December 4, 2010
By Jeff Parkinson
While reading an excellent story by Mark Vandermaas about why Conservatives can’t trust the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, I remembered a ‘feature’ video I had seen from CBC some time ago praising the wonderful residential school system and showing happy Native children learning about such things as Valentines Day, and “the mastery of words”.
Mr. Vandermaas’s story documents the failure of the CBC to present any unbiased reports on the victims of Caledonia and their willingness to instead provide air time to the criminals. At issue specifically is their unwillingness to run a story that they have been working on about the growing dissention in the ranks of the Conservatives as a result of Fantino joining the party.
Before we have a look at the 1955 residential school video, let’s look at a clip of one of the interviews that CBC conducted with Mr. McHale on the Fantino topic. While this was being filmed in front of Fantino headquarters in Vaughan, Julian was seen sneaking out the back door and driving away.
Presented by CanaceHD, It’s best viewed at 720p which may take some time to buffer depending on your connection. Some editing was necessary due to excessive wind noise.
While the reporter makes a point of thanking Gary for the interview and wishing him luck, they have not run the story because they can’t find a CPC MP who will comment on the topic.
Now onward to the March 13, 1955 feature extolling the virtues of the Indian Residential School. It took a bit of hunting to find, and they’ve disabled embedding for this video, but I was able to track it down on Youtube to present it here.
The video is described by the CBC as follows. “Orphans, convalescents and those who live too deep in the bush for day school: these are the students of the residential school in remote Moose Factory, Ont. For 10 months a year, these native children — some taken from their homes — start each day with a religious service before heading to classes. A CBC Television crew visits the school to salute Education Week — and here, the education is all about how to integrate into mainstream Canadian society.”
The CBC commentary states in part: “they come to school in September, go home for holidays in June. Instead of the isolation and neglect of the past, a free and equal chance for the children in urban centres. And all the while video plays of Native children doing callisthenics, playing ping pong, and being given scientific explanations for their spiritual beliefs.
It continues, “A service begins each day, the school is conducted by the Church of England though it’s maintained like other Indian schools by the Federal Department of Indian Affairs. For the oldest Canadians, a new future”
To view the full feature on the CBC website, Click here.
Although I have seen other pro residential school propaganda video’s, there is none better than this to demonstrate how little the media cares about the truth in presenting a story. If they were so clearly happy to endorse what has since proven to be one of the biggest travesties in the history of our Country, why should we trust them now to present the unbiased truth of Caledonia?
One has to wonder how much of this could have been avoided had the Conservatives heeded our warning to read Helpless by Christie Blatchford before embracing Julian Fantino.
Suggested Viewing:
CBC Feature – March 13, 1955 – ‘A New Future’
VoiceofCanada – Gary McHale to CBC: Why conservatives can not trust the CBC
CANACE Youtube Channel – CanaceHD -exclusive high quality coverage from the video vault of Jeff Parkinson
Conservatives Against Fantino – Nationwide coverage of our campaign against Fantino
FantinoGate – Extensive coverage of Fantino’s attacks on the charter & the criminal charge against him
HelplessbyBlatchford – Coverage of Christie Blatchford’s ground breaking book & tour
CWUC – Helpless – More media coverage of Christie Blatchford’s ground breaking book & tour
Amazon- Save 37% on Helpless – Caledonia’s nightmare of fear and anarchy and how the law failed all of us
JeffParkinson.ca 
I certainly appreciated reviewing these news items about the 1955 residential schools and how the government attempted to integrate Indian children into mainstream society, thus causing these children to lose their culture and nurturing from their parents. The parents of these children must have been devastated having their children taken from them for many years while they attended school and most often took to
drinking – now these children are trying to right these wrongs by granting them money for the years they spent at residential schools – money will not heal these wrongs, one can say they forgive but one cannot forget the sexual abuses many received during their time at residential schools. It will take another 100 years for a new generatiion to enjoy a normal upgringing by their own parents. I know this because I was taken as a new born from my mother and placed in foster until I was 16rs when I ran away from home – I never knew my parents, therefore, I lost my culture and native language.
I am now 77 years old and until my son began searching my roots I never knew my story, but I do now and just recently I granted Indian Status plus my children and know the name of the Band I came from. My father died a prisoner of war and is buried in the Sai Wan Cemetary, Hong Kong!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and your story Yvonne.
I do my best to relate to the people who take the time to share their thoughts with me, but I have to say I have a hard time imagining what it was like for you, let alone for the victims of residential schools.
Being Irish I can relate to having ancestors who were horribly oppressed in the past, but the only effect that has had on me is extra motivation to ensure that I never allow my rights to be trampled as theirs were.
While I don’t imagine we’ll ever know the true percentage of children who were abused at these institutions, any number above zero is unnaceptable.
While some credit is perhaps due to CBC for not simply burying this video, it can’t be ignored how astoundingly wrong they were at the time. As they have largely taken a similar one sided (and the wrong side at that) approach to Caledonia journalism I felt it was a good time to review that propaganda flick.
Jeff