UNREPENTANT - Canada's Hidden Genocide - Rev. Kevin Annett - Part 4of5

Summary

The transcript recounts a poignant narrative of systemic injustices faced by indigenous communities, particularly focusing on the horrors of residential schools in Canada. It delves into personal experiences of abuse, the struggle for justice, and the broader societal implications of these historical wrongs. The speaker calls for accountability, the recognition of genocide, and a shift in societal values to truly address and heal from these deep wounds.

Takeaways

• 😔 The speaker felt isolated and unsupported, with even family members suggesting self-reliance without acknowledging systemic challenges.
• 😡 There is a sense of betrayal and anger towards institutions like the United Church and RCMP, which were perceived as hindering justice and not adhering to their professed principles.
• 😢 The speaker lost faith in the church due to its failure to act in accordance with its own teachings and principles, particularly regarding historical injustices against indigenous peoples.
• 🏡 The residential schools are highlighted as places of abuse and murder, with the speaker urging the church and government to acknowledge these crimes and seek justice.
• 😰 The speaker and other indigenous individuals have suffered long-term trauma and intergenerational impacts from the abuses of the residential school system.
• 🙏 There is a call for the identification and proper burial of children who died in residential schools, emphasizing the need for recognition and respect for the deceased.
• 💔 The speaker recounts personal experiences and witnesses of abuse, including sexual abuse by church officials, and the subsequent cover-ups.
• 🌎 The speaker connects the abuse of indigenous peoples to broader societal issues, including environmental destruction and the loss of cultural heritage.
• 📢 There is a plea for international pressure and recognition of the atrocities committed, suggesting measures like boycotts to force accountability.
• 🤔 The speaker questions the complicity and silence of the broader Canadian society, urging individuals to confront the truth and seek justice.

Q & A

What was the speaker's initial reaction to the challenges they faced?

The speaker felt overwhelmed and unsupported, with a sense of being at the bottom and having no one around to help, including family.

Why did the speaker feel the United Church and the RCMP were against them?

The speaker felt that the United Church and the RCMP were against them because they did not want certain truths about their past actions, such as the treatment of indigenous people and residential schools, to be brought to light.

What principles did the speaker expect the United Church to follow?

The speaker expected the United Church to follow the principles of humility and justice, as stated in their mission to walk humbly and seek justice in the world.

How did the speaker's perspective on indigenous people change over time?

Initially, the speaker had a vague and distant understanding of indigenous struggles. However, after witnessing the harsh realities and injustices faced by indigenous communities, their perspective changed to one of empathy and a desire for justice.

What was the speaker's realization about the impact of historical injustices on the present?

The speaker realized that historical injustices, such as the abuse and murder of indigenous children in residential schools, have lasting effects on the present, leading to issues like substance abuse, suicide, and social marginalization.

Why did the speaker feel compelled to speak out about the injustices they witnessed?

The speaker felt compelled to speak out because they believed in the principles of justice and truth, and they could not live with themselves knowing the truth and remaining silent about it.

What does the speaker suggest as a first step towards addressing the injustices of the past?

The speaker suggests that the first step should be identifying and properly burying the remains of children who died in residential schools, and acknowledging the truth of what happened to them.

What is the speaker's view on the role of religion in the historical and ongoing injustices?

The speaker views religion, particularly Christianity, as having been hijacked by wealthy institutions and used to justify and perpetuate injustices against indigenous people.

What does the speaker think is the responsibility of the current generation in addressing historical injustices?

The speaker believes that the current generation has a responsibility to confront the truth of historical injustices, to hold perpetrators accountable, and to work towards justice and healing for the affected communities.

How does the speaker feel about the potential for change and healing in society?

The speaker expresses a sense of hopelessness regarding the potential for change, given the continued power and influence of the institutions responsible for past injustices, but also a determination to keep fighting for truth and justice.

Outlines

00:00

😔 Struggles with Injustice and Betrayal

The speaker recounts a period of feeling abandoned and oppressed, with a lack of support from family and institutions like the United Church and the RCMP. They express frustration at the expectation to overcome adversity alone and their anger towards those who opposed their efforts for justice, particularly regarding historical wrongs against indigenous people. The speaker laments their lost faith in the church due to its failure to live up to its principles, as evidenced by its complicity in past injustices. They also describe their awakening to the harsh realities faced by indigenous communities, which contrasts sharply with their own affluent upbringing. The narrative includes personal experiences of abuse and the broader impact of historical trauma, leading to a crisis of faith and a quest for justice.

05:03

😢 Echoes of Residential School Horrors

This paragraph delves into the harrowing experiences of individuals who were victims of the residential school system. The speaker shares stories of suicide, abuse, and the emotional and physical torment inflicted upon children by those in positions of authority. They emphasize the lasting impact of these experiences, which have led to intergenerational trauma and a continued struggle for justice. The paragraph also touches on the systemic cover-ups and denials by the government and religious institutions, highlighting the need for accountability and the pursuit of legal action to address these historical injustices.

10:05

😡 Unearthing the Truth of Genocide

The speaker discusses the broader implications of the atrocities committed against indigenous peoples, likening the actions to genocide and emphasizing the need for international pressure and scrutiny. They recount personal experiences and witness accounts of discovering mass graves and the callous treatment of indigenous children. The paragraph underscores the importance of identifying and properly honoring the deceased, as well as the necessity for the institutions responsible to be held accountable. It also highlights the ongoing effects of these historical injustices, such as high suicide rates and social issues within indigenous communities.

15:06

😤 The Fight for Justice and Recognition

In this paragraph, the speaker passionately advocates for the need to bring the truth about residential schools and their devastating effects to light. They express frustration with the lack of legal support and the financial barriers to pursuing justice. The speaker also discusses the silencing effects of gag orders and the importance of telling one's story as part of the healing process. They call for a societal shift in acknowledging and addressing the trauma inflicted upon indigenous communities, emphasizing the need for the broader Canadian society to confront its past and present actions.

20:07

😭 The Lasting Impact on Indigenous Communities

The speaker reflects on the profound and ongoing impact of residential schools on indigenous communities, including high rates of suicide, substance abuse, and the disappearance of young women. They highlight the need for societal change and the importance of standing up against injustice. The paragraph also touches on the spiritual and moral dimensions of the struggle, with the speaker sharing their personal journey from being complicit to becoming an advocate for truth and justice. It concludes with a call for empathy and action, urging Canadians to question and confront the injustices perpetrated against indigenous peoples.

25:07

🤔 The Role of Religion and Society in Historical Injustices

In this final paragraph, the speaker critiques the role of religion and societal institutions in perpetuating historical injustices. They argue that these institutions have often served the interests of the wealthy and powerful, rather than living up to their professed moral principles. The speaker suggests that true spirituality and morality are found in solidarity with the oppressed and marginalized, echoing the teachings of Jesus as outlined in the Sermon on the Mount. They call for a reclamation of religious values to serve the poor and downtrodden, and a societal shift towards recognizing and rectifying the harms inflicted upon indigenous peoples.

Keywords

💡Residential Schools

Residential schools were institutions established in various countries, including Canada, to forcibly assimilate Indigenous children into dominant cultures. These schools are central to the video's theme as they represent a dark chapter in history where children were removed from their families, subjected to abuse, and stripped of their cultural identities. The script mentions the horrors faced by children within these schools, including physical and sexual abuse, and the long-term effects on Indigenous communities.

💡Genocide

Genocide refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of a racial, political, or cultural group. In the context of the video, it is used to describe the systematic attempts to exterminate Indigenous cultures through policies like the residential school system. The term is significant as it underscores the severity of the historical injustices and the ongoing impact on Indigenous communities, as seen in the script's discussion of the high death rates and cultural erasure.

💡Cultural Assimilation

Cultural assimilation is the process by which a minority group adopts the customs, beliefs, and practices of a dominant culture. The video discusses how residential schools were a tool for cultural assimilation, aiming to 'civilize' Indigenous children by forcing them to abandon their heritage. The script illustrates this through personal accounts of children being punished for speaking their native languages or practicing their traditions.

