The federal government raised the Survivor Flag on Parliament Hill on Monday to honor Indigenous people affected by Canada’s residential school system.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was joined by National Center for Truth and Reconciliation Executive Director Stephanie Scott, Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller, Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal and residential school survivors from all over the country.
Trudeau called residential schools a “shameful chapter” in Canadian history and said the survivors’ flag would help Canadians remember what happened in government-funded, government-run institutions. Church for over a century.
The flag was developed in consultation and collaboration with survivors, with every element of the design approved.
Last year, ground-penetrating radar located what are believed to be hundreds of unmarked graves on the grounds of former boarding schools, sparking efforts to remember survivors.
The flag will remain flown on Parliament Hill until 2024, when it will be moved to its permanent location.
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