Thread by @erinmillions

Thread: A key argument of residential school deniers is that the schools were 'products of their time' & we can't judge the past by present standards. Persistent and consistent critiques of the schools were made for over a hundred years. Here are the receipts #residentialschools

2. 1893: Indian Affairs inspector T. D. Wadsworth reports that the Qu’Appelle school lacked an infirmary

3. 1895: Inspection of Middlechurch, MB school finds that food is inadequate

4. 1895: Indian agent D.L. Clink recommends to DIA that school principal be fired for harsh discipline of students (DIA - Department of Indian Affairs)

5. 1897: Indian Affairs official Martin Benson reports poor lighting, heating, ventilation, and drainage at schools in Manitoba and the Northwest Territories

6. 1904: Indian Commissioner David Laird criticizes water supply and drainage at schools, and recommends better provisions for fire protection

7. 1907: Report by Dr. Peter Bryce on the tuberculosis crisis and high death rates in the schools as a result of inadequate conditions and medical facilities

8. 1907: DIA inspector reports the operation of two ‘cells’ for runaway children at the Mohawk Institute

9. 1918: Indian Agent John Smith and a local doctor both criticize the Kamloops school for providing inadequate nutrition

10. 1923: Former industrial school principal R.B. Heron criticized the quality of education in residential schools

11. 1924: Roman Catholic principals petition the DIA for the establishment of sick rooms under the supervision of a nurse in each school

12. 1939: BC Provincial Police launch an investigation into sexual abuse at the Kuper Island school. Indian Affairs officials concurred that there was a basis for the allegations and advised the suspected abusers to leave the province rather than facing charges.

13. 1940: R.A. Hoey, Indian Affairs superintendent of Welfare and Training, reports that school buildings are “dilapidated” and “acute fire hazards”

14. 1947: Head of the federal government’s Nutrition Division, Dr. L.B. Pett, concluded based on inspections of schools carried out by his staff that “no school was doing a good feeding job”

15. 1950s-1960s: Repeated complaints from principals of inadequate medical facilities in the schools continue.

16. 1956: A school staff member at the Gordon school investigates allegations of sexual impropriety against the school principal

17. 1963: Former principal of Inuvik residential school D.W. Hepburn publishes an article criticizing the quality of education in residential schools

18. 1966, 1969, 1970: Reports of inadequate nutrition at schools in Whitehorse and Dauphin, MB

These are only reports submitted by civil servants. This doesn't include debates in the House of Commons, letters written to principals, other reports by the NWMP/RCMP, etc.

This is information is publicly available in archived government records held primarily at Library and Archives Canada.

@cblackst you might be interested in this thread

More than 1000 retweets! Thank you all for sharing this information!