💡Abuse

Abuse, as mentioned in the video, encompasses physical, emotional, and sexual mistreatment. The script provides harrowing accounts of abuse within residential schools, where children were subjected to brutal punishment and sexual exploitation. This keyword is central to understanding the trauma inflicted upon Indigenous communities and the lasting effects on survivors.

💡Impunity

Impunity refers to the exemption from punishment or freedom from the consequences of one's actions. The video discusses the impunity enjoyed by those who ran residential schools and the institutions that supported them, highlighting the lack of accountability for the atrocities committed. The script mentions how courts and governments have often failed to address these crimes, perpetuating a sense of injustice among survivors and their communities.

💡Reconciliation

Reconciliation generally means the restoration of friendly relations. In the context of the video, it relates to the process of mending the relationship between Indigenous peoples and the dominant society that inflicted historical injustices. The script touches on the need for acknowledgment, apology, and reparations as part of the reconciliation process, emphasizing that mere words or monetary compensation are insufficient without genuine recognition of past wrongs.

💡Indigenous Rights

Indigenous rights refer to the rights of Indigenous peoples to maintain and protect their cultural identities, heritage, and political rights. The video script discusses the violation of these rights through the residential school system and the ongoing struggle for recognition and respect. It calls for the protection and enforcement of Indigenous rights as a means to address historical injustices and promote social justice.

💡Suicide

Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. The script mentions the high rates of suicide among Indigenous communities as a tragic consequence of the trauma and despair stemming from the residential school system. It serves as a stark reminder of the deep and enduring impact of historical injustices on mental health and well-being.

💡Historical Trauma

Historical trauma refers to the collective emotional and psychological wounding of a group or community over time due to massive group trauma. In the video, historical trauma is discussed as a result of the residential schools and other colonial policies that have led to intergenerational suffering among Indigenous peoples. The script illustrates how this trauma has manifested in various social issues, including substance abuse and mental health problems.

💡Justice

Justice in the video pertains to the fair treatment and the assignment of deserved rewards or punishments. The script emphasizes the pursuit of justice for the victims of residential schools, advocating for the prosecution of those responsible and the recognition of the crimes committed. It highlights the importance of justice in healing and restoring dignity to the affected communities.

💡Cultural Identity

Cultural identity is the sense of belonging to a group defined by shared cultural characteristics. The video discusses the importance of cultural identity for Indigenous peoples and how it was threatened by the residential school system, which aimed to erase Indigenous cultures. The script underscores the resilience of Indigenous communities in preserving their cultural identity despite efforts to suppress it.

Highlights

Feeling of being at the bottom with no support from family or institutions.

Forces in the world trying to keep the individual down, including the United Church and RCMP.

Anger towards institutions for trying to suppress actions against injustices.

Loss of faith in the church for not living up to its principles.

Expectation for the church to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ and seek justice.

Realization of being complicit in a culture that caused harm to indigenous people.

Shocking living conditions of indigenous people in northern BC, worse than expected.

Personal transformation from ignorance to understanding the reality of genocide.

Survivors of mass murder living in constant fear and needing to hide.

Nightmares and suicide attempts due to unbearable pain from past experiences.

Sexual and physical abuse by authority figures in residential schools.

The need for perpetrators of crimes to be brought to justice and admit their actions.

The government and churches' refusal to acknowledge the residential school genocide.

High death rates and abuse in residential schools, with many children dying.

Demand for the identification and proper burial of children who died in residential schools.

The impact of residential school abuse on the current crisis of missing and abused indigenous women.

The importance of telling the truth and forcing institutions to confront their past.

The lack of legal representation and support for indigenous people seeking justice.

The need for international pressure and awareness to bring justice for indigenous people.

The ongoing trauma and its effects on indigenous communities, including high suicide rates.

The desire to not be a 'muknek' (ghost person) and to stand up for humanity and justice.

The hijacking of Christianity by the wealthy and its misuse as a tool of oppression.

Transcripts

made me feel like I was on the bottom

and that it was no one around to help me

not even family they just stood right

back and said well this man should pull

himself up by his own bootstraps they

didn't realize that there were all these

forces in the world that were trying to

keep me down that way that the United

Church did not want that PhD produced

that the the RCMP did not want that

tribunal done and they they the more

they tried what did that do to you the

more they tried I got angry at them I

said

why what the hell right do they have to

do that to me what the hell have I done

wrong

nothing I said you lose your faith in

here here's the wrong I did the wrong I

did was I expected the church to live by

its principles that was my wrong what

were its principles it claimed to be

following the footsteps of Jesus Christ

you know to seek Dre you know they have

this great statement in the United

Church to uh to walk humbly and uh seek

Justice you know in the world well I

just expected them to do that that's

what it said on paper I just asked them

to live by their principles when it had

to do with land they had stolen from the

native people and children that they had

hurt and murdered in the residential

school I simply said do what's right and

I was told time and again that it was

wrong for me to have done that you knew

that it happened before you were well

read you realized that the last 200

years 2,000 years that happened yeah but

I was complicit in it I was part of the

culture that did it and I was blind to

it you know raised in that condition of

affluence I was uh I had an idea a I

remember thinking when I was in my 20s

oh yeah native people yeah they've been

put down I had kind of a vague idea that

they were they were on the oats and they

had been attacked and murdered on mass

and all that but it didn't enter my life

at all I mean it didn't really the only

contact i' ever had with Native people

was when I was 15 uh we went up to a

village in northern BC on an exchange

and we lived for 10 days among

Aboriginal kids up there and then they

came down into our community and hung

out with us but what I saw just blew my

mind in little community of Hazelton in

northern BC just unbelievable I didn't

think people live like that in Canada

you know live worse than you did well I

mean yeah even the poorest white person

they didn't they didn't come anywhere

near the experience of what was going on

in that Village kids running around I

mean not just uh literally without

clothes and and and dying for

malnutrition but I mean you know they'

