Indigenous Residential School Scandal Rocks Canada's Self-Image

Thousands died at the schools, and many were subjected to physical and sexual abuse, according to an investigative commission that concluded the Canadian government engaged in "cultural genocide."

As they learn more about their country's painful history of residential schools for indigenous children, many shocked Canadians are calling for further efforts to expose the truth as a way to move toward reconciliation. "It's definitely a turning point," said Ghislain Picard, regional chief of the Assembly of First Nations of Quebec-Labrador. "People are more responsive now," he said. "They want to know the truth" about this dark chapter of Canada's history. The details of the forced assimilation and violence that was perpetrated at these institutions had reached a slightly larger audience of non-indigenous Canadians in the last several years, partly thanks to a 2015 report.