Hundreds gather at Vancouver vigil for 215 children whose remains were found in Kamloops

We cannot forget them, that’s the message coming from hundreds of people at Grandview Park in Vancouver. Attendees are grieving for the 215 children found dead at a former Kamloops residential school. Ashley Burr reports.

By Ashley Burr

Posted June 2, 2021 11:05 pm.

Last Updated June 2, 2021 11:20 pm.

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — Hundreds gathered in East Vancouver Wednesday evening, drumming, singing, and wearing orange to honour and remember the 215 children whose remains were found at the site of a former residential school in Kamloops.

The “Remember the Children” event was organized to support the Tk’emlúps te Secwepemc First Nation in the wake of the discovery last month.

Many who came out to Grandview Park shared how their lives, the lives of their families, and the lives of Indigenous people across Canada have been shaped by the intergenerational trauma of residential schools, a colonial system that saw 150,000 First Nations, Inuit, and Métis children taken from their families and confined in conditions that constituted cultural genocide.

Memorials and shows of support for the First Nation have been taking place and growing across the country since it was confirmed by the Tk’emlúps te Secwepemc that the remains of the children had been found.

Many have placed children’s shoes in front of and on the steps of various buildings across Canada in memory of the children who were taken from their families and never returned.

A national Indian Residential School Crisis Line is available for anyone affected by residential schools. You can call 1-866-925-4419 24 hours a day to access emotional support and services.

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