As the Truth and Reconciliation Commission begins gathering statements from former students of residential schools, Songhees band member Butch Dick will stand beside any family member who chooses to tell their story.
He wonB次元官网网址檛, however, tell his own.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e never brought it to my family because I feel I will just carry it on to another generation,B次元官网网址� Dick says. B次元官网网址淢y children donB次元官网网址檛 need to know. They know that I went there, but they donB次元官网网址檛 need to know all the stories because they donB次元官网网址檛 need to carry that.B次元官网网址�
Dick has not registered to speak, but has played a supporting role as a local planning committee member to the commissionB次元官网网址檚 Victoria hearings, happening today (April 13) and tomorrow at the Victoria Conference Centre.
B次元官网网址淭his is happening in our home territory, and culturally we are bound to act as hosts,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淚f we stood back and let it happen without becoming involved then it would be wrong.B次元官网网址�
His participation, however, doesnB次元官网网址檛 mean heB次元官网网址檚 fully bought in to the CommissionB次元官网网址檚 work. B次元官网网址淲hy are they spending millions and millions on this Truth and Reconciliation?B次元官网网址� Dick asks. B次元官网网址淭o make churches feel good? To make the general public aware? Or to actually help the people who have been through all this? ItB次元官网网址檚 very unclear.B次元官网网址�
He predicts only a handful of Songhees people will attend the conference, and fewer will speak. Most donB次元官网网址檛 want to be involved, he says. B次元官网网址淭hey choose not to go back and revisit. It opens new wounds and sorrows and regret.B次元官网网址�
DickB次元官网网址檚 own memories of residential school are fuzzy, and theyB次元官网网址檙e memories he doesnB次元官网网址檛 want to uncover.
He remembers some things, however, including being taken by the RCMP with his siblings when he was about seven.
B次元官网网址淚 remember being put on a train and put on a boat. We didnB次元官网网址檛 know where we were going, because we never travelled.B次元官网网址�
They were brought to Kuper Island residential school, located on a Gulf Island a short ferry ride from Chemainus.
B次元官网网址淲e used to refer to it as B次元官网网址榯he rock,B次元官网网址� because itB次元官网网址檚 on an island, so once you got there you couldnB次元官网网址檛 get off,B次元官网网址� he says.
Dick recalls no academic lessons, but the regimented routines surrounding dormitory living, haircuts and clothes, and Catholic traditions, stick with him. B次元官网网址淥ne thing I do remember is praying a lot.B次元官网网址� He also remembers being comforted in the evening, hearing the nuns singing.
After two years on Kuper Island, he was sent back Victoria to attend day school.
B次元官网网址淚 was deemed a runaway (at Kuper),B次元官网网址� he recalls. B次元官网网址淚 didnB次元官网网址檛 run away. I would just hide, and my oldest brother, who is passed away now, would have to go and look for me. They got tired of looking for me and decided it was better for me to go home.B次元官网网址�
He acknowledges, however, that not everybody had a bad experience.
B次元官网网址淢y older brother thought it was just great. ThatB次元官网网址檚 the danger. ThereB次元官网网址檚 not one common experience that you can point at, that you can use as an example of peopleB次元官网网址檚 experiences at residential school. Every person has a different story of how it may affect them.B次元官网网址�
Five generations of Songhees people were sent to residential school. DickB次元官网网址檚 mother was sent to a school on the mainland, though she never shared any stories about her experiences there. Despite being a fluent speaker of her traditional language, she wanted her childrenB次元官网网址檚 first language to be English.
B次元官网网址淢y mom said, B次元官网网址榃e have to live in a white community so we have to learn to speak English,B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址� Dick says. Speculating on her motivation, he adds, B次元官网网址淭he Indian part of you was beaten out of them, so why should I put my kids through that?B次元官网网址�
Today, he continues to try to learn his traditional language, but admits itB次元官网网址檚 hard.
The Victoria conference marks the final event on Vancouver Island for the federal Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which held smaller events up Island in preceding weeks. B次元官网网址淲e call it the tsunami of sorrow,B次元官网网址� says Dick.
B次元官网网址淗ealing,B次元官网网址� he says, is just a buzzword.
B次元官网网址淲e look at it in our community as really just truth. Whether itB次元官网网址檚 going to reconcile anything is not something that we think can be accomplished. In our lifetime it will never happen.B次元官网网址�
After the hearings wrap up Saturday, the Songhees nation will host an event it calls Gather Your Tears. While attendees can enjoy a meal, listen to drumming and relax, Dick emphasizes itB次元官网网址檚 not a celebration.
rholmen@vicnews.com
Up next:
In Part 3 of series next week, we'll offer recollections of residential school survivors and others who spoke at the hearings. The proceedings happen Friday (April 13) and Saturday at the Victoria Conference Centre and are open to the public.
RELATED STORIES:
Part 1 of the series:
Series introduction:
