Statement regarding the Kamloops Indian Residential School mass burial site

Canada’s Universities are deeply saddened by the discovery of the mass grave of 215 Indigenous children near the Kamloops Indian Residential School. Our thoughts are with the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation and all Indigenous people and communities across Canada. 

For decades, First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples have described the appalling conditions and severity of the residential school system. This recent news is a reminder of the significance and urgency of the work that we undertake as institutions and individuals in the post-secondary sector to acknowledge the grim realities of Canada’s history and recognize the unfolding history that continues to this day.  

The historical and contemporary legacy of the residential school system continues to affect Indigenous peoples, communities, and all Canadians through both direct and intergenerational trauma. 

This did not happen somewhere far away, and this did not happen a long time ago. We knew of this.  

This is a time to listen to the survivors of the residential school system and to First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities.