This book matters to me.
I have friends who
survived their own residential school school experiences. They are also
survivors of the dysfunctional families created because their elders and previous
generations were dragged from their families and forced to attend one of these
institutions.
The last residential
school in Canada didn't close until 1996. I
Am Not A Number is the true
story of Irene Couchie Dupuis, grandmother to the author, Jenny Kay Dupuis.
When Irene was eight years old, an Indian agent came and took her and two brothers
away from their home and community of Nipissing First Nation, to go to the
Spanish Indian Residential School. The children's names were taken away and
replaced with a number. Irene's number was 759. Her story reveals the cruelty
and neglect these children endured at the hands of the nuns in charge. When
Irene and her two brothers returned home for the summer, they told their
parents about their experiences. The family came up with a plan to hide and
protect the children so they wouldn't have to return.
Many, if not most
other children were not so fortunate. Not only were they unable to escape,
their experiences were much more horrific than what is revealed here.
This is not a
comfortable read, but it is an important, necessary narrative for building
knowledge about this despicable aspect of our history. At least one copy should
be in every school and public library to use with elementary and older
students. Adults should read it too.
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