Hundreds of teddy bears placed in support of residential school victims and survivors
Alberta's Indigenous communities are remembering the children who lost their lives in the country's many residential schools with a poignant tribute.
Members of the Stoney Nakoda First Nation set up a display along Highway 1 on Friday.
Teddy bears and orange ribbon were tied to the fence in a show of support to victims and their families -- and to the millions still feeling the impact of the schools today.
"I know looking at the bad parts of history, nobody wants to do so," nation member and organizer Chris Goodstoney told CTV News. "But I feel that it brings justice to the victims that are still present today (and) acknowledges the suffering and the pain that they were put through. I'm hoping these bears will get people to ask questions."
At the end of May, remains of 215 children who were buried in unmarked graves were located near Canada’s largest residential school near Kamloops, B.C.
The original idea for the Alberta tribute was to put up 215 bears to signify the number of graves, but Goodstoney says he's "very confident" more remains will be found across Canada when proper searches are conducted.
That's why the tribute is now approaching 250 bears and why Goodstoney says it's growing every day.
Canada had 146 residential schools. At least 25 of them were in Alberta.
Stoney Nakoda members say more education around the country's treatment of Indigenous people is needed.
"Nobody is asking to change or rewrite Canadian history," Goodstoney said. "All we are requesting is acknowledgment, peace, respect and justice.
"Let's focus on healing our people. We all play a part in this."
The tribute is near the Highway 40 overpass.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.