Key allegations in Sugarcane fail to hold up under scrutiny
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The Canadian documentary Sugarcane, now streaming on Hulu and shortlisted for an Academy Award, has captured widespread acclaim. Former U.S. President Barack Obama included it on his list of favourite movies, cementing its status as a cultural touchstone. With two Critics Choice Awards to its name and a private White House screening praised by U.S. President Joe Biden, Sugarcane appears poised to leave a lasting impact.
However, as the producer of The Bitter Roots of Sugarcane, a rebuttal documentary, I feel compelled to address the glaring inaccuracies and misrepresentations that underpin Sugarcane’s narrative.
The film, directed by Emily Kassie and Julian Brave NoiseCat, tells a gripping story centred on St. Joseph’s Indian Residential School near Williams Lake, B.C., and the Sugarcane Reserve. Its central claims include allegations of priests impregnating Indigenous students and incinerating unwanted infants. While the documentary is emotionally powerful, its central premise is not supported by the facts.
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At the heart of Sugarcane is the story of Ed Archie NoiseCat, a man whose life began in tragedy. As a newborn, Ed was abandoned by his mother and found crying in the school’s garbage burner. While this event is true, the film implies it was part of a systemic pattern of abuse. In reality, Ed’s abandonment was a desperate act by his mother, not evidence of institutional wrongdoing. His father, Ray Peters, was not a priest but a man who fathered 17 children with multiple women.
The documentary also highlights a separate case involving Father O’Connor, a priest at St. Joseph’s, who broke his vows by engaging in a consensual relationship with a 22-year-old Indigenous seamstress. Their child was placed for adoption. While both stories are true, the filmmakers conflate them to create a broader narrative of systemic abuse, which is not substantiated by evidence.
Charlene Belleau, the film’s lead investigator and a relative of NoiseCat’s grandmother, would likely have been aware of these facts. Yet the documentary presents a speculative “crime board” of alleged incidents, turning personal tragedies into accusations of systemic horror.
As the producer of The Bitter Roots of Sugarcane, I have conducted extensive research into these events, but even a few hours of online investigation reveal the discrepancies in Sugarcane’s narrative. My documentary lays out these findings, countering the emotionally charged but misleading portrayal in Kassie and NoiseCat’s film.
What is particularly troubling is the scale of Sugarcane’s success. National Geographic reportedly acquired the film for a seven-figure sum, and co-director Julian Brave NoiseCat – Ed’s son – has financially benefited from a narrative centred on his family’s history. While profiting from storytelling is not inherently problematic, doing so by distorting facts about real people and communities raises ethical concerns.
The film concludes with the claim that Ed Archie NoiseCat is the only known infant to have survived the incinerator. This is misleading. While Ed’s case is documented, his abandonment was not the result of systemic abuse but a desperate act by his mother. Omitting this critical context leaves viewers with a sensationalized and inaccurate conclusion.
While Sugarcane has been praised for drawing attention to Canada’s residential school system, documentaries addressing sensitive historical topics must adhere to the highest standards of accuracy. By prioritizing emotional impact over factual integrity, Sugarcane risks undermining the very issues it seeks to highlight.
The atrocities of the residential school system are a crucial chapter in Canadian history that must be told with care and respect for the truth. While Sugarcane has sparked important conversations, its approach raises significant questions about its handling of the facts.
The truth matters. When it comes to stories that shape our understanding of history, it matters more than ever.
Michelle Stirling is the producer/writer of “The Bitter Roots of Sugarcane,” an author on Kindle, contributor to Western Standard and blogger. This commentary was submitted by the Frontier Centre for Public Policy.
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