Ivan Watson / Black Press
It was an inherited box of genealogical files that first notified Camosun College instructor Andy Bryce about the work of his great grandfather, Dr. Peter Bryce.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission review was three years into its research when Andy discovered the box in 2011, following his momB次元官网网址檚 passing. He was fascinated to discover that his ancestor, Dr. Bryce, was one of the few senior Canadian officials at the time to take a courageous stand against the abuses suffered by aboriginal children at the church-run and government-sanctioned residential schools.
B次元官网网址淎 light just went off for me,B次元官网网址� he said. In five years since his discovery, Andy has dedicated much research to the subject, and is in production of a short film documentary about Dr. BryceB次元官网网址檚 story for middle school students across Canada.
B次元官网网址淕rowing up I didnB次元官网网址檛 know much about him,B次元官网网址� Andy said. B次元官网网址淎fter sorting through the box, I looked him up on the Canadian Encyclopedia, and the first thing mentioned was his role revealing health abuses in residential schools. In 1907, Dr. Bryce, then chief medical officer in the federal Indian Affairs department, reported that one in four children in Western Canadian residential schools died from tuberculosis over a three-year period. At one school, the rate was as high as seven in 10.
After bringing attention to the appalling rates of neglect and suffering, Dr. Bryce was shuffled to another department and his previous position was eliminated.
But he never gave up. After he retired in 1921, Dr. Bryce criticized the governmentB次元官网网址檚 inaction in a book, The Story of a National Crime. Despite stirring a national scandal, the government did nothing at the time.
Sitting in his office at CamosunB次元官网网址檚 Lansdowne campus, great grandson Andy is visibly proud of Dr. BryceB次元官网网址檚 courage.
B次元官网网址淥ne of the things that struck me was how tenacious he was about this particular issue and how long he stuck with it. It obviously got under his skin,B次元官网网址� Andy said.
At the time, the research fit perfectly as the starting point for AndyB次元官网网址檚 thesis as he was studying a masterB次元官网网址檚 of professional communication at Royal Roads University.
B次元官网网址淢y great grandfatherB次元官网网址檚 story was the cornerstone for my research,B次元官网网址� he said. Andy attended a family reunion in Ontario, where he met many of Dr. BryceB次元官网网址檚 descendants for the first time. Following that he contacted Peter Campbell, a filmmaker he knew with 30 years of experience working on social justice issues. Using AndyB次元官网网址檚 research, they partnered to produce a documentary film.
The timing couldnB次元官网网址檛 have been better.
In March 2015, the University of Toronto opened a school of indigenous public health, named in part after Dr. Bryce.
The documentary attracted the attention of Charlene Bearhead at the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, who proposed that Andy and Campbell produce a 20-minute version of their documentary for middle school students across Canada. Andy anticipates the short film will be ready later this spring. The full-length documentary is still in progress.
B次元官网网址淚 think his most important legacy is to contradict the idea of laissez-faire government, and to say that government should be involved in the way that society is run, to ensure social justice.B次元官网网址�
Bryce aims to finish the longer documentary in time to coincide with CanadaB次元官网网址檚 150th anniversary celebrations in 2017. For more information visit facebook.com/PeterHBryce.
editor@goldstreamgazette.com
