Apology background and context
The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) issued a public apology to current and former CAF members who have experienced systemic racism, racial discrimination, and racial harassment during their military service.
On this page
Purpose of the apology
For generations, Indigenous, Black, Asian, and other racialized members of the CAF have served Canada with distinction. At the same time, many experienced systemic racism, including racial discrimination and racial harassment, in connection with their military service. These harms caused profound and lasting emotional, spiritual, financial, and intergenerational impacts, affecting individual members, as well as their families and communities.
Stories shared by former CAF members illustrate this reality: Indigenous members were once required to give up their status to serve, Black and Asian Canadians faced barriers to wearing the uniform, and many racialized members were forced to choose between leaving the CAF or remaining and enduring further harm.
This apology acknowledges both the proud legacy of service, and the lasting harms experienced. It reflects the CAF’s recognition of systemic barriers and its responsibility to strengthen trust, support healing, and advance restorative justice. The event built on consultations with affected persons, current and former CAF members, communities, and external experts, as well as multiple reviews and reports that underscored the urgent need to address systemic racism within the CAF.
This public apology by the CAF aimed to:
- Acknowledge and take responsibility: Formally recognizing the harms caused by systemic racism including racial discrimination and harassment within the CAF.
- Support healing: Providing a foundation for healing for affected members, their families, and their communities.
- Strengthen commitment to culture change: Demonstrating accountability and reinforcing the CAF's ongoing work to remove systemic barriers, strengthen equity and inclusion, and improve operational readiness.
About the event
The apology was delivered through a considered, and trauma-informed event. While the in-person audience was by invitation only and prioritize representatives from impacted communities, the event was inclusive of all Defence Team members through a national live stream.
It was accessible in both Official Languages and American Sign Language/Quebec Sign Language.
This apology was the result of a collaborative and thoughtful process. The institution engaged with affected individuals in the CAF, Veteran communities, and external anti-racism Subject-Matter Experts, to validate that the apology's content and format are meaningful to those for whom it is intended. The event design and the language of the apology emerged directly from this extensive engagement and were shaped by the principles of anti-racism, intersectionality, inclusion, diversity, and representation. Learn more about the apology consultations.
For the well-being of all attendees, real-time support services for in-person and virtual attendees was provided. A recorded version of the event is available for reference and educational purposes.
Definitions
These definitions explain the harms acknowledged in this apology and identify the individuals and communities to whom it is offered.
Racial discrimination
Any unfair treatment, adverse differentiation or bias occurring in connection with military service and involving military members that is based on an individual’s race, ethnicity, colour and Indigeneity.
Racial harassment
Any conduct that is based on another individual’s race, ethnicity, colour and Indigeneity that is known or should reasonably be known to be offensive or cause harm – including objectionable act(s), comment(s), or display(s) that demean, belittle, or cause personal humiliation or embarrassment, and any act of intimidation or threat - occurring in connection with military service and involving military members. Harassment may be a series of incidents or one incident which has a lasting impact on the individual.
Systemic or institutional racism
Consists of patterns of behaviour, and policies or practices that are part of the social or administrative structures of an organization which create or perpetuate a position of relative disadvantage for racialized persons. These appear neutral on the surface, such as racialized and colourblind norms and standard ways of operating, but, have an exclusionary impact on racialized persons, which lead to racially biased outcomes and experiences.
Anti-racism
Active process of identifying and eliminating racism by changing systems, organizational structures, policies and practices and attitudes, so that power is redistributed and shared equitably.