It is hard to put into words what I am feeling, but I will try. Recently, a Mississaugan catholic priest decided to have some commentary on the people we’re finding in the ground, the Indigenous peoples who attended catholic run culture killing and child killing camps in crude and violent attempts at assimilation. His comments were not new or particularly thoughtful. They were not groundbreaking. They were him defending his religion by justifying the institutions that stole children and emotionally, physically, and spiritually punished them until they complied under the duress and trauma of these catholic and canadian government soaked crimes. Justifying the institutions that raped and beat and killed children in the name of their god. And also, encouraging conflict. What type of small man does this? The kind that is protected by a wealthy religion built on domination and righteousness. The catholic church has a legacy of protecting righteous, asshole men who are never held accountable so, why not be a prick?

But they educated them, fed them, and gave them the tools they needed to be proper citizens is the argument. Saved them from themselves. The individuals who believe these things enough to shout them to people during times when they are grieving big traumas need to shut up. Sit down. Be quiet.

Shut up.

These are crime scenes, perpetrated by our government and the catholic and protestant churches. The people deeply harmed by these crimes are seeking acknowledgment, justice, kindness, and an opportunity to grieve. For an institution that spouts love as one of its foundations, it continues to fail Indigenous people. The harmful rhetoric, the silence and inability to accept accountability, and the continued protectionist mentality the catholic church upholds is infuriating and ultimately, very sad. When is this group of people going to stand up as a collective and say “We have done incredible wrong. How do we make this better? We will do anything.”

That is what I expect. Nothing less.