Individual historical overviews of residential schools were created in 2008 for the purpose of providing a brief historical sketch for each school and an overview of the Anglican residential school system based on archival records. In light of recent events and reactions to the historical sketches, they have been taken down until they can be revised to reflect the survivor experiences of the schools and the genocidal realities of the Residential school system.
While the Anglican Church of Canada has made some progress in listening and better understanding what students endured in the school, those stories are not represented here. At present, the non-Indigenous Anglican Church is working with the Anglican Council of Indigenous Peoples, survivors and inter-generational survivors to update the website in a way that tells a fuller, survivor-centred story.
In 1993 the head of the Anglican Church of Canada apologized for the residential schools and in that apology, he stated:
I accept and I confess before God and you, our
failures in the residential schools. We failed you. We
failed ourselves. We failed God.
I am sorry, more than I can say, that we were part of
a system which took you and your children from home
and family.
I am sorry, more than I can say, that we tried to
remake you in our image, taking from you your language
and the signs of your identity.
I am sorry, more than I can say, that in our schools
so many were abused physically, sexually, culturally and
emotionally.
On behalf of the Anglican Church of Canada, I
present our apology.
(you can find the full text here)
In the midst of pandemic, our work on website edits have taken a back seat somewhat while we respond to immediate needs of folks on the ground in communities. In the meantime, some info on steps we are taking and resources for education and justice-seeking can be found at www.anglican.ca/reconciliationtoolkit .