The school was run by the Women’s Society of the Presbyterian Church. On my back. Please don’t hurt.”, The publisher’s note for Wenjack describes it as “a powerful and poignant look into the world of a residential school runaway trying to find his way home.” The back cover is illustrated with the skull of a mouse, captioned: “One day I will run. His death in 1966 sparked national attention and the first inquest into the treatment of Indigenous children in Canadian residential schools. According to Adams’ article in Maclean’s, he followed them on foot and spent Thursday night with them. Their goal was a cabin about 32 kilometres away where the orphans’ uncle lived. Wenjack has become a symbol of resistance to the power of colonization in Canada. However, most of what is written and shown in these accounts about the tragic death of an Ojibway boy named Chanie Wenjack – an alleged victim of the residential school system whose frozen body was found curled up beside railway tracks in northwestern Ontario on the morning of October 23, 1966 several days after he ran away from a former Indian residential school where he was … Wenjack was buried on 27 October 1966. It was about 600 kilometres away. In 1972, Indigenous students and members of Trent University’s Native Studies department Instead, the nation is once again shedding jobs, unemployment is high, companies continue to shrink or go under, entire industries are threatened and growth is almost nowhere to be seen. The mother of Chanie Wenjack, the 12-year-old boy who froze to death while on the run from a residential school and who later inspired a generation of … Downie and his trademark feathered hat get top billing above Chanie’s name, with the text centred between a photo of Downie in a shimmering jacket performing at one of his concerts and reputedly the only surviving picture of a shy, smiling Chanie. He had died from starvation and exposure. Their bodies clutching each other for warmth. Gord Downie began Secret Path as ten poems, incited by the story of Chanie Wenjack, a twelve year-old boy who died in flight from the Cecilia Jeffrey Indian Residential School near Kenora, Ontario, fifty years ago, walking home to the family he was taken from over 400 miles away. At 11:20 a.m. on the morning of Sunday, October 23, 1966, the engineer of a westbound freight train spotted Chanie’s frozen body curled up at the side of the tracks. He became lonely and ran away. It wasn’t until Friday morning – five days after leaving the playground – that 12-year-old Chanie decided to walk to his parents’ home at the fly-in Ojibway community of Ogoki Post on the Marten Falls reserve. Gord Downie began Secret Path as a collection of 10 poems inspired by the story of Chanie Wenjack, a 12-year-old boy who died of exposure on October 22, 1966. Wenjack’s story, as well as the many similarly tragic stories of residential school students, led to eventual legislative reforms and class action lawsuits, including the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. She dares him with her dark eyes to tell her why he hurts.”, To drive home his (invented) point, Boyden has the uncle tell his daughters and nephews that they have to send Chanie away because “Someone broke something in him. Children ran away frequently from residential schools. Chanie Wenjack, a 12-year-old Anishinaabe boy, ran away from a residential school in northern Ontario 52 years ago. The story being taught to Canadian children is littered with factual distortions and untruths. But it is not even close to the truth. The mother of Chanie Wenjack, the 12-year-old boy who died while trying to escape an Ontario residential school in 1966, has died. A coroner’s inquest into Wenjack’s death was held 17 November 1966. Jeff Lemire’s drawings show nuns in habits delousing naked Ojibway boys while they cover their genitals with their hands. At the inquest into his death, the jury and journalist Ian Adams concluded that Wenjack had run away because he was lonely. Chanie and his friends didn’t make it to the uncle’s cabin that first day. And when the Aboriginal political leaders of his time demanded racially-segregated self-government, as prime minister he told them Canada would not let them have it without a serious – and perhaps bloody – fight. The mother of Chanie Wenjack, the 12-year-old boy who froze to death while on the run from a residential school and who later inspired a generation of Canadians to learn about this devastating chapter in Canada’s history, has died. In this essay drawing on her understanding of Russian history and literature, her formal education and her burning belief in freedom, the adoptive Canadian issues an eloquent warning that no society is truly immune. Located near Kenora, Ontario, the Cecilia Jeffrey School was run by the Women’s Missionary Society of the Chanie Wenjack was not attending an Indian residential school at the time of his death and Cecilia Jeffrey was not operated by the Catholic