Trudeau asks for flags to be lowered to honour Kamloops residential school children
Posted May 30, 2021 10:14 am.
Last Updated May 30, 2021 10:43 am.
TORONTO — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has asked that flags on all federal buildings be flown at half-mast in honour of the lives of 215 children whose remains were found at a former residential school in Kamloops.
Trudeau says he has made the request, which will include the Peace Tower flag, to honour all Indigenous children who “never made it home”, the survivors of the school and their families.
To honour the 215 children whose lives were taken at the former Kamloops residential school and all Indigenous children who never made it home, the survivors, and their families, I have asked that the Peace Tower flag and flags on all federal buildings be flown at half-mast.
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) May 30, 2021
Chief Rosanne Casimir of the Tk’emlups te Secwepemc First Nation in British Columbia said the remains of 215 children, some as young as three years old, were confirmed last weekend with the help of ground-penetrating radar.
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Remains of 215 children found at former Kamloops residential school
She described the discovery as “an unthinkable loss that was spoken about but never documented at the Kamloops Indian Residential School.”
Plans are underway to bring in forensics experts to identify and repatriate the remains of the children found buried on the site.
The Canadian flag at the B.C. legislature has already been lowered and the City of Vancouver says they will also be flying their flags at half-mast.
The Peace Tower flag in Ottawa and flags on all federal buildings have also been lowered. https://t.co/TaFMCrW9pI
— Lasia Kretzel (@rhymeswpretzel) May 30, 2021
And mayors of communities across Ontario including Toronto, Ottawa, Mississauga and Brampton have also ordered flags lowered to honour the children.
– With files from Nikitha Martins
