One of the worst atrocities in Canadian history is not well known or taught and is rarely discussed.
For 80 years, between 1869 and 1948, one million children were brought into Canada from the British Isles, said Lori Oschefski, author of Orphans of the Living: British Home Children in Canada. The president and founder of Home Children Canada. Oschefski, who was born and raised in Orillia, made a presentation recently to the Seniors' Centre at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church.
Oscheski said many of these children were taken away from their parents against their parents' will, put into large institutions or work houses in Britain and then sold and shipped to Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
They were part of an immigration scheme under the promoted illusion that they were all orphans going to a better life, said Oschefski.
Prejudice at the time by the governments of both Britain and Canada perpetrated the myth that the children were dirty, diseased and little more than "garbage," said Oschefski.
Several agencies, including Barnardo's and Maria Rye, were selling the children as indentured labourers to farmers and households across Canada. Bernardo's alone brought in 35,000 children, mostly to Ontario.
Due to the "rock bottom" status of these children, 70 per cent were abused and neglected, said Oschefski who has been collecting records of the children for years. Many were whipped, beaten, raped and abused in every way possible, said Oschefski.
"A good many of them were murdered," said Oschefski.
There was supposed to be oversight of the children, but those in remote areas where often not visited, she said. Many reports of the children's condition were falsified into looking like "everything was rosy."
"Everything was not rosy," said Oschefski.
Many children died and were buried in unmarked graves. Many others committed suicide. If a child ran away from a farm, the police would catch them and send them back.
Oschefski got involved because she found out that her mother was a Home Child. She was shipped to Canada at the age of two. She was lucky to get into a loving family and get schooling as part of the family. But, she wasn't told that she was adopted until she was 18.
"It scarred her for life," said Oschefski.
There was a lot of shame associated with being a Home Child, so her mother kept it hidden. It was only very late in life that she shared it with Lori, who then began digging into records and found her mother. She approached her mother thinking she shouldn't want to know, but she did.
"I want to know everything," she told Lori.
Opposite to the falsehood that the children were orphans, both her mother's parents were alive. The children had been taken away from the single mother after the father left.
"Her children were given up because she was a single parent. I was a single parent raising three children," said Oschefski.
Oschefski said she discovered that one of her aunts who was sent to Canada was moved 20 times in eight years. She gave birth to a stillborn child at the age of 14.
Households in Canada paid $3 per child.
"It was a big money-making scheme. It was human trafficking," she said.
Money went to agencies and governments. Then the trafficked children were forced to pay for their passage to Canada when they reached adulthood. Many weren't paid for their work but if they were, it was one cent a day.
"It was crazy what they did. It was a blatant example of human trafficking in our history."
Despite all the hardship, a good many of the children grew up and were accomplished. More than 25,000 Home Children fought in the First and Second World Wars. Some survivors were decorated soldiers.
"It's a story in Canada that many don't know anything about," she said.
The story of the Home Children is still not taught as part of Canadian history, said Oschefski.
Descendants of Home Children include Ontario Premier Doug Ford and hockey media legend Don Cherry. Both their grandfathers were Home Children.
There is an estimated four million Canadian descendants of Home Children living in Canada. Many people don't know that they are among them, said Oschefski.
Oschefski is fighting to bring awareness and some form of justice to the Home Children. She is lobbying the Canadian government for a formal apology for the horrendous treatment suffered by the imported children.
She is going to a reception at Queen's Park this month. Last year she went to Ottawa to meet with Members of Parliament. She went to Buckingham Palace in 2016 as part of the project.
Britain and Australia have issued apologies, but Canada has not, she laments.
There are only two surviving Home Children in Canada, one is 109 years old and living in Vancouver and the other is 101 and living in Ontario.
Despite most of them dying, there are records for these children. Oschefski and others have built up a database with 86,500 names and information. The group's volunteers offer information for people seeking their history free of charge.
"Our country is dotted with unmarked graves across Canada," said Oschefski. Her husband found out about a mass grave at Niagara on the Lake. Investigation revealed two graves with 76 children in them, she said.
Graves were found at Park Lawn Cemetery in Etobicoke and Oschefski and her team worked to raise the money to build a monument.
"Our group is recognized around the world for what we do," said Oschefski.
She has formed a registered non-profit charity, so donations can be made. She put together a team of administrators and other volunteers to ensure the work continues beyond her time.
"I give 100 per cent to the Home Children. I'll work on this until the day I die," she said.
When questioned about how recognition and an apology has happened for Indigenous children who were put into residential schools, Oschefski replied, "We will get recognition, but we have to fight for it, too."
For more information visit the website: homechildrencanada.com , the British Home Child Registry website: britishhomechildrenregistry.com , the Home Children in Canada research site website: canadianbritishhomechildren.weebly.com or find them on Facebook: facebook.com/groups/228108373945810. Help is also available through email: [email protected]
