The TRC hearing previously scheduled to take place in Calgary on July 30-31, 2013 has been rescheduled to later this Fall. Please visit the website as further details will be posted as they become available.
Share your Truth - TRC will be in Hobbema, Alberta on July 24-25, 2013.
July 15, 2013
TRC hearing will be held at the Ermineskin Jr/Sr High School Gymnasium on July 24-25, 2013.
The Commissioners of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission wish to express their sadness at the loss of a great friend of reconciliation in Canada.
June 26, 2013
The Honourable Andy Scott, who died early this week, was one of the first, highly-valued Honourary Witnesses of the Commission. In that role, he had eloquently and publicly pledged his commitment to doing all that he could to support the TRC's ongoing mission of building deeper understanding and healthier relationships between First Peoples and all Canadians. Since he was inducted as a TRC Honourary Witness in October 2011, Mr. Scott worked tirelessly to that purpose, initiating and supporting a number of empowering community-based projects in his New Brunswick region, especially in support and encouragement of youth and education. In the process, Andy also received great personal enrichment from such efforts. He recently told us that his engagement with Indian Residential School Survivors in recent years had made him much more deeply aware of issues facing Aboriginal Peoples and communities than he had ever been before, even as former federal Minister of Indian Affairs.
During his past several months of illness, he acknowledged with loving gratitude the particular care, support and deep healing he had experienced from Aboriginal friends and communities.
On behalf of the staff and associates of the TRC - and on behalf of the circle of TRC Honourary Witnesses who have shared a revered place in that circle with Andy Scott - we honour Andy, as we acknowledge with great appreciation and respect his efforts to advance the ongoing cause of respectful relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians.
To Andy's family and wide circle of friends, we offer our condolences, and share in your sense of great loss.
TRC Commissioners Murray Sinclair Wilton Littlechild Marie Wilson
Share your Truth - TRC will be in High Level, Alberta on July 3-4, 2013.
June 25, 2013
TRC hearing will be held at the High Level Frienship Centre on July 3-4, 2013. Click here for more information.
Share your Truth - TRC announces hearings in Terrace, BC
June 24, 2013
Commissioner Marie Wilson will be in Terrace, BC on June 25 and 26 to hear Survivor statements. Click here for more information.
City of Vancouver Proclaims Year of Reconciliation
June 20, 2013
The City of Vancouver is the first municipality in Canada to proclaim June 21, 2013 to June 20, 2014 as the Year of Reconciliation. Read more...
Chief Wilton Littlechild to speak at ENGOs and First Nations: A View of the Horizon and Reconciliation panel in Toronto on June 27.
TRC Acknowledges Passing of Elijah Harper, Well Respected Aboriginal Leader, Former Manitoba MLA, Federal MP and a Residential School Survivor.
May 17, 2013
The TRC extends condolences to the family and friends of Elijah Harper of Red Sucker Lake reserve in Northern Manitoba. Elijah was 64. He is most remembered for raising a single eagle feather as he took a stand in the Manitoba Legislature in 1990 against the Meech Lake Accord.
Elijah was a Survivor of Norway House, Brandon and Birtle residential schools in Manitoba. In 2010, he participated in the TRC’s Manitoba National Event.
He was known and recognized for work on behalf of his people and in bringing Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples together.
TO REUNITE; TO HONOUR; TO WITNESS
UNIQUE EXHIBIT OF CHILDREN'S PAINTINGS OPENS MAY 8 AT LEGACY ART GALLERY, UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA
To Reunite; to Honour; to Witness is a collection of vibrant and powerful paintings by children who attended the Alberni Indian Residential School in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
Created in an extra-curricular art class run by artist Robert Aller, they were bequeathed by Aller to the University of Victoria, and have become the focus of an ongoing Elder, Survivor and community-led research project through UVic’s Department of Anthropology.
Native Residential Schools in Quebec - Legacies for Research, April 18-19, Université de Montréal
The workshop will examine the little known history of residential schools in Quebec and contextualize these institutions within the national framework of the colonial system. Academics, members of First Nations’ and Inuit communities, and survivors are invited to participate. The conference will emphasize the sharing of knowledge between all participants and no one form of knowledge will be prioritized.
Date: April 18-19
Location: Université du Montréal, Pav. 7077 ave du Parc Rooms: 536 and 3022 Click here for workshop schedule and speaker bios.
Time to Reveal all Details on Lost, Young Native Lives - PofV by Greg Van Moorsel, The London Free Press
February 22, 2013
"... children’s graves command our attention in cemeteries because we instinctively feel the incongruity of young lives cut short before they have a chance to leave a mark." Read more...
TRC Commissioners acknowledge passing of Marius Tungilik – Inuit leader and public servant.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) acknowledges the recent passing of Marius Tungalik, a trailblazer in the struggle for recognition of Inuit residential school Survivors, and extends its condolences to Tungalik’s family and friends.
A memorial service will be held at the Frobisher Inn, Koojesse Room, in Iqaluit on Saturday, February 2 at 3 p.m.
Hockey enables Indian Residential School student Saul Indian Horse to "release himself from his own story" in Richard Wagamese's acclaimed novel Indian Horse. LISTEN to Wagamese discuss his character's life and his own on CBC Radio's The Next Chapter with Shelagh Rogers.
Indian Horse is a contender in Canada Reads 2013.
TRC Commissioners Issue Statement on Eve of Historic Meeting
January 10, 2013
The Commissioners of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) issued a public statement today in advance of the January 11 meeting between representatives of the Federal Government and the Assembly of First Nations. Read the statement...
Whitehorse to Host Public Truth and Reconciliation Gathering January 14-15
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) and the Council of Yukon First Nations (CYFN) will co-host a two-day regional event in Whitehorse Monday, January 14 and Tuesday, January 15. Everyone is invited to attend: First Nations and non-First Nations. Read more...
TRC Acknowledges Passing of Randall Bennett, Settlement Agreement Court Monitor
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) extends condolences to the family and friends of Randall Bennett, 52, of Toronto. Randy was the court monitor for the 2007 Indian Residential School Settlement Agreement, which led to the creation of the TRC. He died suddenly on January 3, leaving behind many close friends and associates. A celebration of Randy's life will be held at Woodbine Racetrack, 555 Rexdale Blvd. in Toronto, on January 9 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
The Commissioners of the TRC sadly acknowledge the passing early December 23 of Peter Kelly (Tobasonakwut).
Peter died at home with his family nearby, after fighting cancer for a number of years. Peter and his brother Fred endorsed the appointments of the Commissioners through the "Lifting Up" ceremony in the summer of 2009 on behalf of Survivors and the Assembly of First Nations.
Peter had been a Chief of his community of Sabaskong First Nation in Northwest Ontario, and a Grand Chief of Treaty 3. In his later years he came to be respected for his traditional knowledge and wisdom, and traveled to Rome with former AFN National Chief Phil Fontaine to meet with the Pope and discuss the Catholic Church's role in Indian Residential Schools. His was a strong voice for Survivors and a warm, encouraging one for the many students and other young people he influenced. He was scheduled to address those assembled at the Idle No More gathering in Ottawa on December 21, but his condition prevented him from traveling.
A scholarship has been created in his honour at the University of Winnipeg where Peter was a teacher and resident Elder for a number of years.
A memorial service was held in Winnipeg on Thursday December 27 and a funeral service in his home community on Saturday December 29.
Ontario Superior Court of Justice to Hear TRC Reference December 20 and 21
December 19, 2012
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice will consider a reference from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) on Thursday, December 20 and Friday, December 21. The reference concerns Canada’s obligation under the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement (IRSSA) to provide documents to the TRC. Read more...