be like uh there was a little

six-year-old girl whose dad had gone

after with an axe you know she was

carrying a Mark around on her head

because her dad had whacked at her while

she was drunk and uh that was just

accept like I mean oh yeah well it

wasn't considered um there was anything

wrong with that and I thought well um

these people I think I was scared by

that I that you know and and so when I

got older I thought well native people

are uh uh kind of an

aity I don't really want to understand

them too much I mean that was all going

on me but then I realized I had to the

more I began to work with him I had to

understand what did you come to

understand well it didn't come right

away came over

time what

came what genocide really looks like up

close what it means to be at the

receiving end of a campaign to

exterminate

you what it means to be the survivors of

a of mass

murder you go around with you feel like

you're going to die at any moment you're

going to be tortured at any moment again

so all you have to do is Hide You Got to

Hide you could identify with that oh

yeah I still have nightmares but snakes

and all the kind of things that happened

to me in school and very difficult you

know sometimes I I tried ending my life

many

times cuz I just couldn't stand through

the pain that I was going through he

took each of us in there one by

one and he had had a spend over

and Vaseline with with

him he did that to each of us three

times I remember

that to satisfy

himself to enjoy

himself on little

kids I forgot how old I

was either six seven or

eight Maybe N I

forget but I

remember I'll never

forget Mr Moore he said you know what

sis he says I can't wait to get out of

this hell hole I'm going to tell

everything and then the phone went

dead uh people at resident at CER Island

always listened to our phone calls and

censored our letter years back you know

coming in and going out so I you know

like I was afraid for him but I didn't

think it was going to be as bad as it

was it turned out as bad as it

was 2 days later we got a phone call

saying that he hung himself he committed

suicide but I never ever ever um

believed in my heart that he'd ever do

that they had them walk through the gym

while Richard was still hanging

and told them that it could happen to

them my brother died because of a cattle

prod of a shock in the cattle

prod when he was five when he was four

years old they dragged him by the hair

and they cut him they cut his skin right

off his head the pastors did that with a

whip like a horse whip it was sharp with

these little blades on

it and when I was in there I heard him

scream for help and right away there was

lot of blood on the floor and they

wouldn't they wouldn't K him to a

hospital or the nurse or nothing they

what what happened then what what

happened when when I was in there I

heard him still scream for help Rick

help they're torturing me I'm going to

die so he died right away like like that

was my only he was my

only uh he was my only bre friend and my

only brother that I always loved what

would be the final solution for you what

would uh relieve your mind or give you

well you know when you're dealing with a

crime this huge there isn't any solution

ultimately because it's not as if

something like this can be healed it's

like when you look at uh genocide being

perpetrated on one group of people it

never stays confined to that one group

it always blows back on the people per

perpetrating it and I often think about

that when I look at you know what we're

doing to the land and in the environment

I mean we we destroyed people who had

been living in harmony uh with the land

for thousands tens of thousands of years

and that can't help but affect us and

the way that we live but I think that um

something that's huge you can't just

give an apology and a bit of money it's

an insult to people who have been

sterilized and seen their friends

murdered to think that that's going to

solve anything but what will begin to

turn turn the tables on this is if the

perpetrators are brought to Justice and

are able to say yes we did these crimes

yes we did try to wipe you out to I

often know working with native people

who've been through these these death

camps um called residential schools for

them they never talk about money they

never talk about compensation you know a

lot of the Native politicians will talk

about that but the people on the ground

they keep saying over and over I just

want to face the people who did this to

me I want to tell them what I think

about them and I want them to admit what

they did to me in front of the world I

think if they did that I would forgive

them if they would just admit what they

did to us is

genocide and the government has never

ever came up and um acknowledged her

mistake of residential school and to me

that's totally wrong and the churches

are hiding behind the laws of man-made

laws and uh not not admitting their

wrongs regarding residential

school and I I feel that's cowardly

they're thinking they figured they could

get away with it oh yeah of course they

get because they were the law the church

and the government were and still are

the law uh churches are exempt from from

prosecution for these things clearly for

almost 10 years the knowledge of these

things have been out in the press the

courts have refused to prosecute the

churches over these crimes time and

again judges have said uh this is this

issue of genocide is not going to be

addressed in this court they restricted

at issues like well the children

suffered a loss in education or um you

know they were they were hit sometimes

but they they refused systematically to

uh to address the issue of murder and

genocide we know that in just the

residential schools the official death

rate given by the government themselves

was 50% and if they took a boat they

claim 100,000 children went through the

schools but that's conservative uh

because they would often grab children

in whole areas not just the

seven-year-olds and up which they had to

do under the law but three four

five-year-old kids were common in the

residential schools so if you double

their number you're probably talking a

quarter of a million children went

through the residential schools half of

them who died 100,000 children alone

just in the residential schools when you

