- Details
- By Levi Rickert
BRITISH COLUMBIA, Canada — Two more Catholic churches burned down in western Canada early Saturday. The churches were located near Indigenous communities at St. Ann’s Church and Chopaka Church, which are located within an hour of each other in British Columbia.
The burnings came less than a week after two other Catholic churches in British Columbia burned down on Monday, which was National Indigenous Day in Canada.
Want more Native News? Get the free daily newsletter today.
The Chopaka Church is located on Lower Similkameen land, near the U.S. border, and the fire reportedly began at around 4 a.m.
Chief of the Lower Similkameen Indian Band Keith Crow told Native News Online on Sunday afternoon he was the third person on the scene. Two of his tribal members, who live across the street from the church, woke him up with a telephone call. He lives 10 minutes away from the church and rushed to the scene.
“By time I arrived only one wall was left standing. The church went fast,” Chief Crow said. “My members were concerned the fire would spread to their home across a street.”
The four church fires come in the wake of announcements of the discovery of the remains of 215 children in unmarked graves at a former residential school site in Kamloops, which is located in the southeastern region of British Columbia. Then, on Thursday, Chief Cadmus Delorme of the Cowessess First Nation announced the discovery of as many as 751 unmarked graves at the former Marieval Indian Residential School in the province of Saskatchewan, about 1600 kilometers from Kamloops.
Chief Crow, who is in his eighth year as chief, says he can only speculate on why the fires are being set.
“There is a lot of anger here now against the Catholic church. There is a lot of blame for what happened to the children,” Chief Crow said.
“The church burning is devastating to our community. Some of our members attended church. Memories were made at the church. There have been weddings in the good times and funerals held there in the bad times,” Chief Crow said. “Whoever did it should know it was just wrong.”
Chief Crow told Native News Online that within his community, decisions should be made as a whole. If it was time for the church to go, it should have come to a community decision, not just whoever set the fire.
“Right now, we need to be standing together to support the survivors of residential schools. It’s going to take a long time to heal,” Chief Crow said.
There were no reported injuries at the four fires and there have been no arrests related to the burnings.
Tell Us What You Think
More Stories Like This
Q+A: Journalist Connie Walker Reflects on Season 3 of 'Stolen' Podcast Investigating Navajo Nation MMIP CasesNative Bidaské with Sarah Eagle Heart (Oglála Lakota) on the Indigenous Fashion Collective
Twelve Cherokee Nation Cyclists, 950 Miles: The 40th Annual Remember the Removal Bike Ride
Leona Carlyle-Kakar (Ak-Chin), Instrumental in Securing the 1st Water Rights Settlement in Indian Country, Walks On
California Moves Forward with Pilot MMIP Program
Native Perspective. Native Voices. Native News.
We launched Native News Online because the mainstream media often overlooks news that is important is Native people. We believe that everyone in Indian Country deserves equal access to news and commentary pertaining to them, their relatives and their communities. That's why the story you’ve just finished was free — and we want to keep it that way, for all readers. We hope you'll consider making a donation to support our efforts so that we can continue publishing more stories that make a difference to Native people, whether they live on or off the reservation. Your donation will help us keep producing quality journalism and elevating Indigenous voices. Any contribution of any amount — big or small — gives us a better, stronger future and allows us to remain a force for change. Donate to Native News Online today and support independent Indigenous-centered journalism. Thank you.
