Statement on Anti-Black Racism

The Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre (IRSHDC) stands against anti-Black racism, injustice, inequality and police violence and brutality. Summer 2020 saw mass mobilization and protest in support of racial equality in the United States and globally as a response to the death of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and all Black people who have suffered due to white supremacy and institutional racism. 

Museums, libraries and archives have historically benefited from racial inequity and continue to do so. Such institutions are traditionally filled with stolen or looted artifacts and have profited from colonial violence and slavery. As a museum, a centre for dialogue and a knowledge institution at the University of British Columbia, the Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre calls for an end to institutionalized violence against Black people.

Acknowledging that many museums are colonial institutions, the Centre works to disrupt these systems and strives to elevate the voices of Indigenous individuals and communities who have experienced racism, systemic violence and oppression. By sharing these voices, the Centre promotes dialogue and uncomfortable conversations about the legacy of colonialism in Canada and internationally. For Canada to move toward a future where all individuals are given equal voice, there must be an unconditional acknowledgement of its colonial foundations and a commitment to disrupt institutional racism at all levels.

As a memory institution, the Centre has a responsibility to document, preserve and make accessible the history and legacies of Canada’s residential schools and all systems of state-sponsored racism and oppression. The Centre works with Indigenous communities and individuals to ensure research and use of these materials is done in culturally appropriate ways that respect individual and community agency. The IRSHDC strives to work against problematic structures in a university setting that perpetuate and privilege Eurocentric and colonial ways of knowing. More action is needed, and the Centre remains committed to this work in its approach to education, research, curation and awareness.

The Centre acknowledges that it is built on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Musqueam people, and calls on universities and colleges to take stronger action in fighting against racism in academia. From revising hiring practices to ensuring greater representation across students, faculty and staff, there is much to be done to address issues of social justice and inequality and unconditionally acknowledge that Black lives matter.

Below are resources for those wishing to show support for those affected by racism or seeking to learn more about anti-racism: