My next guest is Adam North Pagan he’s a 60s scoop Survivor who was taken from the Pani First Nation as an infant he didn’t return until he was 18 he was one of an estimated 20,000 children who were separated from their families he now offers support for survivors as
President of the legacy of Hope Foundation and Adam joins us in studio good morning Adam good morning Mark it’s good to be here so what does national day for Truth and Reconciliation mean for you as a 60s scoop Survivor you know what uh national day of Truth and Reconciliation is a very very
Important day for um the indigenous people uh you know in Canada and not only for our people but for all Canadians and it’s an opportunity to um you know really um you know share the uh dark chapter in Canada’s history of uh the assimilation process that happened
Uh you know with our people you know going back to uh first Contact the signing of treaties the res residential schools the 60 scoop uh the missing murdered indigenous women and girls the force sterilization of our women you know at at the hospitals you know where
Their right uh to give birth was taken away from them so um you know it’s an opportunity for all Canadians to wake up and uh and and and be open to hearing the truth you know of um you know the the history of Canada and uh the contributions of the indigenous people
You know uh that’s inclusive of the mate the First Nation in the Inuit you know so for myself it’s you know it’s been a it’s been a very very uh you know uh um tough tough time for a lot of our people because uh you know with national day of
Truth and Reconciliation it you know for our residential school survivors that didn’t come home um you know it’s it’s re-triggering you know and those that have been uh intergenerationally impacted you know by uh colonization so um you know we’re hopeful that uh you know um will be able
To create awareness that’s what it’s all about is creating awareness and educational opportunities for mainstream Canadians and settlers to uh you know to to listen to you know to the School my um my parents went to residential school so I’m a product of the residential school but what happened
To me was um um the Canadian government um you know they knew that uh that era of residential schools was going to come to a close and there was going to be a time when those residential schools would start to close their doors so um they needed to come up with uh another
Policy that continued the assimilation of our people so what had happened is in 1951 the uh government of Canada um amended the Indian Act to offload the responsibility of of uh indigenous Child and Family Services to the provinces with the mandate to go out and forcibly remove as many indigenous children um
You know from their families and put them into non-indigenous um foster homes and adoptions right across Canada and globally and um the uh you know the the results were uh you know for a lot of those children you know we’re estimating there was probably about 100,000 that were impacted you know right across
Canada from that were taken away from the Inuit the First Nation the matey and put in non-indigenous foster homes and children shelters and adoptions so I was a part of that and uh you know um you were just an infant when you were taken
Yeah I I was you know I come from you know quite a large family uh in my family there’s uh probably I think there’s 12 of us and we are all forcibly removed and taken away by uh Alberta Children’s Services in the 1960s and uh we were placed in
Non-indigenous foster homes and children shelters all across Southern Alberta and um we were placed in complete isolation uh you know so we weren’t you know um had no contact with your family no none none whatsoever and it’s really really a heartbreaking story because uh you know
My late mother uh you know my birth mother um you know As I Grew Older and I came home and uh you know and I started to talk to her about that day because I didn’t have no memory of it cuz I came home with a lot of anger resentment
Because I blamed my mother for uh the destruction of our family not knowing that there was something else you know uh that uh was imposed on on our people and my mother shared with me at the time you know that horrific day and she told
Me that uh you know when uh Alberta CH Alberto children services came to our community the P first nation in the mid 1960s and came and forcibly took all her children and and uh basically uh they gave her a court summons that she was to
Go to court the very next the very next week in Fort McLoud and um you know so she told me that you know when she was preparing to go to court she was kind of thinking that you know that she was going to get her kids back right right
But what had happened is when she went to court um she was told by the uh by the judge and the Child Welfare workers at the time when she showed up in court she said uh they told her that I’m sorry Mrs North pigan but your kids have gone
Permanent you’re never never going to see your kids again and that’s what she had to endure and my mother you know uh up until she took her last breath she had to live with that for the rest of her life you know and I can’t imagine
You know uh any mother or any parent being told that you’re never going to see your your kids again and that’s what she had to live with and she tells me she told me that that was the most devastating day that she ever had to endure in her life was knowing that her
Kids were gone and she was never going to see them again and you know that that’s the harsh reality of of what had happened because it was all about assimilation right you know and uh you know and the 60 scoop was just an extension of the residential school
Right of uh continuing that that process of taking the Indian out of the child and the thing is is that uh you know what I experienced you know um was probably just as harmful or even more harmful than what the residential school survivors had to endure and and I’m not
