September 22 - 28 marks Right to Know Week in Canada, a time to affirm the public’s right to access government-held information. This annual event, held in tandem with the International Day for Universal Access to Information on September 28, celebrates the core value that an informed public is essential to a healthy democracy.
At Narratives, access to information is especially vital as we work alongside communities to uncover the truths of the residential school system and to identify the children who never returned home from these schools. Access to information processes at public institutions play an important role in helping Survivors and communities obtain records about residential schools and the children who attended them. However, these processes are not perfect and many obstacles and limitations continue to stand in the way.
Below are four foundational principles of the right to know that hold particular relevance for residential school records and access to information.
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Access to Information is a Fundamental Right
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Transparency Builds Trust and Accountability
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Timely and Simple Access is Critical
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Proactive Disclosure Should Be the Norm
Access to Information is a Fundamental Right
Under Canada’s Access to Information Act, any Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or individual present in Canada has the legal right to request and receive records from federal public institutions. This right is a cornerstone of democratic engagement and is also protected under Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which Canada upholds.
The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR) and Library and Archives Canada (LAC) are often two of the first stops for finding and accessing residential school records. These institutions hold a combination of publicly available, open access records and restricted records that contain personal information protected by privacy laws. Residential school Survivors and their families can request access to their own residential school records through the NCTR. Academic and community-based researchers can access NCTR records by developing a Memorandum of Agreement with the institution. Information about accessing records through LAC can be found here.
Transparency Builds Trust and Accountability
Access to government information enables citizens, journalists, and civil society to hold institutions accountable—from spending and procurement to public health decisions to their roles in the residential school system. Enhancing access to information—including archival, death, and burial information related to residential schools—features strongly in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action. In short, transparency is a powerful tool for building public trust and working towards reconciliation in Canada.
Timely and Simple Access is Critical
According to the Access to Information Act, institutions must respond to requests within 30 calendar days. However, long delays and backlogs remain a challenge. For example, the Information Commissioner’s 2023-2024 annual report indicates that legislated response deadlines were missed for nearly 30% of access requests in that year.
A 2023 report from the Office of the Special Interlocutor for Missing Children and Unmarked Graves and Burial Sites associated with Indian Residential Schools also identified a range of persisting barriers for Survivors, communities, and researchers seeking access to residential school information. These barriers include difficulties determining which records are held where, using online archival database search tools, accessing restricted records, and receiving records in a timely manner, among others.
Improving turnaround times, simplifying processes, using plain language, and ensuring transparency are key to making the “right to know” truly meaningful.
Proactive Disclosure Should Be the Norm
While access requests are a key tool, government transparency should go further. Canada’s federal institutions are required to proactively disclose information such as contracts over $10,000 and travel expenses—without waiting for a formal request. Canada’s Directive on Open Government encourages departments to maximize access to data and documents in formats that the public can use.
Proactive disclosure is also built into the operations of many archives and repositories, such as the NCTR and LAC. You can learn more about the NCTR’s proactive disclosure process and access recently released records by visiting this link. Information about the LAC’s proactive disclosure process is located here.
Final Thoughts
“Right to Know” Week is more than a symbolic gesture—it’s a reminder that transparency, access, and accountability are not optional features of good governance; they are its foundation. The “right to know” is also a powerful, but imperfect tool for communities working to locate their loved ones who never returned home from residential school, to hold governments accountable for their roles in these institutions, and to advance the journey towards truth and reconciliation. Staying informed, asking questions, and exercising our right to know are ways to strengthen democracy and build a more open, accountable society.