A Lheidli T’enneh flag is now flying in front of the downtown Regional District of Fraser Fort George office.
The flag was raised to half-mast today (Wednesday) and will remain halfway up the pole for 215 days in remembrance of the bodies of the 215 children found in the ground of the Kamloops residential school.
Lheidli T’enneh Chief Dolleen Logan says she hopes that people will take a moment and reflect on the tragedy every time someone sees the new flag at half-mast in front of the building.
“It will also serve as a reminder that further action is required to determine if there are any other remains of children buried at other residential schools across the country.”
Chief Logan says it’s been a devastating week for members of the Lheidli T’enneh community and council, especially since all of them have personal ties to Canada’s residential school system.
“Honestly, I haven’t slept since Friday, I’ve cried so much thinking of these children that didn’t have a chance to be children, the youngest one was three years old. And we have been talking non-stop, and there’s been a lot of crying.”
Chief Logan says she wants to see conversations between First Nations groups and government officials take place on how the province can move forward after this tragic discovery.
“What I think we should do is the Provincial and Federal government should get all the chiefs together and have a discussion,” she explained.
However, she reminds residents that current government officials weren’t responsible for the residential schools in Canada, and she hopes to work to heal the relationship between Canada’s Indigenous population and the government.
Yesterday (Tuesday), Chief Logan announced she is urging the government to utilize the same ground penetrating technology at all historical residential school sites across Canada to search for any more missing bodies.
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