“I pass the talking stick to you”: 

Sharing, Reading, Teaching Residential School Stories


ABOUT

Isabelle Knockwood’s first edition of Out of the Depths concludes with an invitation for others to share their stories of residential school: “I pass the Talking Stick to you” (2015 [1992]: 163). While Knockwood acknowledges in “Reactions to the Apology” that the 1992 invitation was aimed at former students of Shubenacadie, the context of the new chapter added to the 2015 edition is the closing of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada and the circulation of the Calls to Action. This conference thus seeks to broaden the scope of Knockwood’s invitation by bringing together writers, scholars, educators and students to share their experiences of writing, reading, listening to, and teaching residential school stories.