First Nations children were not the only ones seized from their parents and forced into residential schools. In the early 1950s, provincial authorities in British Columbia took about 175 children whose parents belonged to the Sons of Freedom religious sect and incarcerated them in a boarding school in New Denver, B.C.

The action came after decades of conflict — Freedomites had engaged in mass public demonsrations of nudity, as well as arson and sabotage. The school operated for six years but the impacts on the children were longlasting. Some reported being beaten and sexually abused. As Global News reported in December 2012, efforts to obtain an apology continue into the present day.

For more about their last days, read Larry Hannant’s article entitled “Sons of Freedom” in the February-March 2013 issue of Canada’s History.