'Deeply personal': N.L. residential school settlement hits home for national Inuit leader

Having grown up hearing painful stories of what his family went through at residential school, this week's settlement for survivors in Newfoundland and Labrador hits home for Natan Obed.

The president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami grew up in Nain in northern Labrador. His cousin was one of the group of survivors who testified in the class action lawsuit over compensation and an apology from the federal government.

Obed says Monday's announcement was a powerful and emotional day for him, right up there with the day the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement was signed.

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"I'm very proud for the role my family members have played in telling their stories and being able to stand up, however difficult it may be and however much ridicule they might get from the Canadian public about what they've been through," Obed said.

"To see all of that play out in the media, and to hear [my cousin Toby] say that this decision will now allow him to start healing, is hugely powerful for me. It shows that people who have gone through so much and have been discriminated against for the better part of their life, still can have hope for the future."

Obed's said his father also went to residential school. His father has since died, but Obed said this settlement gives a sense of closure for the pain he shared in his father's memories of residential school.

"This is deeply personal for me. I was always saddened that Labrador Inuit were left out of the settlement in the beginning," Obed said.

The case was launched nearly 10 years ago and went to trial last fall. Between 750 and 900 people are expected to qualify for the $50 million settlement.