The first story I heard about “the missing” was from a Dene elder, Catherine, just over 10 years ago. She was speaking about the impact of tuberculosis on her family at a health conference. The topic triggered her memories of residential school, and of a younger sister who never returned. Perhaps her sister didn’t come home because the school made her ashamed of her people, Catherine speculated, or moved to the United States and married. Or, Catherine continued, perhaps her sister had died at the school. There was no way to find out. As Catherine spoke, I saw the ache of losing her sister in her face and heard it in her voice, raw and fresh, as if she was experiencing it again.
Over the years, I heard a trickle of similar stories. Lost relatives, speculation about where they might be living, followed by suspicions they did not survive the schools. After the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) launched its public hearings, that trickle grew to a steady stream. Some survivors had seen deaths at the schools from disease, malnutrition or abuse. Some testified they had witnessed murder. One remembered digging graves for his schoolmates. The TRC had records for only 4,100 deaths but concluded the true number must be much higher.
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