
Eva Bartlett is a Canadian independent journalist and activist. She has spent years on the ground covering conflict zones in the Middle East, especially in Syria and Palestine (where she lived for nearly four years).
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… What is known about 9/11 is that there are many incredible facts that continue to be ignored by the government and the mainstream media. Here are fourteen.
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Why now? Exactly, my question too. This same thing is happening in NZ also. They’ve known of the crimes for decades. The timing is right when those who might rise up against them finally are placated with truckloads of empathy, sympathy & ‘justice’. I don’t trust them. Sadly many of the recipients (understandably given the histories) are.
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“Religion” is the greatest Fraud ever imposed on Mankind. It keeps people in a state of FEAR(of the devil and eternal damnation). It is completely Illogical, and utterly unverifiable, and it’s “peddlers” from the Pope down, deliver a population that is completely stupid, into the hands of ruthless, lying, politicians.
It is also the ultimate theft, because it pays NO TAX anywhere on Earth.
The “Sheeple” willingly accept this “Bovine Excreta”, in the desperate hope that they will “Live in heaven for Eternity”…..(Can you imaging how utterly boring that would be?)….I believe that my atoms(trillions of them) will go back into the soil, and be recycled as New Life.(Matter can neither be created nor destroyed) I think that the Buddhists have been right, all along.
Good luck everyone.
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Atheism has a bigger body count – Soviet Russia, Maoist China, but don’t let facts slow down your broad brush bigotry, Harry. Some parts of the large body count of WWII can quite arguably be blamed on atheist movements. The draconian proposed genocidal Morgenthau plan of the US against Germany was not led by a Christian. The wars in Iraq, Syria, Libya, Sudan, Yemen, Lebanon, Palestine are not driven by Christians. Sure, a large movement of apostate Christian Zionists that have been cultivated by the Scofield Bible Zionist psyop and elevated and cheerleaders, but the Catholic and Orthodox Churches can’t be blamed for this.
Your comments are so ignorant that one does not know where to start, but yours is the hoped for ignorant emotion based self-righteous response that who ever is elevating this issue now is hoping for. The Catholic Church has MANY problems and failings including being infiltrated heavily by degenerate satanists and sexual degenerates likely including the current Pope who was part of a Deep Church color revolution to oust the sitting Pope, but it is founded on solid spiritual teaching and important philosophical truths that have saved millions and millions of people’s lives and souls, and quite possibly has allowed for the greatest degree of human cooperation and human freedom of any large scale society. In fact, to the degree that we are still free – or were one year and a half ago anyhow – it might be argued that we were still living on the fumes of the Christian philosophical and moral principles.
What is the balance sheet on your better more trustworthy world view and philosophy, Brian. I am sure it is very thoughtful and sophisticated and worthwhile. It would be unjust of you to keep your great deep guiding wisdom from us. Do share.
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You’re entitled to your opinion, and I’m entitled to mine…..
“God didn’t create man, Man created God”….Voltaire.
“I’d hate to be a member of a group, whose symbol was a man nailed to two pieces of wood”….G Carlin
“Jesus is just ‘Santa Claus” for adults”…..Christopher Hitchens
“Religion is for people who are still afraid of the dark”….Dr Stephen Hawking.
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You can choose to be bigoted, arrogant and shallow. No one will stop you, but some will feel sorry for you. Also, if you facilitate the anti-Christian agenda that wants to take away the values that gave rise to human rights and democracy, well, don’t blame me if it turns out being a slave in a 5g mediated internet of things surveillance prison ends up not being that fun. This is where your nihilistic arrogant nihilism leads. Man worships himself and his own creations. What could go wrong? You have been warned.
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“Surely you cant be serious”?……..OOOOH!, I’m REALLY SCARED now……..Hahahahaha………I have NO FEAR of Religious IDIOTS, like you…….Have a nice day!
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You will be scared soon enough and I take no pleasure in saying it. It is dangerous to be completely ignorant of your philosophical heritage even putting aside religion. Your ignorance will not help you.
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Why now?
Perhaps to blame the Catholic Church for what Canada did.
Perhaps to demonize the Catholic Church.
Who set the fire at Notre Dame?
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“Why now? Perhaps to blame the Catholic Church for what Canada did”.
“Canada” didn’t do anything wrong. A Christian Church(full of paedophiles) committed the despicable crimes against innocent, defenseless children.
If those “Christians” have no fear of “Jesus” why should we?
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Canada didn’t do anything wrong?
The article itself says that “the crimes were ‘legally authorized, sanctioned and protected by every level of government, church and police in Canada,’”
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Well, that’s “Government” for you, they like to keep “dirty business” under cover, to protect THEMSELVES, but, the truth is, it was the CHURCH(which one I don’t know) who committed the foul unforgivable crimes, as the Churches have been found doing, All over the Planet……
Religion is a Paedophile’s Sanctuary…….
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Why now? Because, now that Isaiah 49:22-23* has come true, it’s time for the supposed heirs of Isaiah to bring Isaiah 65:16-17** into “fulfillment” (according to their interpretation, not the Christian interpretation.)
* “This is what the Sovereign Lord says ‘See, I will beckon to the Gentiles, I will lift up my banner to the peoples; they will bring your sons in their arms and carry your daughters on their hips. Kings will be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow down before you with their faces to the ground; they will lick the dust at your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord; those who hope in me will not be disappointed.’”
** “For the past troubles will be forgotten and hidden from my [God’s] eyes. New Heavens and a New Earth. See, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.”
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“Surely you can’t be serious”………….
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I’m serious: the Jews have gained control of all the nations and now they want to create a world where the memory of Christendom is gone. Do you support them, brianharryaustralia?
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I couldn’t care less about any Religion. Religion is designed to keep 99% of the Population in a state of utter stupidity(and it works, particularly in the USA.)
The Jews have enormous power around the World it’s true, and Britain and the USA are under their spell……..What are YOU going to do about it Matt?
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Yes, Matt, he supports him, but he is probably too ignorant to realize it. He may be paid to play dumb, but I think he really is just completely clueless.
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