Some of Marcia Brown Martel鈥檚 earliest memories are of swimming, playing and spending time with her family in Temagami First Nation near Kirkland Lake, Ont.
But by her fifth birthday, those fond recollections stopped. Brown Martel was one of thousands of indigenous children in Ontario who were taken from their families placed in non-aboriginal homes from 1965 to 1984 as part of a federal-provincial agreement, now called the 鈥�60s Scoop.
鈥淚 had a number of memories of my time there and how I felt there. And I was safe, I was secure, I wasn鈥檛 hungry, I wasn鈥檛 cold,鈥� Brown Martel told CTV鈥檚 Peter Akman. 鈥淪o when someone would say, 鈥榃e took you because they couldn鈥檛 feed you,鈥� I鈥檓 thinking, I don鈥檛 remember being hungry. I wasn鈥檛 neglected.鈥�
Now 53 years old, Brown Martel was the lead plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit against the government that alleged that thousands of on-reserve children suffered harm when they were taken from their homes. On Tuesday, an Ontario judge ruled in the plaintiffs favour -- a decision that means the government will have to pay damages to about 16,000 indigenous children in Ontario.
The lawsuit sought $1.3 billion. An assessment of damages is expected to determine the exact penalty.
For Brown Martel, the ruling is complicated. She says she鈥檚 happy by the result, but it doesn鈥檛 change what happened to her and so many others.
鈥淟ook what happened in our history. How could we ever allow that to happen to the most vulnerable people within our care?鈥� said Brown Martel, who learned later in her life that the Canadian government had declared her birth identity dead.
鈥淵ou can鈥檛 go back in time. But one can look up and go, you know what 鈥� this Canada can learn and change its ways.鈥�
Brown Martel said she grew up with little knowledge of her identity. Her understanding of indigenous culture was limited to history and social studies classes, and all she knew of her background was where she was born.
She says her childhood was spent largely bouncing from one foster home to the next. All the while, she said, she wondered why 鈥渘obody came to rescue me.鈥�
鈥淚 ended up being with a number of families in foster care with the very sense that every time I was taken to the next one, those people didn鈥檛 want me 鈥� even my own family and community didn鈥檛 want me. So I grew up with that,鈥� she said.
Tuesday marked the judge鈥檚 long-awaited decision on the case, first launched eight years ago. Brown Martel said she doesn鈥檛 鈥渂egrudge鈥� the process and insisted that sometimes, it can take years to 鈥済et it right.鈥�
Similar legal actions in other provinces are pending, and none have yet been certified to take place. In those cases, the proposed action relates to children being apprehended rather than protection of indigenous identities.
Brown Martel suggested that there are more stories like hers waiting to be heard.
鈥淚t isn鈥檛 just Ontario that this happened in. This happened across this country,鈥� she said.
Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett welcomed the ruling and said the government would 鈥渁bsolutely not鈥� take steps to appeal it. In terms of compensation, Bennett said the government intends to 鈥済et to the table as quickly as possible.鈥�
With files from the Canadian Press