Saying that to you know to um you know I’m really happy that the residential school survivors were um you know acknowledged there was an apology in 2006 from former Prime Minister Steven Harper in the House of Commons to the residential school survivors residential school survivors were compensated there was the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission the 94 calls to action that came out of that and I’m happy that that all happened for our residential school survivors but what Canadians need to know is that there was something else that happened beyond the residential school and now it’s the 60 scoop now in
You were telling me in 2018 Alberta did make an apology to the 60 scoop survivors what what was that like for you to hear you know uh that was a very very emotional time um I remember uh you know how that whole process started is
Uh um in 20 you know when when the residential school survivors were uh you know getting their acknowledgement and getting their compensation and everything was happening I was sitting back knowing that I didn’t go to residential school but I knew something happened to me but I didn’t really
Understand what it was and when I used to hear of residential school survivors you know um getting their compensation and stuff like that I to sit back and I used to think well what about me what about what happened to me so what I so
This one day in June of 2015 I turned on CBC National News and uh you know and and I was listening to it and all of a sudden I heard that the former Premier in the province of Manitoba um Greg singer stood up in the Manitoba legislature and he was apologizing to
The 60 scoop survivors in the province of Manitoba and I sat there and I listened to it and I just broke down and I was and I and I was very very emotional and I thought to myself you know what um I wasn’t from Alberta I was my first nation Community
Wasn’t in Alberta I wasn’t removed in Alberta you know in Manitoba in Manitoba so if Manitoba can do that then why not Alberta so what I did is I phoned all the media Outlets including CBC and I started to talk about about 60 scoop and
What and my story and I shared that and what I did is I started to write letters to the Alberta Government of the day um talking to them about my story sharing with them my story and talking about the need for reconciliation and that wanting
Us an apology and you know what when you deal with government you know a lot of things fall on death fairs right you know and and I got lots of responses back but it was uh bureaucratic you know uh you know thank you Mr North take again for your letter and when we’re
Ready to deal with this we’ll call upon you we’re we’re sorry you had to endure but I wasn’t really getting a tangible response and it got to the point where I was writing a letter to the premier of the province of Alberta every week for two years to get the attention of the
Alberta Government you know for the need for reconciliation and um you know the thing is is that uh I had to be very creative and when I wasn’t really getting the attention of the albo of government I went to the opposition and at that time was the Wild Rose party you know under
Brian Jean and I went and met with them and their indigenous relations critic and I shared my story and what they told me they said this is a travesty that that happened in Alberta in Canada and they told me that we’re going to do something about it we and so they
Invited me back to the Alberta legislature uh on the day of the Alberta budget because when Alberta budget is released that makes big story and you know and lots of media there and uh you know and so we piggybacked on that you know and they stood up and they
Introduced us as the 60 scoop survivors in the gallery we were met with a thundering Applause it was very emotional but the Wild Rose party uh you know put really put it to the Alberta Government you know we have 60 scoop survivors here when Madame Premier are
You going to apologize to them when are you going to acknowledge you know what they had to endure and that’s what started the whole process which led to and we we were actually able to form um you know a developing a relationship with the Alberta Government and working
Towards uh an apology you know we had uh gatherings in six locations in Alberta and we brought 60 scoop survivors and Alberta Government was there and they listened to our heart-wrenching stories you know in Sharing circles and it all accumulated to a very historic Day on May 28 2018 when the Alberta Government
Stood up in the Alberta legislature and said they were sorry to the 60 scoop survivors and it was such an emotional day and it’s something that I I really really uh you know hold dearly you know to myself it’s something that will forever be with me you know and uh it
Was so good to be a part of that day and that day marked you know reconciliation Truth and Reconciliation in the province of Alberta a very historic day for our people but not only for us but for all albertans you know and uh so I’m very
Very proud of that day and you know the the but the work needs to continue Mark you know there’s a lot more work that needs to be done well well Adam I hope that you telling your story and the way you’ve told it and that whole process of
Getting to that point will impact people who who will think about Truth and Reconciliation and how important is to you and and to everybody that’s impacted because it is it impacts all of us we’re all part of it it’s not just just didn’t happen to some people it happened to us
As a society and we need to write those wrongs and face up to the truth mhm right yeah Adam thanks for coming in this morning really appreciate it okay thank you very much appreciate hope you guys have a good day today wear your orange T-shirt got it on right now yeah
Have a wonderful day tomorrow all right hope it goes well thank you Adam North Pagan is a 60 scoop Survivor and the president of the legacy of Hope Foundation
As a child, Adam North Peigan was taken from his family and placed in a non-Indigenous household. In recognition of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, North Peigan joined Edmonton AM to share his family’s story, and how he fought for an official apology — and won.
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