S5E76 | Kevin Annett - The Unyielding Voice Against Canada’s Hidden & Systemic Genocide of Children
Episode Outline, Introduction Excerpt, and Overall Summary
S5E76 | Kevin Annett - The Unyielding Voice Against Canada’s Hidden & Systemic Genocide of Children
Episode Outline:
Introduction of Kevin Annett
- *See quoted ‘Introduction Excerpt’ below*
Early Life and Awakening to Indigenous Genocide
- Kevin’s personal Indigenous heritage and early questioning of church practices
- Experiences in northern British Columbia revealing stark poverty and violence
- Transition from political science and anthropology to United Church ministry
- Ministry in Port Alberni: opening church doors to Indigenous community and uncovering systemic atrocities
Residential Schools: Death Camps and Systematic Genocide
- Residential schools’ high death rates: half of Indigenous children died there
- Testimonies from survivors of physical abuse, murder, sterilization, and cultural annihilation
- The brutal mechanisms of enforcement: "red tags," forced sterilizations under x-ray machines, and institutionalized neglect
- The role of churches (United, Catholic, Anglican) as primary perpetrators
Retaliation, Persecution, and Personal Loss
- Threats and intimidation from church officials to silence Kevin and his family
- Loss of ministry position and career due to exposing land theft and genocide
- Church collusion with government, logging companies, and tribal councils to cover up crimes
- Divorce and estrangement: church-funded efforts to undermine Kevin’s family life and reputation
Organizing Resistance: Tribunals, Protests, and Truth Campaigns
- First independent tribunal on residential school crimes (1998) and its genocide charges
- Testimonies documenting all five UN-defined aspects of genocide
- Government and RCMP backlash, smear campaigns, and disappearance of witness activists
- Aboriginal Healing Fund and co-optation of survivors with gag orders and indemnities
- Creation of Friends and Relatives of the Disappeared groups, protest movements, and direct action
Globalizing the Movement: International Tribunals and Accountability
- Establishing the International Tribunal into Crimes of Church and State (2010) with survivors from 26 countries
- Exposure of similar genocidal church-state crimes against Indigenous peoples worldwide
- Ceremony and exorcism in St. Peter’s Square, Rome (2009) as spiritual and symbolic resistance
- Common Law Court prosecution of Pope Benedict and other church leaders for crimes against humanity
- Indictment of Queen Elizabeth II for child abduction linked to residential schools
- Legal and political impact including resignations of church officials and rise of common law courts
Genocide and Its Legal Manipulation
- Origin and broad original legal meaning of genocide including cultural and biological genocide
- Narrowing of the definition by Western powers to avoid liability
- Canadian law enabling genocide prosecution only from 2000 onwards, excluding historical crimes
- Official apologies as legal indemnity rather than expressions of remorse
- Systemic denial and censorship of evidence, including official Truth and Reconciliation Commission whitewashing
Ongoing Crimes and Child Trafficking
- Continuation of child trafficking, abuse, and exploitation within institutional, church, and government systems today
- Role of tribal councils as collaborators and perpetrators within Indigenous communities
- Economic motives: exploitation of Indigenous land resources fueling profits for corporations and foreign powers
- The lucrative nature of child trafficking and the use of trauma to maintain systemic control
- Church doctrines minimizing the criminality of child rape and systemic protection for perpetrators
Tools for Change: Common Law Courts, Sovereignty Movements, and Direct Action
- Formation of the Republic of Canada as a grassroots sovereign nation rejecting colonial control
- Utilization of common law courts and citizen tribunals under international law to assert justice beyond compromised official systems
- Encouragement of direct action, church occupations, and public exposure to weaken institutional power
- Philosophical foundations of sovereignty based on self-governance and refusal to accept imposed masters
- Necessity of creating new structures while deflating the existing system, embodying Sun Tzu’s principle of controlling the battlefield
Challenges of Contemporary Activism: Censorship, Fear, and Passivity
- Impact of mass media censorship and corporate control of information flows
- Psychological and social consequences of trauma, anxiety, and propaganda-induced divisiveness
- The paradox of widespread knowledge but widespread inaction and apathy
- Importance of community, solidarity, and strength drawn from survivors and historical ancestors
Inspirational Reflections and Guidance for Activists
- The power of naivety and courage in facing overwhelming odds
- Overcoming fear through connection to vulnerable children and the spirit of resistance
- Calls for ordinary people to act locally and link globally, knowing one voice can influence many
- The enduring power of truth and spirit as forces that cannot be extinguished
- Kevin’s personal testament of resilience as fuel for future generations
Resources and Continuing Work
- *See ‘More From Kevin Annett’ below*
Introduction Excerpt:
“Today I’m honored to introduce you all to: United Church Minister turned whistleblower, Canadian Hero, father of two, published writer and author, public speaker and podcaster, documentary filmmaker, Nobel Peace Prize nominee, co-founder of the International Tribunal into Crimes of Church and State, righteous soul, and Eagle Strong Voice: Kevin Annett
A United Church minister turned relentless whistleblower, Kevin stands as a towering figure in the fight for truth and justice. For decades, this Canadian hero we get to hear from today has fearlessly exposed the dark underbelly of his nation’s history - the systematic genocide of Indigenous children in church-run Indian Residential Schools. At immense personal cost, Kevin has become a beacon of hope for survivors, a thorn in the side of the powerful, and a catalyst for global awakening.