Church. Many students were sexually and physically abused at residential schools. Journalist Ian Adams brought Wenjack’s story to national attention with his article, “The Lonely Death of Charlie Wenjack,” published by Maclean’s in February 1967. Secret Path will be discussed in the February meeting of a book club I attend, so I decided to give it a try – and boy, am I glad I did so! The Gord Downie and Chanie Wenjack Fund is a registered charity. Chanie’s best friend testified at the inquest into his death that “he ran away because he was lonely.” One of Chanie’s public school teachers told the inquest he had said he longed to return to his family. He pushes me on my stomach. THE GORD DOWNIE & CHANIE WENJACK FUND Read about the Fund, which seeks to support cross-cultural education and reconciliation. Wenjack walked the nearly 5 km to meet them, then set out alone to find his father. Wenjack told his friends that he wanted to see his father. were sent to Cecilia Jeffrey Indian Residential School, more than 600 km away, where he was given the name “Charlie.”. One day they won’t hurt me anymore.”, According to the 1967 Maclean’s story by Ian Adams, which Gord Downie and Joseph Boyden say they have read, young Chanie had made no attempt to run away during the previous three years he stayed at Cecilia Jeffrey. Robert MacBain took the time. But Secret Path shows them praying at classroom desks with a stern Catholic nun looking on. I’m not going back.” In the book, a white male in a clerical collar with a cross on his chest approaches Chanie’s bed. “…The brothers don’t look at me as they rise to run, and I don’t feel bad. Chanie Wenjack, 12, died from exposure and hunger. Is it right?” This prompted ethical and moral questioning of the culturally oppressive and abusive environments in the residential schools. In his escape, Wenjack followed his two friends to the cabin of their uncle, Charles Kelly, near Redditt, Ontario. The Rooms are intended to “expand awareness” about the legacy of residential schools, and foster “reconciliation” between natives and non-natives. This was Wenjack’s first, — and last, — attempt at The day that Wenjack and his friends left, nine other children also escaped from Cecilia Jeffrey. I think that the government should do something about repaying the First Nations because no one had done anything about it and it was wrong.”, “Chanie’s story has impacted our lives and we want change…If we continue to educate kids and adults all around the world history will not repeat itself.”, “It was really, really, sad to think that a group of people thought kids should be taught in a certain way. Our team will be reviewing your submission and get back to you with any further questions. The coroner and Crown attorney questioned witnesses, including the boys who had been with Wenjack during his escape and the men with whom they had stayed. Downie revealed in May 2016 that he had terminal cancer, an aggressive, incurable form called glioblastoma. Gwyn Morgan assesses several key areas of our nation’s battered economy and reviews the central role played by poorly thought-out, unneeded and avoidable government policies in each one. The “Secret Path” album and series of concerts told the story of Chanie Wenjack, an Anishinaabe boy who died in 1966 after escaping a residential school … reports. by Jeff Lamire) and animated film (aired by the CBC on 23 October) based on Wenjack’s story. Colin Wasacase, a Cree/Saulteaux from the Ochopowace Band east of Regina, was in charge of the 150 children boarding at Cecilia Jeffrey. But just as the middle class became ascendant, the intellectual left began figuring out how to tear it back down, an impulse that has since spread to virtually every privileged element in society. The same letter addressed to Wasacase’s supervisor in 1966 claims that Wenjack’s father did not know that his son had died. He was diagnosed in December 2015 after suffering a seizure… Boyden invented a scene from one of those nights in Wenjack: “The girl lies in her bed and stares at this strange boy. By 1960, the number of Aboriginal students in Canada attending “non-Indian schools” (9,479) was equal to the number living in residential schools (9,471). He carried an enormous, livid scar that ran in a loop from high on his right chest, down and up over his back. It tells the story of Chanie Wenjack, a 12 year-old Ojibwe boy who died of hunger and exposure while running away from a residential school in northern Ontario in 1966. It portrayed a gasping Chanie running out a back door of Cecilia Jeffrey looking furtively over his shoulder as if he were being chased. we have been ever given my crony Sheila put their self-titled EP cassette into a … The temperature went down to between -1 and -7°C. He has also inspired the creative works of author When the priest notices that Chanie isn’t praying with the others, he grabs him and throws him on a bed. This lesson not taught by their own but by others will by morning dissipate with the early frost. They left wearing light clothing – too light for a late October night in northern Ontario. Colin Wasacase – who was recognized as an outstanding Ontario senior citizen by Lieutenant Governor David Onley in 2012 and currently serves as a Kenora city councillor – escorted them on the long journey home. Less than two months later, Chanie died of exposure while trying to walk back home, more than six hundred kilometres away. The money raised supports initiatives to teach about residential schools in Canadian classrooms.”