SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
To this day, former premier and residential school survivor Stephen Kakfwi has trouble fighting back the tears when he listens to fellow survivors talk about the horrors they went through.

Former Premier Stephen Kakfwi spoke to teachers about his experiences in residential school and the importance of reconciliation during a professional development day for teachers from Sir John Franklin High School Friday. - Cody Punter/NNSL photo

Even though Kakfwi admittedly suffered a great deal at the hands of residential school staff, he said he has taken the time to attend as many of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings as possible over the past six years because he believes so strongly in the importance of sharing those stories which would otherwise be forgotten.

While Kakfwi said he felt elated as he witnessed the conclusion of the hearings in Edmonton last week, he could not help but see the closing of this dark chapter in Canadian history as just another step on the long road to healing.

So it was perhaps fitting that he was one of several people who spoke to a group of teachers about the process of reconciliation as part of a professional development session for staff from Sir John Franklin High School in Dettah last Friday.

During a gut-wrenching account of his experiences, Kakfwi shared tragic details about the effects of being physically beaten and sexually abused while he was at residential school in Fort Smith and Inuvik in the 1960s.

The abuse - which he said was dealt out by overbearing nuns, an unnamed pedophile and his father - led Kakfwi to harbour a deep-seated anger and resentment throughout much of his adult life.

"You had a premier and a minister who was wounded," he said.

At one point during the afternoon session, Kakfwi confessed that his anger and frustration led him to resort to attacking his father.

"This is the first time I've stood up in front of a group and said I hit my father," said a humbled Kakfwi.

Over time, Kakfwi said, he came to the realization that he could no longer keep his feelings to himself. He quit drinking and started talking about what happened to him to those who were close to him, including his wife, Marie Wilson.

Most importantly, he set about forgiving those who had harmed him the most.

"One day, I just said, 'I'm so damn tired of being angry,'" he said.

After the presentation, Kakfwi explained why it was important for him to share his story with those who had not experienced the harsh realities of residential school.

"Talking about the abuse and the horrors of what happened to us in residential school is hard," Kakfwi told Yellowknifer.

"But I am of the firm belief that we will never be strong again, we will never get back on our feet as Dene and Metis and First Nations and Inuvialuit, unless we tell the story of how wounded and devastated and traumatized we were."

Many of the teachers who listened to Kakfwi and other survivors throughout the day said they found it hard to come to terms with the powerful testimonies they heard.

"It's very difficult to describe," said principal Ed Lippert. "There's a lot of emotion and confusion, and a lot of guilt too ... also embarrassment and fear."

Lippert pointed specifically to the story of a younger woman who spoke earlier in the day. She had not been to residential school herself, but her parents had - neither of whom ever talked about their experiences.

She told the group about the impact her parents had on her and how she resorted to using alcohol and drugs to numb the pain of something she didn't quite understand.

"I could see the faces of many of our kids in these circumstances," said Lippert.

"For us to hear that, it gives us as teachers a whole new perspective on what the community has survived and what the students bring with them to school."

Professional development programs with a focus on aboriginal language and culture must be completed by teachers on a yearly basis in order for them to maintain their certification.

This year, the Department of Education, Culture and Employment mandated that there be a residential school component to the certification in order to coincide with the launch of the NWT's Northern Studies program, which became part of the high school curriculum last year.

"We think teachers need to know what it is we are teaching the kids," said Mattie McNeill, Yk1's cultural program director.

"This has more of an impact than seeing a video or reading a book."

The new program is an extension of an emphasis on aboriginal studies, which Kakfwi championed when he was the education minister. Before Kakfwi made it mandatory, students living in areas such as Yellowknife and Hay River were not learning about the history of the aboriginal people of the NWT.

Looking back, he said he still sees that as one of his proudest achievements.

"The students can now go to university and say, 'I'm from Yellowknife and yes I know about the Inuvialuit, and yes I know about the Sahtu, I know where the Deh Cho is, I know who the Dene are,' with pride.

"They can say, 'I'm from the Northwest Territories, I know my country, I know my people.'"

Although the process of reconciliation is far from over, Kakfwi said he is glad to that educators are taking a lead in ensuring the history of residential schools is not forgotten.

"I think Canada is going to be stronger and the North will be stronger because of it," he said.

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