It’s been more than 20 years since Micheal Auger moved from his home on Treaty 8 territory to Vancouver in order to further his career in the film industry – and to get some space from the lasting impact residential school has had on his home community and his family.
The residential school his family members attended, St. Bruno’s, is a 10-minute drive from the Driftpile Cree Nation, where Auger grew up, near Joussard, Alta. While the school’s physical structure no longer stands, Auger, 59, says the harm the facility caused continues to affect survivors and their families.
Auger’s maternal grandparents, his mother and several of her siblings attended the institution. Their trauma became his own, he says.
But Auger, who left the Driftpile Cree Nation with his wife Petie Chalifoux, adds he is optimistic that survivors and those suffering from intergenerational trauma, like himself, can heal.
This is his story, in his own words.