Flags at half-mast throughout Niagara Region to acknowledge loss of Indigenous children
Published June 28, 2021 at 2:24 pm
While flags flew at half-mast throughout the Niagara Region on Friday and into the weekend to acknowledge the horrific discovery of gravesites filled with the bodies of Indigenous children, the pain felt at Brock University in St Catharines was particularly strong.
The university, itself built on the traditional land of the Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabe peoples, is well known for its Indigneous Studies program.
On June 25, the day after the 751 unmarked graves of residential school children in southeast Saskatchewan were discovered, the university offered support to Indigenous communities in a news release.
“On behalf of the entire Brock University community, we want to extend our deepest condolences to Canada’s Indigenous communities at this most difficult time,” the release said.
“The horrific discovery of hundreds of unmarked graves at the site of the former Marieval Indian Residential School in Saskatchewan is heartbreaking, and a reminder that the terrible impact of Canada’s colonial history continues to this day.”
As well as lowering its flags to half-mast, the university illuminated the Arthur Schmon Tower in orange as a show of solidarity with the Indigenous community
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The university said a national Indian Residential School Crisis Line has been set up to provide support for former students and those affected
People can access emotional and crisis referral services by calling the 24-hour national crisis line: 1-866-925-4419.”
(Photo courtesy of Brock University.)
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