Wayne K. Spear was born in Buffalo, New York, and grew up in Fort Erie, Ontario. A Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk), he has worked for more than two decades in health and education. He is the president of Spear Communications Group, an organizational development firm. His previous books include Residential Schools, with the Words and Images of Survivors and Full Circle: The Aboriginal Healing Foundation and the Unfinished Work of Hope, Healing, and Reconciliation. He lives in Toronto.