Listen to the TRC on CBC Radio's The Current
December 14, 2012
The TRC is seeking guidance from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on its mandate to collect documents from the Government of Canada. TRC Executive Director Kimberly Murray explains why and what’s at stake on CBC’s The Current. Listen...
TRC and Reconciliation Canada Sign a Joint Statement of Collaboration
December 5, 2012
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada and Reconciliation Canada have signed a joint statement outlining how the two organizations will work collaboratively to advance their shared goal of promoting reconciliation in events leading up to the Commission's BC National Event in Vancouver from September 18 to 21, 2013.
The TRC will hold hearings throughout BC prior to the BC National Event. Reconciliation Canada, a not-for-profit group, will hold a number of events including reconciliation dialogue circles, an All Nations Canoe Gathering, a gala evening at BC Place and a Walk for Reconciliation.
Uncomfortable truths: Dr. Marie Wilson on the history of residential schools in Canada
December 6, 2012 | By Jonathan Sas on rabble.ca
"The indigenous capacity for forgiveness and reconciliation is almost beyond belief." Few Canadians can speak with a genuine understanding of that capacity. Dr. Marie Wilson, who sits on Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), is one of them. Read more...
TRC Seeks Missing Archival Documents
December 4, 2012
Julian Folconer, TRC Lawyer on CTV News. Click here to see the full interview
Truth and Reconciliation Commission Makes Reference to Court
December 3, 2012
On December 20 and 21, 2012, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) will make a reference to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice to interpret the TRC’s mandate regarding the collection of documents from the Government of Canada under the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement (IRSSA). Read more
Charlie Hunter Scholarship
November 15, 2012
Algoma University together with Shingwauk School and Shigwauk Alumni Association jointly announced a new scholarship fund on Nov. 7, 2012.
The Charlie Hunter Scholarship will be awarded to one male and one female student each year starting February, 2013. It will be awarded to students who are deserving and who are descendants of survivors of the residential school system.
The scholarship was named after Charlie Hunter who died at St Anne's residential school when he was 13. His remains were recently repatriated to his home community after more than 35 years of lobbying by his family.
Saskatchewan Inmates to Make Statements to
TRC November 8, 9
November 6, 2012
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) will visit a federal correctional institution for the first time on November 8 and 9, when it gathers statements from inmates of the Saskatchewan Penitentiary and Riverbend Institution in Prince Albert. Read more
MANITOBA- Lieutenant-Governor to Host Truth and Reconciliation Event at Government House
November 5, 2012
Lt.-Gov. Philip S. Lee, in partnership with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the University of Manitoba, will host the “Revitalizing Reconciliation Event in Manitoba – A Cross Cultural Dialogue” at Government House, 10 Kennedy St. on Tuesday, Nov. 6 at 10 a.m. Read more
Compelled to Remember
November 1, 2012
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs co-present Compelled to Remember during the 32nd Annual Holocaust Education Week, Sunday, November 4, 2012, from 3:00pm to 4:30pm at the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto. Read more | Media release
LISTEN!Justice Murray Sinclair on CBC Radio's Definitely Not the Opera
October 22, 2012
Justice Murray Sinclair talks with Sook-Yin Lee about his job as Chair of the TRC on CBC's Definitely Not The Opera. Listen to their conversation.
Kateri Takakwitha Canonized
October 22, 2012
On the occasion of the sainthood of Kateri Tekakwitha of the Mohawks, the TRC recognizes the significance of the event and its importance to the many survivors of Indian Residential Schools who follow the Catholic faith. In addition we recognize the significance of the event to the growth of the Church and its willingness to show respect and honour to an important Aboriginal figure.
