The Survivors’ Secretariat has been actively advocating for the funding needed to continue crucial investigations into unmarked burials, missing and disappeared children at Indian Residential Schools. Despite two trips to Ottawa, two rallies, and continuous efforts to engage with the federal government, Survivors still have no answers regarding funding for the 2024-2025 fiscal year.
“In July 2024, Canada reduced community access to research funding by more than 85% per year. Canada is weakening its commitment to reconciliation.” - A Time for Truth: Knowledge is Sacred, Truth is Healing 2024 Survivors Gathering Report.
Timeline of Funding Changes:
- October 2023: The Survivors’ Secretariat submitted a three-year funding application to Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) for the 2024-2025 fiscal period, seeking the necessary financial support to continue our work.
- February 2024: CIRNAC advised that a new funding cap of $3 million per community would apply, with funds delayed until July 2024, pending the 2024 federal budget.
- April 2024: The Survivors’ Secretariat formally opposed the $3 million per community cap in a letter to government officials, highlighting the increased scope of the work needed.
- July 2024: Canada announced a further reduction in the overall national budget for missing children and unmarked burial investigations, slashing the Residential Schools Missing Children Community Support Fund from $216.5 million to $91 million over two years. This new budget would cap funding at $500,000 per community, which represented an 86% reduction in the Survivors’ Secretariat’s federal operating budget.
- July 2024: The Survivors’ Secretariat traveled to Ottawa to rally on Parliament Hill in response to the government’s devastating funding cuts, which reduced the Secretariat’s federal funding by approximately 85%. Earlier that day, the Secretariat board met with Valerie Gideon, the Deputy Minister of CIRNAC, to discuss the cuts to funding and the imposition of a funding cap.
- August 2024: The funding cap was raised back to $3 million per community, but the national budget remained at $91 million over two years, continuing to limit resources available to organizations leading these investigations.
- September 2024: The Secretariat returned to Ottawa on National Truth and Reconciliation Day for a press conference at the National Press Gallery followed by a rally on the East Lawn of Parliament.
“Communities have had less than three years to further this work, with the first year of operations occurring during COVID under a cloud of restrictions. Sweeping decisions about the program application guidelines, decision making, and funding formulas were made without full, prior, and informed consent of Indigenous peoples.” - A Time for Truth: Knowledge is Sacred, Truth is Healing 2024 Survivors Gathering Report.
A small but steadfast group of Survivors gathered at the “Knowledge is Sacred, Truth is Healing” event in Thunder Bay in August 2024. Together, they shared their response to the federal funding cuts to the ‘Residential Schools Missing Children Community Support Fund’. A report was developed, which offers their collective response to the imposed funding cuts. To read the full report, click here.
The overall funding reduction of $125.5 million to the Residential Schools Missing Children Community Support Fund and delays in the release of funds for the 2024-2025 year have caused severe disruptions to the Secretariat’s work. As of January 2025, nine months into the 2024 fiscal year, the Survivors’ Secretariat has yet to receive any federal funding. The Secretariat has been operating on carry-over funds from paused 2023/2024 projects including the Mohawk Village Memorial Park installation and our Data Sovereignty initiatives. This pause allowed for the Secretariat to continue to operate on a barebones budget until the fall of 2024. However, these funds have now been exhausted, and the Secretariat is on the brink of bankruptcy/insolvency.
This situation highlights the federal government’s failure to honour its commitments to Indigenous communities and Survivors. The decision to slash funding and impose caps was made without meaningful consultation with the Survivor organizations leading this vital work. This neglect is particularly damaging when we consider the words of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of the Liberal party, who in June 2021 stated: “The discoveries of unmarked graves at former residential schools are a painful reminder of our past. We must work together to ensure that every child is found and honoured.”
Yet, despite these commitments, the federal government’s actions contradict the very sentiment expressed, undermining the ongoing work to uncover the truth about the missing children of Indian Residential Schools.
The Survivors’ Secretariat urges the government to take immediate action and allocate the necessary resources to support these critical efforts. Reconciliation can only be achieved once the truth is fully uncovered. The government must uphold its promises to Indigenous communities and ensure that Survivor organizations have the resources needed to uncover the truth about missing children and unmarked graves.
This sentiment is echoed by the Chiefs of Ontario, who published a letter of support for the Survivors’ Secretariat:
“Whether intentionally or through incompetence, the government is maintaining its genocidal and colonial legacy by threatening the very organization that is working towards unearthing the truth and bringing closure and healing to Survivors and their families,” said Association of Iroquois & Allied Indians Grand Chief Joel Abram
“The federal government must immediately honour its commitments and ensure that there is adequate and sustainable funding for the Survivors’ Secretariat and all organizations doing this sacred work.”
To read the full letter of support, please visit:
To watch Survivors’ reaction to the Federal Funding Cuts, please visit:
Stand With Survivors. Fund the Truth. Support the Search. Honour the Children.
To read more on the Secretariat’s journey to Ottawa in July 2024, please visit:
Honouring Survivors’ Voices: The Survivors’ Secretariat’s Journey to Ottawa
To watch a video of the full press conference in Ottawa in September 2024, please visit:
Survivors’ Secretariat – YouTube
To read other letters of support from communities please see:
Join the Movement: Support Federal Funding for Indian Residential School Survivors