A new proposed class action lawsuit has begun by Metis Survivors of the Ile-a-la-Cross residential school which was open for more than 100 years. The first Catholic mission was established in that community in 1783 and then the Residential Boarding School opened in the 1820s.and shut down after a fire in the 1970s.
Metis Nation-Saskatchewan Vice-President, Michelle LeClair, says the students faced inhumane living conditions and suffered physical, sexual and psychological abuse, resulting in long-term mental health challenges, and the loss of Indigenous culture, language and identity. Plus, there is also the intergenerational harm that continues. She says if you look at the communities in Northwest Saskatchewan, you will see the harm – the suicides, the abuse of drugs and alcohol, the loss of language and culture.
LeClair notes there are settlements for Indian residential schools, but there has been none for this school. There are six Survivors and intergenerational Survivors seeking compensation in a proposed class action lawsuit against both the federal and provincial governments for breaching their legal duties to the Survivors. The United 4 Survivors website says back in 2005, there was a proposed class action lawsuit on behalf of Ile-a-la-Cross residential school Survivors, but it hasn’t moved forward, so a new lawsuit with different lawyers and a different group of Survivors has begun.
A news release from Metis Nation-Saskatchewan says the lawsuit was filed with the Saskatchewan Court of King’s Bench last month, following many years of failed attempts to negotiate with the Governments of Saskatchewan and Canada. Mayor of Ile-a-la-Crosse, Duane Favel, says the school is arguably one of the oldest residential schools in Canada and they are still struggling to have it recognized as a Metis residential school. Favel says Metis communities are dysfunctional, with addictions and mental health issues which can be directly attributed to the residential system, and they need to find a way to move forward and bring health and wellness back into their communities. Survivor Louis Gardiner says students at Ile-a-la-Crosse residential school suffered the same traumas as other residential schools and they just want to be recognized and to be treated fairly.