TRC Honourary Witnesses to receive honours from University of Victoria
October 17, 2012
The University of Victoria sits on Coast Salish territory, making it fitting that two of this year's honorary doctorates will go to Lt.-Gov. Steven Point and Gwendolyn Point, who are known for their efforts fostering reconciliation between indigenous and settler British Columbians and for advancements in education for First Nations students. Read more
TRC Chair and Archbishop Desmond Tutu to share stage at We Day Vancouver
October 12, 2012
TRC Chair Justice Murray Sinclair and Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa were featured speakers at We Day Vancouver on Thursday, October 18. Archbishop Tutu chaired South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission and was an early supporter of the TRC in Canada. See his letter to Justice Sinclair in May 2010, just before the TRC’s first National Event in Winnipeg.
Vancouver Proclaims "Reconciliation Week"
October 3, 2012
Vancouver mayor Gregor Robertson recently proclaimed the week of October 1, 2012 to be Reconciliation Week in that city. To read the entire proclamation, click here.
WORLD PREMIERE - We Were Children
September 19, 2012
Eagle Vision & Entertainment One, in co-production with the National Film Board of Canada present the world premiere of the film We Were Children at the Vancouver International Film Festiival.
Premiere dates and venues
October 2, 9:15pm
Empire Granville 7 Cinemas, Theatre #4
October 3, 10:45am
Pacific Cinémathèque
Written by Jason Sherman and directed by Timothy Wolochatiuk, the film tells the story of Lyna Hart and Glen Anaquod. As young children Lyna and Glen were taken from their homes and placed in church-run boarding schools. The trauma of this experience was made worse by years of untold physical, sexual and emotional abuse, the effects of which persist in their adult lives. In this emotional film, the profound impact of the Canadian government's residential school system is conveyed unflinchingly through the eyes of two children who were forced to face hardships beyond their years. We Were Children gives voice to a national tragedy and demonstrates the incredible resilience of the human spirit.
Inuit Sub Commission Heading to Gjoa Haven, NU
September 10, 2012
The Inuit Sub Commission will be in Gjoa Haven, NU on September 19 and 20. The public hearing will take place on the 19th, while private statements will be recorded all day on the 20th. Click here for details
The hearings were requested by the community and conincides with the Conference on Empowering Women organized by the Kitikmeot Inuit Association. The Inuit Sub Commission has been working closely with the community for some time to plan the event.
Many children from Gjoa Haven were sent far away from their families to attend Residential School in Inuvik and lived in Grollier and Stringer Halls.
Inuit Sub Commission Co- Directors Robert Watt and Jennifer Hunt-Poitras will be on site for the public and private hearings.
Listen! TRC's Urban Inuit Community Hearing in Ottawa
August 17, 2012
The event will be held at the Sheraton Hotel, 150 Albert Street from 9am until 5pm. Read more
Shared Perspectives, An Evening of Reconciliation will feature a keynote address by TRC Chair Justice Murray Sinclair, drummers and dancers from the Aboriginal and Black communities, and an Authors’ Dialogue moderated by veteran broadcast journalist Shelagh Rogers. It all gets underway at 7:30 p.m. at the WestJet Stage. Media release
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) will make its first visit to a correctional institution on August 8 and 9, when it will hear statements from inmates at the Kenora Jail in northwestern Ontario.
“Canadian correctional institutions house a disproportionately high number of Aboriginal inmates,” said TRC Chair Justice Murray Sinclair. “The Commission is committed to ensuring that they have an opportunity to be heard concerning the impact the Indian Residential Schools have had on their lives.”
“There’s perhaps no other group of individuals in this country that better exemplifies the schools’ tragic legacy,” he added. Read more
Saskatchewan National Event Ends-
Five New Honourary Witnesses Named
June 25, 2012
Amid the statments gathered, the ceremonies and the tearful reunions, the forward momentum toward reconciliation continued at the Saskatchewan National Event. Tasked with witnessing and bringing what they learn back to their respective spheres of influence, five new Honourary Witnesses were named over the course of the four-day Event. Former federal MPand actress Tina Keeper and former Prime Minister Joe Clark joined Sheila Fraser, Mayor Jim Scarrow and Sir Sidney Mead of New Zealand as Honourary Witnesses.
