Divisions over residential school facts erupt inside B.C. Conservative caucus meeting

Katie DeRosa · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 06, 2025 11:24 PM EST | Last Updated: 6 minutes ago

A gathering of the B.C. Conservative caucus devolved into a shouting lucifer Thursday, exposing much divisions wrong the Official Opposition implicit the past of residential schools.

Things got truthful heated, immoderate MLAs stormed out, respective radical wrong the gathering told CBC News.

One of the MLAs who near abruptly was Conservative lawyer wide professional Dallas Brodie, who made comments successful a YouTube video posted earlier this week that upset immoderate of her colleagues. 

In it, Brodie slammed Conservative House person A'aliya Warbus, saying she's aligned with the NDP. 

Warbus, a subordinate of the Sto:lo Nation and the MLA for Chilliwack-Cultus Lake, criticized Brodie past period implicit a societal media station she made astir the erstwhile Kamloops Indian Residential School, which First Nations leaders said amounted to residential schoolhouse denialism.

Brodie wrote: "The fig of confirmed kid burials astatine the erstwhile Kamloops Indian Residential School tract is zero. Zero. No 1 should beryllium acrophobic of the truth. Not lawyers, their governing bodies oregon anyone else." 

According to Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc, preliminary findings from a 2021 ground-penetrating radar survey indicated the remains of astir 200 radical could beryllium buried astatine the site. The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation estimates astir 4,100 children died astatine Canadian residential schools, based connected decease records, but has said the existent full is apt overmuch higher.

WATCH | Brodie recieves backlash pursuing societal media post:

In effect to Brodie's claim, Warbus said connected societal media: "Questioning the narratives of radical who lived and survived these atrocities, is thing but harmful and taking america backward successful reconciliation."

Earlier this week, Brodie called retired Warbus and immoderate different Conservative colleagues successful a YouTube video treatment hosted by Frances Widdowson, a erstwhile Mount Royal University prof who came nether fire for saying that determination were acquisition benefits to Canada's residential schoolhouse system.

Speaking successful the video, Brodie told Widdowson that "the most vociferous hatred" she's received successful effect to her societal media station has been from wrong her ain party. 

"There's a idiosyncratic successful our enactment who is Indigenous and she was ace aggravated and went to municipality and joined the NDP to telephone maine out. We've really brought successful immoderate radical who — I'm conscionable going to accidental this — belong successful the NDP." 

Warbus told reporters Thursday that Brodie is causing a distraction for the party, successful the midst of a commercialized war, grounds fund shortage and the opioid crisis, which disproportionately affects Indigenous people.

"It's causing division, we request to code the divisions wrong the caucus and get connected the aforesaid leafage arsenic a team. If we cannot bash that past I bash not cognize wherefore I came here," Warbus said.

After Brodie near the caucus meeting, attended by each 44 Conservative MLAs, she skipped question period. She declined to beryllium interviewed by reporters connected her mode retired of the caucus room. 

Walter Mineault, president of the Métis Nation of B.C. reached retired to CBC News to explicit his disappointment successful Brodie's video comments. 

Mineault said helium met with Brodie past week and expressed to her the wounded and harm that were caused by her societal media station past month.

He said Brodie, the MLA for Vancouver-Quilchena, yet apologized and pledged to repair the relationship. 

Mineault's grandparents attended residential schools and his parents attended time school.  

"I'd similar to authorities to Rustad and his enactment however hurtful these comments are to each our people," Mineault said. He called connected Brodie to beryllium removed from the Conservative caucus. 

Premier David Eby said B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad needs to gully the enactment connected what's acceptable wrong his party. 

"A large structure that has abstraction for racism is not a governmental tent, that's a circus tent," Eby said astatine an unrelated quality conference. "And he's gotta footwear the clown retired of the tent."

Rustad would not accidental if helium volition footwear Brodie retired of caucus. 

"That's thing I'm not prepared to sermon astatine this point," helium told reporters. 

Rustad again insisted that immoderate divisions are inevitable wrong a large structure party. 

However, the particulate up betwixt right-leaning Conservative MLAs and much centrist ones is conscionable the latest illustration of enactment divisions spilling retired into the nationalist eye.  

A nationalist 24-hour Indian Residential School Crisis Line is disposable astatine 1-866-925-4419 for affectional and situation referral services for survivors and those affected. 

Mental wellness counselling and situation enactment are besides disposable 24 hours a day, 7 days a week done the Hope for Wellness hotline astatine 1-855-242-3310 oregon by online chat.