Born with a fierce sense of justice, Kevin’s journey began in the 1990s when, as a minister in Port Alberni, British Columbia, he uncovered harrowing accounts of abuse, murder, and cultural annihilation inflicted upon Indigenous children. What he discovered shattered his world: a deliberate campaign by church and state to erase a people, with a staggering 50% death rate in the schools - a truth later confirmed by the Globe and Mail in 2007. Unwilling to stay silent, Kevin embarked on a mission that would cost him his career, his family, and his reputation, but would also ignite a movement that could not be extinguished.
In 1998, Kevin convened the first independent Tribunal into residential school crimes in Vancouver, a groundbreaking effort that recommended genocide charges against Canada and its churches to the United Nations. He founded The Truth Commission into Genocide in Canada in 2000, authored the seminal book ‘Hidden from History: The Canadian Holocaust’ in 2001, and released the award-winning documentary ‘Unrepentant’ in 2007, which shocked the world with its raw testimonies and undeniable evidence. His work forced an official apology from the Canadian government in 2008, though the establishment quickly erased his name from the narrative.
Undeterred, Kevin went global. In 2010, he co-founded the International Tribunal into Crimes of Church and State (ITCCS), uniting survivors across 26 countries to hold the Vatican, the British Crown, and Canadian leaders accountable for crimes against humanity. His efforts led to the 2011 excavation of children’s bones at a mass grave in Brantford, Ontario, and the historic 2012 prosecution of Pope Benedict and others by the International Common Law Court of Justice. Kevin’s courage even sparked the resignation of Pope Benedict - a testament to the power of his unrelenting pursuit of justice.
Despite facing blacklisting, smear campaigns, and state persecution - including a fraudulent COVID isolation order in 2021 that saw his bank account and devices disabled - Kevin has never wavered. He has authored over a dozen books, including ‘Murder by Decree’, and founded the Republic of Kanata in 2015 as a sovereign alternative to Canada’s colonial regime. Nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize and for the Order of Canada in 2021, Kevin’s legacy is one of fearless resistance against tyranny and a call to action for humanity to confront its darkest truths.
Today, Kevin continues his fight, inspiring millions to join the movement to end genocide, child trafficking, and systemic oppression. His story is a testament to the power of one voice to change the world - a voice that refuses to be silenced, no matter the cost.”
Overall Summary:
This episode with Kevin Annett is an extraordinary journey into the heart of one of the gravest and most hidden atrocities of modern history: the systematic genocide of Indigenous children in Canadian church-run residential schools. Kevin Annett, a United Church minister turned indefatigable whistleblower and activist, has devoted his life to exposing this dark chapter and challenging the collusion of church and state that perpetuated it. His story is a profound testament to courage, resilience, and unyielding commitment to justice in the face of overwhelming suppression, personal loss, and ongoing systemic oppression.
Kevin’s path began in the 1990s in Port Alberni, British Columbia, where he served as a minister to a struggling congregation situated at the epicenter of the residential school legacy. His awakening started early in life, growing up as part Scottish settler and part Indigenous descent, hearing from family and community about the cultural annihilation imposed by colonial governments and churches. Unlike in the United States, where questioning authority is more culturally acceptable, in Canada, such dissent is stigmatized, and Indigenous peoples are legally treated as wards of the state rather than citizens—an archaic status that facilitated ongoing abuses and erasure of their rights.
At Port Alberni, Kevin confronted the invisible wound of systemic genocide firsthand. Residential schools, euphemistically called "schools," were, in reality, death camps where Indigenous children were stripped of their culture, abused, and murdered at rates exceeding those of Nazi concentration camps. Kevin witnessed the trauma carried by survivors and their families but also the violent resistance from the church and state to acknowledge this truth. When Kevin raised these issues, church authorities threatened him and his family with career destruction and personal ruin to silence the whistleblower. Despite this, he persevered, drawing strength from survivors and a profound sense of justice.
