Residential school survivor from Manitoba speaks to Sweden's truth commission about her experiences

A residential school survivor from Manitoba was invited to Sweden to speak to its truth commission, as the country is undergoing its own truth and reconciliation process.

Geraldine (Gramma) Shingoose, who attended the Muscowequan residential school in Saskatchewan from 1962 to 1971, was invited to Sweden earlier this month to speak to that country's truth commission, which was first announced in 2019 to expose injustices against the Sami people carried out by the Swedish state.

Shingoose was asked to describe her experience of living at a residential school and with Canada's path to truth and reconciliation.

"They call it the truth commission," Shingoose told CBC. "They left the 'reconciliation' out, and I commended them on that, because we can't have reconciliation until that truth is shared."

The Sami today live in Sápmi, which stretches from northern parts of Norway through Sweden and Finland to Russia. They once faced oppression of their culture, including bans on the use of their native language.

"The sad part too was that they took their sacred items, and they burnt their drums.… I could feel that connection with the Sami people when I heard that story," said Shingoose.

"Here in Canada, we were not allowed to participate in our Indigenous ceremonies and our sacred items were stolen and taken."

In 1977, the Riksdag — Sweden's parliament — recognized the Sami as an Indigenous people in Sweden.

Today, the Sami live mostly modern lifestyles but still tend reindeer, and some still wear their traditionally bright-coloured national dress. 

Shingoose said she told the truth commission how the abuse she suffered at residential school affected her mentally, physically and spiritually. She also described how the schools in Canada were set up to "take the Indian out of the child, out of me."

"They needed to understand that history," she said. "My language was taken. I was taken from my family. They were very open to hearing my feedback, and very open to hearing my experience and learning from my experience."

She also recommended the Swedish commission be led by Indigenous commissioners, as was the case for Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which looked at the history and legacy of Canada's residential school system and filed its final report in 2015.

Dr. Kim Anderson, a Canada Research Chair in Indigenous relationships, agrees that keeping "reconciliation" out of the name for Sweden's truth commission was a good place to start.

"Here, sometimes people think we jump right to reconciliation without actually addressing the truth or without people actually knowing the truth," said Anderson, an associate professor at the University of Guelph.

"Ideally, out of that, then you can begin the reconciliation process."

Beginning of a special relationship

The Sami people share similar experiences with Indigenous people in Canada due to their history of oppression and marginalization as well as the dispossession of land and culture, said Anderson.

Last summer, she took a group of Indigenous and non-Indigenous students on a field school to Sweden last summer to engage with the Sami people.

The trip was a profound experience for Indigenous students, who were able to recognize pieces of themselves on the other side of the ocean, Anderson told CBC.

"We could understand what each other was saying," she said. "We kind of speak each other's language already, and that is the language of Indigenous peoples and the similar experiences we have."

For non-Indigenous students, the trip was an opportunity to think about their own roles in reconciliation in Canada, as they were able to look at the process through a different lens. 

The field school was ultimately a knowledge exchange to help everyone involved move forward, said Anderson.

"I think it's great that they're able to have these conversations so we can share our knowledge."

Shingoose hopes that sharing her story will ultimately help the Sami people and Sweden on their road to reconciliation.

She brought gifts, including an Every Child Matters flag and Métis sash.

"The Métis sash is so similar to their colours that they use. They were just amazed by that gift," she said, adding that she received gifts like dried reindeer meat, which reminded her of smoked moose meat from back home.

The Anishinaabe elder says she learned fika while she was in Sweden — a custom where people take a break to eat, drink and reflect a couple of times a day.

Shingoose's trip marked the beginning of a special relationship, she says, and she hopes Sweden's truth commission will continue to reach out to Indigenous people like her in Canada.

"I just want them to know that if they ever need support or any guidance, we here in Canada will surely support them."