A solemn ceremony officially unveiled the Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre at the University of British Columbia today, where President Santa J. Ono delivered a statement of apology for the school's involvement in the oppressive residential school system. The new centre will provide survivors of residential schools, their families and their communities with access to records obtained by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada which chronicle the abusive history of the system and its indelible impact on Canadian society.

Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre, image via UBC

The two-storey, 6,500-square-foot facility is located between Koerner Library and the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre on the Vancouver campus. Conceived as a place to recognize history and foster dialogue, the centre aims to educate a majority of Canadians unaware of the travesties that occurred within the entrenched residential school system for over 100 years. 

Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre, image via UBC

The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation opened in Winnipeg in November 2015 after the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada announced a call to establish a facility to permanently hold its vast records. The Vancouver facility is a west coast affiliate, independent centre that began construction in September 2016.

Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre, image via UBC

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