Reuters.- Protesters toppled statues of Queens Victoria and Elizabeth II in the city of Winnipeg, Canada, as anger mounts over the discovery of the remains of hundreds of children in unidentified graves at former Indian schools.
A crowd chanted “without pride of genocide” before toppling the statues of the monarchs.
The action took place Thursday, Canada Day, when there are traditionally celebrations across the country.
However, many cities did not host events this year due to the Indigenous children’s scandal, which led many Canadians to confront their colonial history. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the day should be “a time of reflection”.
Lee: Hundreds of graves discovered at another residential school for Indigenous children in Canada
Almost 1,000 unidentified graves were found in former residential schools in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, which were largely run by the Catholic Church and funded by the government.
For 165 years and as recently as 1996, schools forcibly separated indigenous children from their families, subjecting them to malnutrition and physical and sexual abuse in what the Truth and Reconciliation Commission called “cultural genocide.” ” in 2015 .
In Winnipeg, a crowd cheered as the statue of Queen Victoria fell in front of the Manitoba Legislature.
Do not get lost: Heatwave in Canada and United States kills hundreds, fires
Protesters, many wearing orange clothes, also kicked the overturned statue and danced around it. The pedestal and the statue were painted with red hand marks.
A nearby statue of Queen Elizabeth was also knocked down. She is the current head of state of Canada, while Victoria reigned from 1837 to 1901, when the country was part of the British Empire.
Follow the news about the world in our international section
Other protests in support of Indigenous children also took place Thursday in Toronto, the financial center of Canada, in the form of a march under the slogan #CancelCanadaDay (#Cancel Canada Day) in the capital Ottawa attracts thousands in support of victims and survivors of the residential school system.
There have been vigils and meetings in other parts of the country. Many of the participants wore orange clothes, which became the symbol of the movement.
In your Canada Day message, Trudeau said the findings of children’s remains in old schools “rightly made us reflect on our country’s historic failures.”. There are still injustices for indigenous peoples and many others in Canada, he added.
“Evil alcohol lover. Twitter junkie. Future teen idol. Reader. Food aficionado. Introvert. Coffee evangelist. Typical bacon enthusiast.”