Did You See Us?: Reunion, Remembrance, and Reclamation at an Urban Indian Residential School

by Survivors of the Assiniboia Indian Residential School, Andrew Woolford (Editor)

The Assiniboia school is unique within Canada’s Indian Residential School system. It was the first residential high school in Manitoba and one of the only residential schools in Canada to be located in a large urban setting. Operating between 1958 and 1973 in a period when the residential school system was in decline, it produced several future leaders, artists, educators, knowledge keepers, and other notable figures. It was in many ways an experiment within the broader destructive framework of Canadian residential schools. Stitching together memories of arrival at, day-to-day life within, and departure from the school with a socio-historical reconstruction of the school and its position in both Winnipeg and the larger residential school system, Did You See Us? offers a glimpse of Assiniboia that is not available in the archival records. It connects readers with a specific residential school and illustrates that residential schools were often complex spaces where forced assimilation and Indigenous resilience co-existed. These recollections of Assiniboia at times diverge, but together exhibit Survivor resilience and the strength of the relationships that bond them to this day. The volume captures the troubled history of residential schools. At the same time, it invites the reader to join in a reunion of sorts, entered into through memories and images of students, staff, and neighbours. It is a gathering of diverse knowledges juxtaposed to communicate the complexity of the residential school experience.

Genres: Canada, History, Indigenous

272 pages, Paperback

First published March 19, 2021

Reviews

[Geoffrey Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

From 1958 until 1973, the Assiniboia Indian Residential School housed indigenous high school students in a comfortable section of Winnipeg. For the first decade, it offered classes from Grades Nine through Twelve, allowed students to complete their high school diplomas. In the final years, it served as a residence as indigenous students were mainstreamed into high schools in the neighbourhood. This is they story of the school as told by the survivors, the men and women who left their communities for months at a time to study in Winnipeg. This school was not a house of horrors, as the treatment the students received did not feature the abuse seen elsewhere. But many of the survivors had been in grim residential schools prior to arriving at Assiniboia. However, it is also a story of loneliness, as the students were isolated from their families, communities and culture. And they had very little contact with their neighbouring community, apart from occasional forays out to shovel driveways and do other odd jobs. The survivors were left wondering, “ did you see us”? Starting in 2013, and thanks to some money raised for a research grant, three class reunions were held. The third reunion saw over 300 participants, both survivors and people from the area. Church and other community organizations pitched in and the result was a form of reconciliation.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must read, especially as we approach Sept 30 & the first National Day For Truth And Reconciliation.

[Heather Robbins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a poignant story about Assiniboia Indian Residential School located in Winnipeg MB in a suburban area. It was a high school and many survivors related their experiences and memories. There is work in process by the Survivors and other community folk to place a memorial at the site I highly recommend this book fir learning about the challenges faced by indigenous teens in a large city fir the first time.

[Gillian · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very interesting and personal examination of one Indian residential school
and the effect of such institutions on Indigenous people and their neighbours in the community.