look at the whole history of the Indian

reserves and it's got to be in the

millions if they want evidence as a

seven-year-old child I witness myself

the burial of a child and um I didn't

know what was happening at that time I

was with another person another student

and he and I asked him I said what's

Happening Here I see them digging a hole

in the um in the The Orchard and they

said they're burying another one in

65 there's a bunch of us kids playing

soccer in the back field there was a

brush of uh leaves and grass piled up

and there was a body underneath it the

one of the kids kicked the ball and he

went to get it it was quite de composed

went went to what in 1960

and I was um

I found a dead boy 1967 of in between

rth Hall and K Hall native girl she's

about 16 and I I told Jay Andrews and

Jay Andrews uh Shi me out of P went to

Theo and I believe it was a cover up and

we need those children returned home

they need to be brought back and given a

proper burial and that's really kind of

a a most basic first thing that the

churches and government need to do they

they need to identify where those bodies

are and I remember we used to go dig

Graves there and they would be kids that

came from Charles camil Indian

Hospital how they died I don't

know but I know we just dug a lot of

graves there there was a lot of Eskimo

babies buried in that burial ground

which was behind the principal's

house uh just on the the side of

the staff

Garden there was four of us that dug the

grave

um myself my brother Larry Mel paty

and Albert Cardinal when my mom was

younger she her and a friend were

instructed to go throw away this this

thing that was wrapped in a newspaper

and they were told not to look into it

but they didn't listen they unwrapped it

in it was a

fetus one particular incident was

the where nun sexually abused uh well

sexually abused a a young boy

and and as a result the nun became

pregnant and and gave birth to a baby

and um after he gave birth to the baby

this was one incident that

um they they killed the baby bab and

they had

the they had the young fell dig a grave

for the

baby another incident was a a lady

watched the witnessed a

nun in Cranbrook where gave a baby and

uh had her participate and drown the

baby in the bucket of water you know and

now become a Cornerstone of some billing

in cranbook I would say that the main a

lot one of the biggest things that we're

asking for right now is that where where

are those children buried and and how

can we get them

home I mean what is there any difference

between what happened with the Nazi

Germany and and what's happened over

here key now is to get a lot of the

stories and the documentation out into

the into the mainstream through these

kinds of documentaries and uh and just

um keeping the international pressure on

Canada I think for example you know

organizing uh a international boycott of

Canadian Goods maybe a boycott of the

2010 Olympics something like that that's

the kind of thing that's going to bring

International pressure on Canada I think

that's the only way this stuff is ever

going to come out because the the the

contradiction here is that the very

institutions that committed these crimes

are still in power you know they're all

legitimate they're protected by the law

the government the churches the RCMP you

know these are mainstream institutions

and they're not going to prosecute

themselves over this they're going to

have to be brought to some kind of

international court of justice is there

one human that could be responsible for

that could be taken to court

yeah any of the uh you know the

fiduciary officers of these

organizations the Prime Minister Canada

the heads of the United Church the

Catholic Church the Anglican Church the

superintendent of the RCMP they're all

just as culpable under the nberg laws uh

you know those precedents that say heads

of state are just as liable for the

actions of murder as are the soldiers

who pull the trigger well it isn't just

the people in the residential schools

that are liable for this but you know

these officials in the churches and

government which is probably why they've

they put so much energy into denying

this stuff um uh smearing and and uh

assassinating the character of people

like me who are trying to bring out the

truth about this and intimidating native

eyewitnesses using their own Chiefs

often to do that who's going to listen

you know who's going to stand up you

know in the court case in this country

of

ours you know minimum we need is 880,000

bucks to 800,000 bucks to start a court

case and how many

lawyers in this country of ours that's

going to stand up and fight for our just

rights there ain't

any how many uh Indian lawyers we got

have yet seen one to step up to the

plate to take the fight all the way

oh I hate doing

this you hear a lot about money you

don't hear about the actual deaths of

children and this is the issue we want

to bring out now that's being

systematically buried by the government

insurance as of canidate it's being

buried by the court process which is

accompanied by a gag order if you're a

native person and you go through the

courts one of the things that is imposed

on you is a gag order so that you can't

actually talk about the terms of your

settlement or your story and yet being

able to tell one's story is a poal to

one's healing and to being able to turn

the tables of your life with shame is an

Aboriginal people who should be carrying

the shame anymore it's we the culture

that did it who have to start carrying

that cross right on right on so one of

the ways we can do that is simply by

telling the truth and forcing the truth

out of Institutions like this one they

have to come up from behind their

lawyers and their money and their power

it's hard to uh not hear the voices not

hear the cries not hear

like they're

haunting and I pray that those little

spirits that were captured in ear like

that in pain that they'd be released I

open that window on purpose to be

released out of here you

know we've lost thousands of thousands

of children through suicide not natural

death

suicide we find them every day the week

we find them down the city of

Vancouver know if City of Vancouver is

just a small part of what goes on across

Canada and the United States because we

have a lot of our first Nations people