. at the cabin, Kelly took his nephews to his trapline. lobbied for the university to name its newly built college after Wenjack. Heard the things they do. He let them sleep on the floor. Wasacase, several of Wenjack’s sisters and his mother accompanied Wenjack’s body to Nakina, then by plane to Ogoki Post. Chanie Wenjack, an Anishinaabe boy from Ontario, ran away from his residential school near Kenora at age 12, and subsequently died from hunger and exposure to the harsh weather. Chanie was 12, and Indigenous. By train, Wasacase, the police and Indian Affairs had attempted unsuccessfully to contact him. Proceeds from the project will be donated to The Gord Downie body was bruised from repeated falls. He hurts. Twelve-year-old Chanie Wenjack died in 1966 running away from the Cecilia Jeffrey Indian Residential School. There wasn’t enough room in the canoe for Chanie. He left his beloved dogs as well, for his little sister Pearl to care for. P. Bush,“Charlie Wenjack and the Indian Residential School System,” Presbyterian History vol. Pierre Trudeau despised ethnic nationalism. Signing up enhances your TCE experience with the ability to save items to your personal reading list, and access the interactive map. The principal of the Kenora school remembered Wenjack as a boy with a good sense of humour, particularly adept at noticing wordplay. “They shake in half sleep despite holding on to a friend or a brother. Here’s how Boyden describes that night: “The three brown children buffet along the swollen rivers of sleep. Thanks for contributing to The Canadian Encyclopedia. Part II, “Every Store And School Should Be Open.”Confronting The Pandemic With Confidence, Our Next Pandemic Policy Mistake: Self-Sufficiency In All Things, Evaluating Alberta and Canada’s pandemic response, You Say You Want a Revolution? A 12-year-old Ojibway boy who died from hunger and exposure after trying to find his way home from a residential school is the inspiration behind a new project from Gord Downie. Children in schools across Canada are learning about the Indian residential schools through Secret Path, a 2016 graphic novel written by Tragically Hip frontman Gord Downie and illustrated by Jeff Lemire. Evidence of how he must have fainted and fallen as he stumbled along the rough railway tracks was found in bruises on his shins, forehead and over his left eye. He had walked a little more than 19 kilometres through snow squalls and freezing rain wearing light, soaked-through, cotton clothing. On this issue, writes Robert MacBain, the apple has fallen a long way from the tree. When he was found, his A nun in a habit pulls a half-naked boy’s ear and makes him cry in pain. On the first day of their escape, they walked for over eight hours before stopping at a friendly home for the night. Clarkin had gone to Rat Portage and Keewatin in search of the boys.”. Unit 2: Eradicating Racism Historical Significance - First Peoples and Canada Chanie Wenjack Article by Georgia Carley Canadian Encyclopedia Chanie “Charlie” Wenjack (born 19 January 1954; died 23 October 1966 near Redditt, ON). Ian Adams explained why: “Because Charlie [as he was called at that time] wasn’t as strong as the others, they had to wait often while he rested and regained his strength…Charlie wasn’t a strong boy. When they awake, though, they will feel the shame of having touched one another, if even just for warmth. There is no evidence of physical or sexual abuse to support Downie’s lyrics. Hot. A male with a large white cross on his chest drags a screaming child into a building. According to a detailed story about Chanie’s death published in Maclean’s in February, 1967, he was one of about 150 Aboriginal students who lived there while they were going to the public school. In October 2016, Tragically Hip frontman Gord Downie released The Secret Path, a multimedia project that includes an album, graphic novel (illustrations During the 1960s, 150 students lived at Cecilia Jeffrey and attended classes at schools in Kenora. Ozhaawaa. Joseph Boyden and filmmaker Terril Calder. The Kielburgers encouraged readers to donate money to the Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund, which will be used to create “Legacy Rooms” in restaurants, schools, libraries and corporate boardrooms. Again Downie writes in Chanie’s voice: “I heard them in the dark. Mike Downie, right, speaks with people who attended his presentation of Secret Path, a multi-media project he worked on with his late brother, musician Gord Downie, that tells the story of Chanie Wenjack. Grade 5 students at Toronto’s Dundas Junior Public School are among the thousands of impressionable children across Canada who are learning about the Indian residential schools through the lens of Secret Path. We don’t have the tools to fix it.” And for good measure Boyden writes: “The only thing the school he’s run away from has taught him is how to be fearful of adults.”, There is no evidence in Adams’ 1967 story or in anything else that was written at the time to support Boyden’s fictionalized account. Milloy, A National Crime: The Canadian Government and the Residential School System, 1879–1986 (1999); The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada,Honouring the Truth, Reconciling for the Future (2015). Author David Solway is not alone in thinking it won’t end until we are reduced to a new serfdom that, though partially masked by the peons’ access to 21st century gadgetry and other technology, will be very similar in social structure and oppressiveness to the Middle Ages. Twelve-year-old Chanie Wenjack left his favourite sweater behind the last time he was sent away to residential school, in the fall of 1966. They were not allowed to attend the inquest. He died as the white world's rules had forced him to live—cut off from his people. The Indian Act had been amended in 1951 so the federal government could arrange with the provincial governments and school boards to have Aboriginal students educated in public schools. Their report recognized that “The Indian education system causes tremendous emotional and adjustment problems for these children.” They recommended that “a study be made of the Someone hurt him bad. Mrs. Agnes Wenjack passed away in … It is provided with “administrative resources and expertise” through a “shared platform” operated by Tides Canada, the U.S.-funded environmental group that works with aboriginal activists and others to advocate and litigate against energy pipelines and resource development. His friends’ uncle showed him how to get to the railway tracks that would take him there and told him to ask railway workers for food along the way. His son, current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, holds very different views. The young boy looks up at him fearfully. The Fund, which has set a goal of $100 million, operates through the Toronto Foundation. The Wenjack family later learned the details of the inquest through CBC radio and newspaper letter that said his children were doing well at Cecilia Jeffrey. If the teacher in the class made a joke, a play on words, he was always the first to catch on.”. He smells like the colour called brown. The jury was composed of five local residents, none of whom were Indigenous. I can feel they are no longer mad at me for what I don’t know I did. P. Bush,“Charlie Wenjack and the Indian Residential School System,”. Where might it take us? He attended Cecilia Jeffrey Indian Residential School near Kenora, Ontario. 58, no. At the time, Chanie and the other children from remote reserves in the region were attending public schools because of a major shift in government policy. He did not mention anything reported by Adams that might have contradicted his narrative of a sexually abused victim of a residential school, including this quote from Principal Velda MacMillan at the public school he attended: “The thing we remember most about [Chanie] was his sense of humor. Chanie Wenjack, an Anishinaabe boy from Ontario, ran away from his residential school near Kenora at age 12, and subsequently died from hunger and exposure to the harsh weather. In fact he had been playing with his friends on the swings at the playground until just before they took off. Wenjack has inspired several artistic tributes, including the song "Charlie Wenjack" by Mi’kmaq artist Willie Dunn (1978) and the painting Little Charlie Wenjack’s Escape from Residential School by ​Anishinaabe​ artist Roy Kakegamic (2008). Canadian self-described (but disputed) Aboriginal author Joseph Boyden and Tragic Hipster Gord Downie took the sad story of Chanie Wenjack, a 12-year-old Ojibway boy who froze to death in northern Ontario in 1966, and turned it into a book, songs and videos that grotesquely distort the truth in order to demonize the history of the Canadian Indian residential schools system. Shortly after they arrived, they were joined by Chanie’s best friend at Cecilia Jeffrey, a cousin of the two brothers who had run away to be with them. Proceeds from the "Secret … Copyright 2021 © C2C Journal All Rights Reserved. On that first day, after walking for a little more than eight hours, Chanie and his friends reached the home of a white man the brothers knew. On 16 October 1966, Wenjack and two of his friends escaped from the Cecilia Jeffrey School during their afternoon time on the playground. 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