In 2018 Keyaira Gruben, a Mi’kmaq/Maliseet Bachelor of Social Work student at St. Thomas University (STU) in Fredericton, filed a human rights complaint against the university for no longer allowing students with
babies and young children to attend class with their children. According to Gruben, no such policy had existed prior to 2018.
In December of 2018, the NB Media Co-op sat down with Gruben to discuss the events leading up to the human rights complaint as well as the structural issues within the university system that contributed to this
human rights violation. Gruben discusses her previous experience at STU, the importance of motherhood and children in Indigenous culture, colonial violence, lateral violence, and what could be done to prevent similar issues in the future.
Shanthi Bell is a UNB Arts 3000 intern with the NB Media Co-op.