Click on the name of each Honourary Witnesses to find out more about them.
The next National Event will be held in Québec in the spring of 2013.
TRC Collaborates With IBM and
Aboriginal Human Resource Council
June 21, 2012
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada announced today a contribution from IBM Canada and the Aboriginal Human Resource Council (AHRC) that will assist the TRC to preserve and protect the statements of thousands of Indian Residential School Survivors. Read more
TRC thanks chief coroners, chief medical examiners
June 11, 2012
Justice Murray Sinclair, Chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), expressed gratitude today to Canada’s provincial and territorial chief coroners and chief medical examiners for their unanimous commitment to support the Missing Children Project.
An unknown number of Aboriginal children in the care of government-funded, church-run Indian Residential Schools died or went missing during the 150 years in which the schools operated. The TRC established the Missing Children Project to examine the extent of these deaths and disappearances. Read more
The TRC is working closely with the Toronto Council Fire Native Cultural Centre to host The Meeting Place - Truth and Reconciliation Conference in Toronto. This dynamic gathering will bring together in dialogue respected community leaders in an effort to promote respect, education and engagement on the Indian Residential School System.
The conference will be held May 31, June 1 and 2 and will feature a parallel Youth Conference as well as a wide range of speakers, panels and workshops addressing issues and challenges inherent to reconciliation and the building of right relations across diverse communities.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) release its Interim Report. The TRC also launched a new illustrated history entitled; They Came for the Children: Canada, Aboriginal Peoples, and Residential Schools.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Interim Report, reflects activities undertaken by the Commission since June 2009 and provides 20 recommendations that touch on five key areas including the operation of the Commission, education, support for survivors, reconciliation and commemoration. It represents a brief summary of what the Commissioners have heard directly from as many as three thousand former students and staff who were most affected by the schools. Read more
Commissioner Marie Wilson Receives Honourary Degree from St. Thomas University
Commissioner Wilson was one of two individuals honoured at St Thomas University's Spring Convocation on May 13, 2012. She received an honourary doctor of laws in recognition of her professional career "marked by public service and social justice."
Commissioner Wilton Littlechild has been appointed Chairperson of the United Nations Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP)
The Expert Mechanism provides the UN Human Rights Council with thematic advice in the form of studies and research on the rights of Indigenous peoples. It is currently preparing a number of studies, including one on the role of languages and culture in the protection of the rights and identities of Indigenous peoples, and another on the rights of Indigenous peoples to participate in decision-making with respect to extractive industries.
As Chief Littlechild says, “This not part of my TRC work although it is very related to our work.”
Congratulations, Chief Littlechild!
Chief Ed John, TRC Honourary Witness, Elected Chair of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
May 8, 2012
The Commissioners send congratulations and best wishes to Chief Ed John upon his election by acclamation to Chair of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. Read more
Chief John was named as an Honourary Witness for the TRC at the Northern National Event in Inuvik in 2011.
'Event Planner Services' Contract Awarded by TRC
April 24, 2012
Following a competitive process by Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC), the Truth and Reconciliation Commission is announcing that Bruce and Boivin Consulting Group Inc. out of Winnipeg, Manitoba has been awarded a contract for the provision of “Event Planner Services”.
Through this contract, Bruce and Boivin will be responsible for “Event Planner Services” for up to three (3) National Events in Western Canada beginning with a National Event being held in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan June 21 to 24, 2012.
Dr Paulette Regan's 'Unsettling the Settler Within' Short-Listed for The Canada Prize
The Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences announced earlier this month the short list of nominees for the Canada Prizes in the Social Sciences.
Among those five short-listed for the English-language prize was the Commission's own Dr Paulette Regan for her work on residential school history, Unsettling the Settler Within: Indian Residential Schools, Truth-telling and Reconciliation
in Canada(UBC Press).
Congratulations, Paulette on this wonderful achievement!
