Minister Valcourt's remarks to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Quebec National Event in Montreal, April 24, 2013

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Thank you for the welcome.

It is an honour and a privilege for me to join you all on behalf of the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, at this national event in order to be informed about the system of Indian residential schools, the experiences of former students and their families, including the lasting effects that these institutions have had on communities, and also to pay tribute to those scarred by the Indian residential schools.

Ever since the Minister was appointed on February 22 this year, he has made it his priority to travel throughout Canada to meet with community members, elders, leaders and youth in a quest to establish a new relationship with Aboriginal people, a relationship based on reconciliation and healing for past injustices and reinforcement of Aboriginal governance and self-government.

He has been to remote outposts and met with Aboriginal people living in urban centres, from the Atlantic to the Pacific and in northern Canada.

He has visited communities that are prospering and others which are in difficulty.

In the course of all this, he has noticed a recurrent theme: it is the sincere desire of both Canada and Aboriginal people to work together, in a spirit of reconciliation and respect, to prevail over past errors and these dark chapters in our history.

It is the same desire that in 2008 prompted our Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, to apologize for the residential schools.

And it is in this spirit that I am joining you here today.

Today’s event is part of a collectively determined drive to make reconciliation a reality.

Testimony is an important element of reconciliation.

Though we cannot experience what former students went through, we must listen attentively to those former students, who thus become our instructors.

In coming forward to share their stories, residential school survivors have demonstrated extraordinary strength, courage and resilience.

By listening to their stories we deepen our understanding of Canada’s past.

And we learn that even a great country’s history includes dark chapters.

As the Prime Minister said in his historic apology, “the government now recognizes that the consequences of the Indian Residential Schools policy were profoundly negative and that this policy has had a lasting and damaging impact on Aboriginal culture, heritage and language.”

Former students share powerful and tragic stories of emotional, physical and sexual abuse; stories of children being separated not just from their communities, but from their families, often never to see them again.
 
The legacy of the residential school system reaches beyond former students to affect their children, many of whom are now adults with children of their own.

And we know that legacy is still being felt in many communities, where it contributes to the serious social problems we see today.

In 2008 the Prime Minister acknowledged the need to move forward with healing and reconciliation between Canada and Aboriginal people.

His historic apology was an important first step, but the work of reconciliation continues.

Events such as this one play an important role in the process of healing by bringing survivors together with government, the churches and others to continue the sharing of stories that leads to greater understanding.

The residential school system sought to remove children from the influence of their communities and culture, based on the assumption that Aboriginal culture was somehow inferior.

We know this is not the case and when we come together like we have today to share experiences and stories we see firsthand how rich and vibrant the culture and history of Canada’s Aboriginal people is.

More Canadians must share in this experience. In his travels across Canada, the Minister has seen the appetite there is to learn more about the residential schools.

And I know that Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada receives many requests for information from people across Canada for more information not just about residential schools and their legacy, but about the role of Aboriginal people in Canada’s past, in our present, and in our future.

I believe that this is a true reflection of the increased awareness among Canadians, particularly young Canadians, of the vital contribution that Aboriginal people have made and will continue to make to our country’s social and economic life.

This represents a tremendous opportunity for Canada and it begins with listening. We must continue to find ways of listening to, learning from, and working with one another if we are to achieve the important goal of healing and reconciliation.

It is in this spirit that I am undertaking to listen attentively and respectfully so that together we can start out on the road to reconciliation. My heart is warmed by the idea of working in close collaboration with you in this productive partnership we are establishing here. I congratulate you on your courage, your confidence and your resilience.

Thank you.