“We will be able to accommodate the request of any school survivors who would like to attend at this time,” said committee member Jasmin Lemieux-Lefebvre. The announcement follows a meeting between Indigenous leaders and the planning team, in which the two sides discussed the number of survivors in Eastern Canada who want to attend the service, which will be held on July 28 at the Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de- Beaupré, about 30 kilometers northeast of Quebec City. “We have enough room now to see that yes, we will be able to accommodate everyone,” confirmed Lemieux-Lefebvre. Jasmin Lemieux-Lefebvre, who is part of the national team organizing the papal visit, said there will be enough seats for all school survivors who want to attend Pope Francis’ service in Quebec. (Radio-Canada) Native leaders in Quebec had expressed uncertainty and frustration these last few weeks about how many places would be available for survivors. Assembly of First Nations regional chief for Quebec and Labrador Ghislain Picard, who attended the meeting, said he was pleased with the news. “The priority will be given entirely to residential school survivors, and that’s what we wanted from the beginning,” he told Radio-Canada. Space inside the basilica is limited to 1,400 seats, and 70 percent of those will be reserved for First Nations, Inuit and Métis. The Church is also creating an additional 10,000 seats outside the basilica, of which 7,000 are reserved for indigenous people. There are 1,400 seats inside the Basilica Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré and there will be 10,000 seats outside. (Claude Bellemare/Radio-Canada) Lemieux-Lefebvre said the school survivors will be seated directly in front of the Pope. “I think that if we don’t put [them in front]we will hear from Pope Francis himself,” he said. “I think he’s made it clear that his priority is to meet them.” Picard said ensuring a fair distribution of spots among First Nations in Eastern Canada and deciding who gets an indoor or outdoor spot is a challenge. He said it would be up to each nation to determine who within the community would get the coveted seats. “I think it’s fair,” he said. The assembly is now working to ensure indigenous communities have the most up-to-date and accurate information possible because there has been a lot of confusion and misinformation, Picard said.
Concerns about logistics remain
Ghislain Picard said some information about transport and logistics remains unclear. (Ivanoh Demers/Radio-Canada) One issue that remains to be addressed is accessibility to the site, according to Tania Courtois, community health coordinator for Ekuanitshit, an Innu community on the North Coast. Courtois told Radio-Canada’s Espaces Autochtones that details about transportation to and from the site remain very unclear. “We will go with elderly, sick people who need helpers and we are not enough,” he said. “We don’t know how transportation will work. It’s difficult, we’re trying to organize and help each other, but [the information] it’s blurry.” Picard echoed Courtois’ concern, saying many survivors are elderly people who need help getting around. Lemieux-Lefebvre said more details about logistics will be announced on Friday.
