National native leader supports calls for 'Lost Boys' inquiry

As posted on CBC News.ca

Canada's top aboriginal leader is throwing his support behind a Manitoba man who has camped out on the provincial legislative grounds for two weeks in an attempt to convince the government to call an inquiry into provincially funded group homes.

On Monday, Phil Fontaine, Assembly of First Nations leader, visited the tent at the Manitoba legislature where Sam McGillivray has been living for the past two weeks.

McGillivray told the national chief about his experiences at the Cathedral Valley Group Foster Home for Boys, located near Grandview, Man., in the 1960s and 1970s.

McGillivray has already filed a lawsuit asking for damages for the trauma he went through at the group home, which included what he called "child labour" on neighbouring farms and abusive treatment.

He and other boys also saw the bloodied body of the group home's owner's wife, who was shot and killed by a boy at the home, he said.

McGillivray and others who lived at the homes — who now call themselves "Warriors of Lost Boys" — are asking the province to hold a public inquiry into the operation of the Cathedral Valley and other group homes.

Fontaine said he will also ask Premier Gary Doer to do just that.

"There's so much that we don't know about what actually transpired, and before we decide what steps to take to fix this, we need to get to the bottom of this," he said. "A public inquiry would accomplish that, in our view."

A healing centre or compensation could flow from an inquiry, he suggested. Other provinces may face similar demands, as it was common to send aboriginal children to group homes in the 1960s and 1970s, he added.

McGillivray said he could hardly believe he'd obtained the support of such a prominent leader.
"I'm absolutely numbed by his response," he said.

McGillivray said he intends to continue living in his tent until the province agrees to hold an inquiry.