Library and Archives Canada and the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation sign agreement to safeguard residential school records
Press Release
June 2, 2016—Ottawa—Library and Archives Canada (LAC)
Ry Moran, Director of the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR) located at the University of Manitoba, and Dr. Guy Berthiaume, Librarian and Archivist of Canada, have announced an agreement between the NCTR and Library and Archives Canada (LAC). The memorandum of understanding signed today will ensure the preservation of, and public access to, the records of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) on residential schools.
The agreement outlines areas of collaboration between the two organizations. Most notably, LAC will provide the NCTR with digital copies of the TRC’s records, on-site archival advice and technical expertise. NCTR will provide LAC with access to documents from the TRC that have not yet been transferred to LAC. The agreement also establishes areas of collaboration related to special initiatives including public engagement, exhibitions, events, and the ongoing sharing of records that are relevant to the issues of indigenous peoples.
Both the NCTR and LAC are committed to preserving documents of national importance that bear witness to the Canadian experience. Making the records accessible to residential school survivors, their families, and the public is a key outcome of the agreement.
Quick Facts
- Between 2009 and 2015, the TRC travelled to all parts of Canada, hearing from more than 6,000 residential school survivors and compiling historical information from various institutions, including LAC.
- Over the course of its mandate, the TRC generated hundreds of thousands of pages of records such as: management files, policy papers, evaluation reports and communications products.
- LAC is in the process of creating some 300,000 digital images of TRC records to be transferred to the NCTR.
- LAC and the NCTR will make TRC records available to the public, subject to access to information and privacy legislation.
- The agreement will take effect on June 2, 2016.
Quotes
“Signing this MOU today is an important step forward in deepening our relationship with Library and Archives Canada. By virtue of the work conducted for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the NCTR holds vast numbers of government of Canada records. This MOU is an important step in ensuring these records are made available to survivors in a manner consistent with the spirit and intent of both the TRC Calls to Action and the work of the TRC. It is also an important step forward in further examining Canada’s vast archival holdings on indigenous peoples.”
–Ry Moran, Director—National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, at the University of Manitoba
“Cooperation with other Canadian memory institutions such as the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation is an integral aspect of our institution’s legislative mandate. At Library and Archives Canada our aim is to develop a collection that is representative of all spheres of our society and the experiences of Canadians.”
–Dr. Guy Berthiaume, Librarian and Archivist of Canada—Library and Archives Canada
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Contacts
Media Relations
Library and Archives Canada
613-994-4589
bac.media.lac@canada.ca
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