Over the past two centuries, McGill University has come into possession of a range of items of deep significance to Indigenous Peoples, including ancestral remains and sacred objects.
As part of the University’s efforts toward reconciliation, the Task Force on Indigenous Rematriation, Repatriation and Restitution (TFIR) has been established to ensure the aforementioned items are cared for and returned in a manner that honours and responds to Indigenous values and befits the dignity of the peoples to whom they belonged.
Led by the McGill Office of Indigenous Initiatives and McGill Libraries, TFIR will develop a comprehensive list of ancestral remains and sacred objects held by McGill and recommend policies and procedures to guide their return.
“McGill recognizes that the Indigenous ancestral remains and sacred materials it has in its collections continue to have profound and often painful impacts on Indigenous communities,” said Celeste Pedri-Spade, Associate Provost (Indigenous Initiatives).
“In alignment with McGill’s Call to Action No. 20 – which calls upon the University to demonstrate its commitment to truth and reconciliation by critically examining and acting upon its history – we are committed to a process grounded in institutional accountability, respect, dignity and care.”
The TFIR is expected to shed light on the conditions under which these items came into McGill’s possession.
Confronting history
TFIR’s 15 members come from Indigenous as well as non-Indigenous communities. They include cultural advisors and knowledge holders from Kahnawà:ke and Akwesasne, as well as representatives from McGill’s Department of Anthropology, the Redpath Museum, the Maude Abbott Medical Museum and the McCord Stewart Museum, which manages part of McGill’s holdings.
The task force was established in March 2025 and is expected to submit recommendations around May 2026.
“McGill has a responsibility to confront the parts of its history that continue to cause harm, including the holding of Indigenous ancestor remains and sacred material relatives,” said Guylaine Beaudry, Trenholme Dean of Libraries. “Establishing this task force is an essential step toward addressing that history with humility, care and accountability.”
“For the Libraries, this means engaging in responsible, transparent stewardship and supporting processes that are guided by Indigenous leadership, values and cultural protocols,” said Beaudry. “I am grateful to our partners across McGill and to the communities for guiding this process. Together, we are committed to ensuring these ancestors are treated with dignity and respect.”
‘Our sacred duty’
Similar work has been undertaken at other institutions. In 2021, the University of Manitoba established its Respectful Rematriation and Repatriation Ceremony (RRRC), and Indigenous leaders on the RRRC Council have conferred with members of McGill’s task force. Both groups aim to return Indigenous ancestors as well as belongings taken or held without consent.
Otsi’tsaken:ra Charlie Patton, a Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk) Elder from Kahnawà:ke who serves on the task force, stressed that the ceremonial items that were dug up, collected and possessed don’t belong on a museum shelf.
“They deserve to be returned to their people and their communities,” Patton said. “These items hold spiritual significance beyond historical or anthropological value. These items are not just artifacts; they are connected to spirit, they belong to spirit, and they need to be addressed in a ceremonial way. They need to be offered a conscientious process of return and reburial – it is our sacred duty requiring cultural protocols, not just a logistical or legal transfer.
“We are working with McGill to rebury the remains of our ancestors in an honorable way, respecting the cultural understanding that was present when, in their past, they were returned to our Mother Earth,” said Patton. “They cry out to be allowed to return to the Skyworld.”
Addressing mistakes
McGill’s holdings include its Canadian History Collections, managed by the McCord Stewart Museum. McGill owns the majority of the McCord’s collection, and a contractual agreement exists between the two institutions.
“As custodian of McGill University’s Indigenous collection for over half a century, the McCord Stewart Museum wishes to right the wrongs of the past by collaborating on the reinterment of the ancestral remains entrusted to it,” said Christian Vachon, Director of Collections Management and Curator of Documentary Art at the McCord Stewart Museum. “Our intention is to honour the ancestors, restore the dignity they deserve and contribute to reconciliation.”
Said Patton: “This process offers real action in addressing and correcting the mistakes of historical archaeological excavation and collection practices that removed ancestral remains and sacred objects without consent.”