Tears flow at Sixties Scoop apology CLARE CLANCY
Indigenous Albertans who were snatched from their families as children reflected on their own resilience Monday as the Alberta government issued a long-awaited apology.
“Every time we tell our stories, parts of our hearts, souls and spirits mend back together,” said Suzanne Wilkinson, 47.
She was among dozens of survivors who looked down from the gallery in the legislative assembly Monday as Premier Rachel Notley repeated the poignant words “We are sorry” in several Indigenous languages.
Her formal apology recognized the role provincial policies played in the Sixties Scoop and promised continued work toward reconciliation.
"For the loss of families, of stability, of love, we are sorry. For the loss of identity, language and culture, we are sorry,” Notley said.
“For the loneliness, the anger, the confusion and frustration, we are sorry.”
From the 1950s to the 1990s, thousands of Indigenous children across Canada were apprehended by provincial governments and placed with non-Indigenous families, isolating them from Indigenous culture, language and identity.
Manitoba became the first province to issue an apology in 2015.
“The decisions that led to that personal trauma, many of those decisions were made right here, on this floor,” Notley said.
An empty chair was placed symbolically in the chamber to recognize survivors who weren’t present, while those in attendance packed into the gallery and rotunda.
“There wasn’t a dry eye around me,” said Wilkinson, who travelled from Victoria, B.C., to hear the apology.
She was born in Edmonton and placed for adoption after her Cree birth mother was told she was stillborn. It took more than 30 years for them to reunite.
Wilkinson said survivors continue to carry their trauma.
“But we carry our resilience, too,” she said.
Adam North Peigan, president of the Sixties Scoop Indigenous Society of Alberta, thanked survivors for their courage on the steps of the legislature following Notley’s speech.
“We accept your apology with the understanding that this is only the beginning,” he said, flanked by Children’s Services Minister Danielle Larivee and Indigenous Relations Minister Richard Feehan. “This day is for all survivors.”
He highlighted the work still ahead, including reducing the number of Indigenous children in the child welfare system. About 70 per cent of children in care in Alberta are Indigenous.
“Within our Indigenous communities there’s a lot of suffering happening because of government policy,” he told reporters. “Even today it’s referred to as the Millennium Scoop.
“We need to be able to influence child welfare reform so that things are done differently.”
Alberta’s child intervention panel, which was tasked with addressing systemic gaps in the system, is on track to release an action plan by June 30, said Larivee.
“The only way we can move forward on this is in true partnership,” she said.
Since January, more than 600 people shared their stories at public engagement events in Edmonton, Calgary, Peace River, St. Paul, Fort McMurray and Lethbridge to help inform the apology to Sixties Scoop survivors.
“I heard some very profound stories of loss and of abuse,” Larivee said. “I also heard tremendous resilience and a sense of hope and a desire to move forward.”
Feehan said the apology isn’t tied to any funding.
“We decided … that our discussion was going to be about bringing meaning to the actual apology itself. I think we’ve accomplished that.”
We need to be able to influence child welfare reform so that things are done differently.