Canadians Protesting Treatment of Indigenous Children Topple Statues of Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria
The move comes after shocking discoveries on the sites of several of the country’s so-called "Residential Indian schools." Found were the bodies of hundreds of Indigenous children.
Protesters in Canada took down two statues amidst a painful reckoning over the country’s treatment of Indigenous people.
The likenesses of Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria no longer stand in the Canadian city of Winnipeg.
The move comes after shocking discoveries on the sites of several of the country’s so-called "Residential Indian schools." Found were the bodies of hundreds of Indigenous children.
Canada’s Residential Indian schools operated from the 1870s to 1997. Canada’s government sent children from Indigenous communities to the most Catholic church-run schools. There they were forced to learn English customs, language, and religion.
It has been described as a form of ethnic cleansing.
The schools were founded by a man named Egerton Ryerson, and a statue of him was taken down earlier this year in Toronto.
Canada marked its annual Canada Day on July first. But there were calls across the country to cancel the holiday, using the hashtag #CancelCanadaDay.
Protesters gathered in several cities. They were dressed in orange as the color honors the victims and survivors of the Residential Schools system.
Related Stories
Trending on Inside Edition

Civil War Veterans in Previously Unmarked Graves Honored Decades Later
News
26-Year-Old Georgia Woman Dies in Skydiving Accident
Human Interest
Texas School Shooter's Behavior in Months Before Massacre Concerned Those He Knew, But Was Left Unreported
News
Father of Sandy Hook Victim Calls for Action in Wake of Texas School Shooting
Politics
Pit Bull Named Chata Is Lone Survivor of Private Plane Crash That Killed 2 Pilots
Inspirational