How does Prime Minister Mark Carney’s family history intersect with the legacy of assimilationist education and Indigenous policy in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories?
Mark Carney’s Election and the Shadow of History
Prime Minister Mark Carney of the Liberal Party of Canada ran and won in the last federal election in Canada. The federal election took place on April 28, 2025. He became the 24th Prime Minister of Canada. He comes from a Roman Catholic family background, particularly through his father, Robert James “Bob” Carney. He was a high-school principal and university professor who lived and worked in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, in the 1960s. This prompts a deeper examination of the historical record. One can focus on surface-level news coverage using terms like ‘culturally retarded’ based on secondary unverified sources, then miss the deeper narrative surrounding the Prime Minister’s father. Surface-level coverage, akin to broad-stroke commentary common on social media, can serve a role in initial public awareness. However, it must be approached with accuracy and care. Alternatively, one can go beyond the conventional centre-left framing in Canadian media, or disregard it entirely, as many centre-right outlets do. This analysis seeks to move beyond binary framings. Life does not come in neat packages.
Institutional Foundations in Fort Smith
Robert Carney served as the then-principal of Fort Smith Federal Day School in January 1959. It was officially named Joseph Burr Tyrrell School in March 1961. It initially offered Grades 1‑12 to pupils drawn from across the Mackenzie District. Its official name was not Fort Smith Federal Day School but Joseph Burr Tyrrell School, which primarily served Indigenous students. Federally, JBT was run as an ‘Indian day school.’ In 2019, the school was formally listed in the Federal Indian Day School Class Action (“Schedule K”). Fort Smith has a population of around 2,248, in 2021, and 63% identify as Indigenous. Today, there are approximately 280 pupils and 40 staff. Languages offered are English, French, Cree, and Chipewyan.
There was inclusion in compensation processes for day‑school survivors. The principal Carney oversaw Indigenous youth and children in the Fort Smith locale. They were housed in nearby church-run residential facilities. However, Carney did not oversee residential schools directly. Carney’s professional life was deeply rooted in his administrative work in the North of Canada, which was aimed at the local Indigenous communities. Then-Principal Carney was deeply committed to the Catholic faith based on an analysis of statements purportedly made in a 1965 CBC Radio interview. By 1965, the school had 33 classrooms, an auditorium, an industrial‑arts shop, a home‑economics room, and served Grades 1‑12.
Cultural Framing and Assimilationist Education
He discussed the program at JBT for–in his terms–‘culturally retarded’ Indigenous children. According to later newspaper summaries of a 1965 CBC Radio broadcast, Carney reportedly described the ‘culturally retarded child’ as ‘a child from a Native background who, for various reasons, has not been in regular attendance in school.’ A phrase reported in secondary sources. Furthermore, no direct evidence of these statements extant could be found for this educational piece. The language reflects terminology and some people’s attitudes of the time. I repeat: These reported claims are currently unsubstantiated in addition to the claims about his administration of assimilationist policies. Regardless, as was widely done, Indigenous children at JBT were compared to the Euro-Canadian Catholic cultural and educational standards of the time. When speaking of Fort Smith and surrounding areas, we are talking of Dene nations, e.g., Smith’s Landing First Nation (Thebacha Dene), Salt River First Nation, and Métis Communities.
These Métis communities were descendants of Dene and European (primarily French) fur traders. The principal traditional language is Dënesųłiné (Chipewyan) spoken by Smith’s Landing First Nation and Salt River First Nation. The Chipewyan people of Smith’s Landing First Nation are descendants of those from the Lower Slave River and northeastern Alberta, while the Salt River First Nation are those who signed Treaty 8 in 1899.
The Local Nations and Their Histories
As per current commentary, then-principal Carney was a principal of a federal day school and adhered to assimilationist education policies, but was not a residential school principal. He ran JBT, not the boarding facilities. However, these operated in tandem with the residential institutions of Fort Smith. Indigenous children were boarded at a hostel or residence run by the Catholic Church and then sent to JBT for day classes.
He was a bridge between Indigenous families and local communities, nuns, and clergy from the Roman Catholic Church who managed the hostels and missionary work. Fort Smith was formative for the work and life of Robert Carney circa 60 years ago. In the broader purview, Fort Smith functioned as a hub for residential schools and assimilationist educational efforts. (Roman Catholic) Church and State in Canada functioned in tandem with the colonial educational efforts of Euro-Canadians and the Catholic hierarchs. Oblate of Mary Immaculate and affiliated clergy had a strong presence with Bishop Gabriel Breynat (after which Breynat Hall was given its title) and Bishop Paul Piché leading initiatives there. The institutional aim was to facilitate the religious conversion of Indigenous children.
