Power through Testimony
Reframing Residential Schools in the Age of Reconciliation
Description
Power through Testimony documents how survivors are remembering and reframing our understanding of residential schools in the wake of the 2007 Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, which includes the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, a forum for survivors, families, and communities to share their memories and stories with the Canadian public. The commission closed and reported in 2015, and this timely volume reveals what happened on the ground. Drawing on field research during the commission and in local communities, the contributors reveal how survivors are unsettling colonial narratives about residential schools and how churches and former school staff are receiving or resisting the new “residential school story.”
Reviews
The contributors to Power through Testimony provide an important commentary on the work of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada and the limitations of its mandate.
- Jon Reyhner, Department of Educational Specialties, Northern Arizona University
Power Through Testimony provides a rich and nuanced exploration of the complex dynamics of ‘reconciliation’ that is indeed valuable in understanding the legacy of residential schools as it continues to unfold.
- Tricie Lea-Scott, Heriot-Watt University, Dubai