In an effort to reconcile and help Indigenous Canadians heal from decades of trauma, Pope Francis flew from Rome to Edmonton, Alberta to apologize in person to the Indigenous community for abuses by the Catholic Church and missionaries at residential schools. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Canada’s first Indigenous governor general, Mary Simon met the pontiff upon his arrival. 

“Right now, many of our people are skeptical and they are hurt,” says Grand Chief George Arcand Jr. As reported in Japan Today, the Indigenous community is seeking more than words as they remember those who never returned home.