The TRC held a special Forum in March, 2011 to hear from experts including archivists, scholars and survivors on how best to proceed with a National Research Centre (NRC). The Forum lasted two days and saw 38 experts present their perspectives to approximately 500 attendees, including residential school survivors.
The advice brought forward at the Forum will help the Commission establish the NRC as part of its mandate to document the history and legacy of Indian Residential Schools.
For more information and videos of the Forum presentations, click here.
Two Northern Ontario Schools Added to IRSSA
August 23, 2011
The Residential Schools of Stirland and Crystal Lake have been added to the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement in a recent ruling by the Ontario Superior Court. Crystal Lake and Stirland Lake high schools housed Aboriginal girls and boys, respectively, and were both located in remote parts of northern Ontario. The two facilities, funded by Indian Affairs, merged in 1986 to house a co-ed residential school. To read more on the Superior Court of Ontario decision, click here.
Share Your Experience
The TRC wants to meet with, and collect the experiences of former students, staff, their families and anybody else who has an experience to share. Those willing to share will be able to do so in safety and with respect. Throughout the TRC’s five-year mandate, people will have two ways to share their experiences: by attending one of the seven national events and taking part in on-site statement gathering; or by contacting the TRC and arranging to provide a statement when the time is right. Click here for more information, or link to the TRC YouTube channel to watch a clip on the Statement Gathering process.
Artists Submissions
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) will gather and commemorate the experiences and the legacy of Indian Residential Schools over the next five years. While part of this will be accomplished through statement gathering from survivors themselves, there is more to capture.
As an artist, we invite you to be a part of the healing, reconciliation and remembrance. Submit your interpretation of the Indian Residential School experience- its meaning and its enduring legacy- to the TRC. All art forms are welcome and all artists living in Canada are encouraged to participate. Read more
The World is Watching
February 20, 2012
Thousands from across the world are tuning in to the live webcast being streamed from TRC Hearings. While Survivors are sharing their truth people from all over Canada and the globe are listening. Among the countries are USA, Spain, Greece, Japan, UK, Albania, Russian Federation, Netherlands, India, Mexico and Denmark.
If you have a chance, please take some time to witness the statements being given. A schedule of upcoming hearings in Saskatchewan and British Columbia can be found at the following links:
The respective webcasts can also be viewed on this web page. See below for video "screens".
As the Chair I promise you this
We (Chairperson Justice Murray Sinclair, Commissioners Chief Wilton Littlechild and Marie Wilson) are committed to each other and to the cause of the Commission and we will see this through to the end. I promise you that we will seek out the stories of all those connected to the schools who are still alive, from the students and the teachers, to the managers and the janitors, as well as the officials who planned and carried out the whole thing.
If you have a story to tell about the schools, we will hear it. If you cannot come to us, we will come to you. If you cannot speak, we will find someone to speak for you.
We will go to as many communities as we humanly can manage and where we can't go ourselves we will send our delegates armed with our authority to record the stories of those who wish to tell them.
And in the end we will ensure that the whole world hears their truths and the truth about residential schools, so that future generations of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Canadians will be able to hold to the statement that resonates with all of us: This must never happen again."
Justice Murray Sinclair, Chairperson TRC speaking to
Assembly of First Nations annual general meeting
in Calgary, July 22nd, 2009
Commissioners from left to right: Chief Wilton Littlechild, Honourable Justice Murray Sinclair (Chair), Marie Wilson
Africa were featured speakers at We Day Vancouver on Thursday, October 18. Archbishop Tutu chaired South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission and was an early supporter of the TRC in Canada. See his 
The Expert Mechanism provides the UN Human Rights Council with thematic advice in the form of studies and research on the rights of Indigenous peoples. It is currently preparing a number of studies, including one on the role of languages and culture in the protection of the rights and identities of Indigenous peoples, and another on the rights of Indigenous peoples to participate in decision-making with respect to extractive industries.
