'We should all be angered by it': Sacred fire lit in Thunder Bay for youth B.C. residential school victims

WARNING: This story contains distressing details.

A sacred fire is burning in Thunder Bay, Ont., on Tuesday morning in honour of the 215 youth whose remains were found at a former residential school site in Kamloops, B.C.

The fire was lit during a special ceremony held Monday afternoon at the site of the former St. Joseph's Indian Residential School in Thunder Bay.

Hundreds of people attended the ceremony, many in orange shirts, a request of the Tk'emlups te Secwepemc First Nation, which conducted a survey using ground-penetrating radar to locate the remains.

Nishnawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler said Monday's ceremony was held to allow people to express their grief and outrage.

Fiddler said Monday the large turnout was "indicative of how many people have been touched by what they heard."

"It is so profound, the loss," he said. "Not only does it impact Indigenous people, but it should impact everyone, because we are talking about three-year-old, four-year-old babies, that are part of that, of the graves that were found.

"That's just so tragic and it's just so, so sad," said Fiddler. "This is a cover-up being uncovered, and this is what genocide looks like.

"We should all be we should all be angered by it."

The event was a sombre one, and included speakers and songs. The sacred fire was lit in a teepee built on the site. 

The fire will burn until 6 p.m. on June 3, and everyone is welcome to visit it to offer tobacco or prayers, said Fiddler.

Pairs of children's shoes were affixed to the fence running along the southern edge of the property, which now houses Pope John Paul II Senior Elementary School.

Stuffed animals were placed along the fence adjacent to the St. Joseph's residential school monument.

Among the speakers at the event was Fort William First Nation Chief Peter Collins, who said the discovery in Kamloops was a "stark reminder" of the impact the residential school system has had on Indigenous people.

"I don't know if anybody will ever be accountable for the loss of those 215 kids," Collins said in his speech. "That's a problem for all of us. It's a problem for our society. It's a problem for each of our nations.

"And we must stand together to make sure that somebody is held accountable for the loss of our loved ones," he said. "They belong to a nation. They belong to a family. They had mothers and fathers and grandparents and brothers and sisters."

After the ceremony, Collins said it's important Canada works to identify the children, so their families can have closure.

"They don't even know whose kids they are, and where they belong," he said. "Hopefully this country works hard to identify those young ones, and connect them back with their families."

Support is available for anyone affected by their experience at residential schools and/or are triggered by the latest reports.

A national Indian Residential School Crisis Line has been set up to provide support for former students and those affected. To access emotional and crisis referral services, call the 24-hour national crisis line: 1-866-925-4419.