dying in the streets of

Seattle because before the Europeans

landed our people traveled back and

forth and so they had relatives down

there and so we had um like in Vancouver

for instance you have between 45 to

60,000 native people living in the city

of Vancouver

and you're probably finding pretty close

to 90% of them are dying on the

streets you know of drug abuse not

alcohol drug abuse how do I know that

cuz I sit on the on the board down there

with a native leaon Society that's

attached the Vancouver City

police and I asked a question one time

how many of our people die or people die

on the streets of Vancouver he said

whatever you read on the paper you can

multiply that by 10 times and just last

I year before last he had 3

65 deaths so you could figure that

out and that's a direct impact of

residential

school a friend of

ours Sylvia yellow

horse from

Alberta she died because because of

alcohol poisoning she drank so

much so I believe that she was one of

the kids that was abused by one of the

staff members or a few of the staff

members oh this this really

hurts many of our

women uh young women especially are

going missing uh because now after the

residential school abuse and everything

thing is

over uh they're treating our young women

like their

disposable um nobody seems to care when

they do go missing as far as they're

concerned it's just another dead Indian

right now uh in the downtown east side

Aboriginal people are the ones that are

getting HIV they're the ones that are

getting hepatitis C we're suffering the

most from this and we just got to stop

it somehow the only way we can stop it

is by trying to get people to care right

if you had to do it all over again Kevin

would you do it again yes absolutely

because I wouldn't have been able to

live with myself if I had have known

these things and done what I was told

which was to keep quiet about it because

you know you're an accessory to a crime

under the law if you do that for one

thing why don't Canadians have courage

Kevin why don't Canadians speak out why

don't they ask questions I don't know

why are things thrown at us that we just

accept the the native people on the

coast even have a name for whites the

mukne the ghost people ones without

substance you know I didn't want to be a

m anymore I wanted to be a human being

why did they think of us as this the

natives what did they see in us that we

didn't see they saw what we had

lost I think it would be lost you know

think of what happened in Europe you

know what happened in Europe over

centuries same kind of trauma they want

in here the religious wars the the

famines the black death the persecutions

the torture the witch hunts the mass

murder of millions of people throwing my

ancestors off their land all of the [ __ ]

that happened here happened there and so

we're all trauma victims you know those

of us who come over here we haven't fa

we not only haven't faced our trauma

when we came here but we had lost

something look what you've done to to

the First Nation people you have killed

their kids you have abused their mind

you abused their bodies

physically and spiritually you

have abused this not only the land you

have raped the land you polluted the

land you

polluted the minds of of the people the

kids you've raped the kids you killed

the

kids you look at indigenous people and

say well why would we despoil our River

why would we grab more land than we need

why would there be po people in our

midst and rich people that doesn't make

any sense I mean no no Society can

survive living like that and yet it's

the virtue in our society to operate

like that so we're crazy I mean we have

become completely insane and it comes

out of that you know that that terrible

Alliance that happened when you had this

notion that a religion called

Christendom was Superior to all others

and had to conquer the world combined

with the vested interest of a a merchant

class that wanted to conquer the world

for its own profit armed with this

religion Krishna mury who was a Hindu

writer he said a beautiful thing and

that's why I think I don't believe in

religions I believe this spirit is

shared by people all over um but he said

U God hides himself in the most broken

ones Among Us and God hides himself in

the most broken parts of ourselves

hidden in there but present like a

little seed and I'd say that our worst

experiences are a way to reveal that and

for us to find a new meaning and

strength in our life because when you

lose everything for the right reason for

a just cause or for people who can't

fight for themselves when you stand with

them and lose everything you gain

everything you lose the false things in

your life that we're so wedded to the

only thing that church did for me did to

me was say I'm sorry wrote a letter of

apology some of a [ __ ] thinks thinks

writing on paper and

seeing verbally to

me saying I'm

sorry doesn't work it makes me more

angrier to think they can give me a few

dollars

and and uh that'll make me forget no

we're not all one happy family there's

this whole world like every society for

5,000 years has rest on the suffering

and and misery and exploitation of some

group of people and you're not going to

find God up in a church somewhere you're

going to find God down there in the

garbage heap with those people that to

me is a message of

Christ so why don't we get that Kevin

because Christianity was hijacked by

wealthy institutions and the rich and

it's been their servant for centuries

when it really belongs in the hands of

the

poor all

generations will declay

[Music]

God has brought down the mighty from the

throne and has lifted up the poor God

sent away the wealthy and has filled the

Hungry with good things it's like what

you get in in the The Sermon on the

Mount blessed are the poor and woe to

the rich he says that and it's kind of

like this big reversal suddenly all the

things that the powerful the government

the corporations the churches they all

think everything's on our side we've got

the world wrapped up we can go carpet

bomb Iraq whenever we want you know we

can destroy anybody we want Suddenly

It's all rsed and those things are their

downfall and the ones who they're

bombing suddenly you

realize like Martin Luther King learned

and Gandhi learned those are the ones

with the power to change history not