Transport Canada held 'healing circle' after staff questioned Kamloops burial claims
The "healing circle" was held due to "offensive comments" made during a departmental reconciliation webinar.
Transport Canada organized a department-wide "healing circle" after employees questioned claims that 215 children were buried at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School, according to internal records obtained through Access to Information.
The documents, first reported by Blacklock's Reporter, show then-Deputy Minister Arun Thangaraj condemned comments made during a departmental reconciliation webinar, calling them "uninformed, wrong and hurtful."
"We wanted to address the offensive comments made during the learning event," Thangaraj wrote in a memo to staff. "To be clear, those comments are uninformed, wrong and hurtful."
The webinar, titled The Ugly History, focused on Canada's residential school system and was hosted by the deputy minister as part of the department's reconciliation initiatives.
According to internal emails, unidentified employees posted comments in the webinar's chat that managers described as "questionable," "vile" and "triggering." The session was not recorded, and the chat messages were not preserved. However, correspondence among managers indicates the discussion centred on claims of unmarked graves at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.
One regional director said the comments forced management to repeatedly shut down the discussion.
"I posted a message in capital letters that the comments section was now closed. I had to post that three times as people kept commenting," the manager wrote. "After the session I had people come to see me in tears."
Another executive told staff the comments had undermined the purpose of the event, which was intended to continue discussions surrounding the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
In response, Transport Canada invited all employees to participate in a virtual healing circle organized by the department's Indigenous relations team.
"In response to the distressing comments shared during our recent educational session on Canada's Indian Residential Schools, we must do more to advance reconciliation and make Transport Canada a more inclusive and safe place to work," the invitation stated. Employees were encouraged to "listen, share, reflect and heal."
The records also show Thangaraj told employees it was an "established fact" that 59 of the 140 residential schools covered by the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement had documented cemeteries and noted Parliament had unanimously recognized the residential school system as genocide.
The controversy stems from a 2021 announcement by the Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation that ground-penetrating radar had identified 215 potential unmarked graves at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School. To date, no human remains have been excavated or recovered at the site, although the federal government has provided more than $12 million to support investigative work, including potential exhumations.
Sheila Gunn Reid
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Sheila Gunn Reid is the Editor-in-Chief, Alberta Bureau Chief, member of the board of directors, and host of The Gunn Show at Rebel News. Sheila also serves as President of the Independent Press Gallery of Canada. A mother of three and longtime conservative activist, Sheila is the author of bestselling books, including her most recent release, Independence Blueprint: What Alberta Can Learn From Quebec.
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COMMENTS
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J.G. Smith commented 2026-08-01 11:57:48 -0400Are all Transport Canada employees named “Winston Smith”? -
Bruce Atchison commented 2026-07-31 19:58:57 -0400BS circle more like. People can’t face the fact that there are no bodies buried at Camloops or any other native school. And scammers can’t stand being exposed. Race sure does have its privilege here in Canada.
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Bernhard Jatzeck commented 2026-07-31 17:42:51 -0400When I was a freshman undergraduate, I attended a lecture presented by some scholar. I’ve long forgotten who he was or what he spoke about, but one thing stood out for me and I’ve remembered that for more than 50 years.
He made the statement that we in the West are Greeks. By that, he meant that our society, our culture, our way of thinking, our civilization is firmly based on ancient Greek traditions. That also includes how we determine truth, for which verifiable evidence is essential.
Without actual remains, any allegations about what happened at those schools is defamatory. -
john reynolds commented 2026-07-31 15:32:05 -0400At the time that treaties were signed with Indigenous Tribes many of them were at war with one another. The taking of SLAVES was commonplace, and, in some cases, instances of CANNIBALISM were documented.
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Those factors provide the NECESSARY CONTEXT within which the establishment of Reserves and Residential Schools must be understood.
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Without a doubt there was a concerted effort to remove the Indian from the Indian. No one is disputing that.
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You want truth … here’s the TRUTH.
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Five years have passed and ZERO BODIES have been found … GOT THAT … ZERO.
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What has happened is that Indigenous communities have received MILLIONS OF $$$. The Assembly of First Nations, the group asking for more money is not an elected body. It is a Lobby Group funded by the Federal Government.
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Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, is a Sign of Insanity. If you want to end this farce then just cut the WELFARE PAYMENTS going to these ‘Sovereign Nations’ until the so-called burial sites have been exhumed.
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WITHOUT TRUTH THERE WILL BE NO RECONCILIATION. UNTIL THEN THE DRUM BANGERS CAN SHOVE IT UP THEIR A$$E$.
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Extract
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“The Manitoba government says it will hold a hearing to determine who can participate in an upcoming inquest.”
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBQCs0lsloc
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