ON THIS DAY

May 22, 1611 Pierre Biard and Ennemond Massé, the first Jesuits in North America, arrived at the Acadian colony of Port-Royal, N.S. Many more of their order would follow. The Jesuits sought to convert Indigenous peoples to Christianity, establishing parishes and schools, studying Aboriginal languages and exploring the continent. Though their scholarship has been an invaluable resource for historians, their legacy - one of many examples of European assimilationist practices among Aboriginal peoples - is controversial.