Church and State in the North
The accounts from former students, in addition to historical investigations, document severe abuse and harm documented in the residential schools of Fort Smith. Grandin College, though, has been remembered, as per the mixed moral history of Canadian society, for its positive mentorship and high-quality education. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission notes that Grandin College has one of the best reputations. Ethel Blondin‑Andrew credited the College for leadership training. It was founded in 1960 and became co‑educational in 1962, aiming to create future Aboriginal leaders. It was distinct from Breynat Hall when it came to sharing staff. Bishop Piché was appointed in 1959. He actively championed Grandin College for the OMI strategy for northern evangelization. Breynat Hall is remembered for significant abuses. Breynat Hall operated 1957‑1975. It was run by the Catholic Church, under federal control until 1969. Ottawa gave control to the Territorial government. The Church managed day‑to‑day operations with minimal federal oversight.
Grandin College, Breynat Hall, and JBT Compared
Survivors continue to speak out. JBT was known for mistreatment and discrimination, too. Jeannie Marie-Jewell, a Fort Smith Dene woman who became an NWT MLA, has recollections. She was made to attend it when her mother was sick. She described the supervision as ‘structured and strict,’ with discipline that some former students later characterized as excessive. Others and Marie-Jewell report witnessing sexual abuse and physical abuse at Breynat Hall. Others may have found positive mentorship and high-quality education. Some survivors had positive memories. However, Marie-Jewell stated, “At night, I remember I was too scared to look when the priests or the nuns took some of the kids out [of the dorm]. Many of these girls would return sobbing, visibly traumatized. So, what did they do with them at night? I spoke to a survivor who was there at the same time as me, and she said she was sexually abused there.” Fort Smith MLA Frieda Martselos called for replacing JBT, PWK High School, and Breynat Hall—the reason: their residential‑school legacies.
Investigations, Closure, and TRC Findings
Sexual abuse has been identified at Breynat Hall by multiple survivors. This came to light in the 1990s and 2000s during lawsuits and the TRC process. JBT’s former students recall a racially segregated and punitive environment. Girls were vulnerable and unprotected from some staff. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC), in its Final Report (2015), documented widespread abuse in residential schools nationally. Fort Smith was no exception. Therefore, Breynat Hall survivors suffered harsh discipline, malnutrition, illness, and abuse at the hands of certain clergy and staff. Breynat closed in 1975 after a fire. This ended 18 years of operation.
Robert Carney’s Academic Legacy and Its Tensions
Decades later, Robert Carney reflected on the residential school system. He wrote an article in 1981 entitled “The Native-Wilderness Equation: Catholic and Other School Orientations in the Western Arctic.” He articulates a favorable interpretation of missionary schooling. Bob Carney died on December 9, 2009. He became an academic and remained a practising Catholic. He pursued graduate studies and wrote about Indigenous education policy. In his authored articles, he emphasized what he saw as favourable and benign facets of residential schooling. Widespread public documentation of residential school abuses emerged during the 1990s and 2000s. His writings stood in contrast to growing survivor testimony and documentation of widespread systemic harm. He emphasized increased literacy and the dedication of the missionaries rather than dwelling on the abuses. Now, as Prime Minister, Mark Carney is increasingly drawn into public discussion surrounding the legacy and work of his father at JBT. This legacy introduces additional historical dimensions to conversations about reconciliation, colonial history, and the role of government in addressing historical injustices.
Prime Minister Carney and the Politics of Reconciliation
On March 21, 2025, Prime Minister Carney met with the AFN, ITK, and MNC leaders. In the context of ongoing policy initiatives, he promised to double the Indigenous Loan‑Guarantee Program and have meaningful reconciliation in economic files. On February 7, 2024, a Federal Court Order extended free legal services for claimants for day-school settlements to July 13, 2025.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen is Secretary of, and Chair of the Media Committee for, The New Enlightenment Project. He is the publisher of In-Sight Publishing (ISBN: 978-1-0692343) and Editor-in-Chief of In-Sight: Interviews (ISSN: 2369-6885). He writes for The Good Men Project, International Policy Digest (ISSN: 2332–9416), The Humanist (Print: ISSN 0018-7399; Online: ISSN 2163-3576), Basic Income Earth Network (UK Registered Charity 1177066), A Further Inquiry, and other media. He is a member in good standing of numerous media organizations.
Photo by Lotus Raphael on Unsplash