Kevin was instrumental in initiating some of the earliest public exposures of residential school crimes. In 1998, he convened the first independent tribunal into these abuses in Vancouver, recommending genocide charges to the United Nations. He founded the Truth Commission into Genocide in Canada, authored the pivotal book *Hidden From History: The Canadian Holocaust*, and produced the award-winning documentary *Unrepentant*, which shocked the nation and the world with raw testimonies and corroborating evidence. His relentless activism pushed the Canadian government to issue an official apology in 2008, even as institutional forces attempted to erase his contributions and discredit his work.
Realizing that these crimes transcended Canadian borders, Kevin helped establish the International Tribunal into Crimes of Church and State. This tribunal united survivors from 26 countries to hold powerful global actors accountable—including the Vatican, the British Crown, and national governments. Their work led to unprecedented legal actions, including the historic prosecution of Pope Benedict XVI by the International Common Law Court of Justice for crimes against humanity, which contributed to his resignation—a remarkable example of civic action influencing global institutions.
Kevin faced brutal retaliation throughout his crusade: smear campaigns, blacklisting, loss of livelihood, and intrusive state persecution such as a fraudulent COVID isolation order that disabled his bank accounts and devices in 2021. Nevertheless, he remained steadfast, authoring over two dozen books, founding the Republic of Canada as an alternative sovereign entity doing grassroots governance work, and inspiring a global movement challenging genocide, child trafficking, and systemic state and church violence.
A central theme of the discussion is the sophisticated legal and institutional architecture that allowed genocide to be concealed and perpetuated. Kevin elaborates on the evolution of the term “genocide”—originally defined to include cultural and biological destruction of peoples—and how dominant powers such as the US, UK, and Canada systematically narrowed the legal definition to physical killing alone. This narrowing served to protect colonial regimes from prosecution for their policies of cultural extermination. Canada's delayed adoption of enabling legislation until 2000 further insulated it from legal accountability for crimes committed during the residential school era.
The interview pulls back the veil on ongoing injustices, emphasizing that these atrocities are not confined to history but are active and present realities. Kevin highlights child trafficking networks embedded within social, legal, and church systems, perpetuating abuses under cover of state authority globally. Indigenous governance structures, often corrupted through coercion and exploitation, play a sinister role in this modern continuation, managing resources and facilitating trafficking, all while the broader system profits enormously from resource extraction layered on stolen Indigenous lands.
Despite the pervasive darkness, Kevin's story is remarkably inspiring. He credits his endurance to an inner well of anger, love for his children, solidarity with Indigenous survivors, and spiritual conviction rooted in a warrior ethos of relentless forward movement in the face of fear and threat. Moments of symbolic triumph, such as his exorcism ceremony in St. Peter’s Square and the subsequent unprecedented tornado in Rome, serve as metaphors for how right action dislodges entrenched evil.
Kevin encourages grassroots organizing, legal literacy in common law, and creating new systems of sovereignty as means of resistance. His establishment of the Republic of Canada embodies this principle—rejecting colonial authority and enabling communities to reclaim their own governance, laws, and dignity. This vision underlines that true transformation emerges from empowerment rather than waiting for compromised institutions to act.
He warns of the omnipresent “corportocracy,” a corporate-government nexus prioritizing profit over human life and planetary welfare, driving ongoing omnicide—mass destruction beyond just cultural or ethnic groups but threatening global humanity and earth’s future. Through his extensive documentation—including his documentary *Unrepentant*, multiple books, and radio programs—Kevin invites people to educate themselves, confront uncomfortable truths, and ultimately take courageous action.
His advice to those who wish to help but feel powerless is powerful: courage is found by focusing on the helpless and voiceless, particularly children who cannot escape their suffering. Our collective future depends on individuals lighting torches through the darkness, acting despite fear, and finding strength in community and shared struggle.
In conclusion, Kevin Annett’s life and work shine as a beacon—revealing the hidden horrors of institutional evil but also illustrating the unbreakable human capacity to fight for justice. His story calls each of us to awaken, speak out, connect with others, and become part of a global movement dedicated to truth, restoration, and the defense of human dignity.
More From Kevin Annett:
Republic of Kanata: https://republicofkanata.org/
Radio Free Kanata: https://bbsradio.com/radiofreekanata
'Murder by Decree' & other books published by Kevin: https://murderbydecree.com/#books
'Unrepentant' Documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Czej73SfYJc
Contact Email: angelfire101@protonmail.com
S5E76 | Kevin Annett - The Unyielding Voice Against Canada’s Hidden & Systemic Genocide of Children