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The education of Augie Merasty : a residential school memoir  Cover Image Book Book

The education of Augie Merasty : a residential school memoir / Joseph Auguste Merasty with David Carpenter.

Summary:

Now a retired fisherman and trapper, Joseph A. (Augie) Merasty was one of an estimated 150,000 First Nations, Inuit, and Metis children who were taken from their families and sent to government-funded, church-run schools, where they were subjected to a policy of "aggressive assimilation." As Merasty recounts, these schools did more than attempt to mold children in the ways of white society. They were taught to be ashamed of their native heritage and, as he experienced, often suffered physical and sexual abuse.

Record details

  • ISBN: 9780889773684 (hardcover) :
  • Physical Description: xxxvii, 76 pages ; 18 cm
  • Publisher: [Regina], Saskatchewan : University of Regina Press, [2015]

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:
Includes bibliographical references.
Formatted Contents Note:
School Days, School Days -- Hard Times -- The Passion of Sister Felicity -- The Loves of Languir and Cameron -- Brotherly Love and the Fatherland -- Father Lazzardo among the Children -- Sister of the Night -- Lepeigne -- Revenge Conclusion
Subject: Merasty, Joseph Auguste.
Off-reservation boarding schools > History.
Cree Indians > Canada > Biography.
Native students > Canada > Biography.
Indians of North America > Canada > Residential schools
Cree Indians > Canada > Biography.
Native students > Canada > History.
Native students > Canada > Biography.
Autobiography
Authors, Canadian (Indigenous)
Topic Heading: Indigenous collection.

Available copies

  • 14 of 17 copies available at BC Interlibrary Connect. (Show)
  • 1 of 1 copy available at Kitimat Public Library.

Holds

  • 0 current holds with 17 total copies.
Show Only Available Copies
Location Call Number / Copy Notes Barcode Shelving Location Holdable? Status Due Date
Kitimat Public Library 371.82 Mer (Text) 32665002014696 Non-fiction Volume hold Available -

  • Book News
    This is an "as told to" memoir by a man who spent from 1935 to 1944 at St. Therese Indian Residential School in Sturgeon Landing, in Northern Manitoba. It is an indictment of the residential school system, which author Merasty wrote for the Working Group on Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The working group sought written testimony from former victims of the residential school system. Its work established, in 2005, a $2 billion reparation fund for First Nations people who had been forced to attend residential schools. In pulling together the memoir, co-author David Carpenter corresponded and met with Merasty over several years when Merasty was past 70 years old. Merasty's stories recall some kindnesses, but are mostly about violent beatings and sexual molestation received from nuns, brothers and priests at the school. Annotation ©2015 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)
  • New York Univ Pr

    "This story of a child is heartbreaking and important. It brings into dramatic focus why we need reconciliation." - James Daschuk, author of Clearing the Plains



    This memoir offers a courageous and intimate chronicle of life in a residential school.



    Now a retired fisherman and trapper, the author was one of an estimated 150,000 First Nations, Inuit, and Metis children who were taken from their families and sent to government-funded, church-run schools, where they were subjected to a policy of "aggressive assimilation."



    As Augie Merasty recounts, these schools did more than attempt to mold children in the ways of white society. They were taught to be ashamed of their native heritage and, as he experienced, often suffered physical and sexual abuse.



    But, even as he looks back on this painful part of his childhood, Merasty's sense of humour and warm voice shine through.

  • Univ of Toronto Pr
    A courageous and intimate chronicle of a young boy's life in an Indian residential school.
  • Univ of Toronto Pr

    "This story of a child is heartbreaking and important. It brings into dramatic focus why we need reconciliation." - James Daschuk, author of Clearing the Plains



    This memoir offers a courageous and intimate chronicle of life in a residential school.



    Now a retired fisherman and trapper, the author was one of an estimated 150,000 First Nations, Inuit, and Metis children who were taken from their families and sent to government-funded, church-run schools, where they were subjected to a policy of "aggressive assimilation."



    As Augie Merasty recounts, these schools did more than attempt to mold children in the ways of white society. They were taught to be ashamed of their native heritage and, as he experienced, often suffered physical and sexual abuse.



    But, even as he looks back on this painful part of his childhood, Merasty's sense of humour and warm voice shine through.


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