Last week’s announcement of the discovery of as many as 751 unmarked graves on the site of a former residential school on the Cowessess First Nation has caused many to seek mental health support.

Keith Pratt with Fox Valley Counselling Services knows the discovery of the graves may have come as a shock to many non-Indigenous people, as it wasn’t something that was taught in schools or talked about very openly.

Pratt says many non-Indigenous people have approached him feeling guilty about what happened, which he says isn’t a helpful feeling. Pratt says people today shouldn’t be feeling guilty because the residential system was back in the day, it’s a changing world, and we need to work with that.

He says what is helpful is understanding and listening. He says non-Indigenous people also need to take a step back and give Indigenous people time to heal.

Pratt says he knows a lot of people who have reached out asking how they can help people affected by residential schools, to which he says just be there to listen when they need to talk.

He adds apologies only go so far if no real action is taken.

For those in need of support, the Residential School crisis line is 1-866-925-4419. Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations has established a second number for Saskatchewan residents at 1-306-522-7494.

Pratt  also says the mental health toll of the impact of residential schools is, unfortunately, nothing new for Indigenous people and the mental impact has led to many survivors using drugs or alcohol, which has been passed down to other generations.

(ckrm)