New Jesuit school is a bad idea, says indigenous education leader

You might think a new school would be good news in any community, but that's not necessarily the case in one Winnipeg neighbourhood. 

Gonzaga Middle School, a Jesuit private school, is slated to open in the low-income neighbourhood of Point Douglas. The population of Point Douglas is largely indigenous, and critics say the school is inconsistent with the findings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

They say that nowhere in the Commission's "Calls to Action" does it invite the Catholic Church back into indigenous communities. They argue that instead of being immersed in Catholic culture, indigenous young people need to learn about the beauty and wisdom inherent in their own indigenous cultures.

The school's principal Tom Lussier is confident the school can be sensitive to indigenous needs. 

In a neighbourhood that has poor graduation rates, Lussier says the school is just another education option for families in the area. And he notes that he — and the rest of Gonzaga — is committed to including and respecting the faith and spiritual traditions of indigenous students.

But indigenous education leader Larry Morrissette isn't satisfied. He recently penned an editorial calling for the school to be stopped altogether. He argues it is the only way for true reconciliation to proceed in the city. 

The full interview is available in the audio player above. The following portions have been edited for clarity and length. 

What concerns you about this school? 

My biggest concern is the legacy of the residential school and all the accumulative work that Judge Murray Sinclair has done on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission report and that nowhere within that report calls for the rebirth of Catholic schools within inner cities, or anywhere, to begin educating indigenous kids again. 

How much of your concern is related to indigenous children being taught Catholic doctrine and how much is related to the fact that the Catholic church was part of the residential school system? 

It's not religion per se. I think everybody has a choice of what ideas and beliefs and spiritualism they want to follow. Our concepts are based on the idea that is an undemocratic, unequal and unfair process that this one group is pursuing in one of the most heavily populated indigenous populations in Canada. It's a wave of arrogance and not really focussing heavily on what the TRC is really and truly recommending. 

Families don't have to send their children to Gonzaga. It's just another education option. What's wrong with having another option in the area? 

There's all kinds of work that has been done within the inner city around indigenous education. There have been schools that have been put together, there's other programs that for years and years and years have worked diligently to create programming that fit the value base of our people, so if you want to be fair, those are the programs that our resources should be directed towards. 

Click the blue button above to listen to the full interview.