Chief of defence staff offers apology for militarys history of racial discrimination

The head of Canada’s military formally apologized Thursday to the Canadian Armed Forces for the service’s history of racist discrimination and vowed to improve the situation for racialized CAF members. Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Jennie Carignan teared up as she delivered a rare, emotional speech to the rank and file in Ottawa Thursday afternoon. In it, she apologized to every armed forces member who has experienced racial discrimination. “We all know that an apology that is not accompanied by a tangible effort to address our failures, to remedy wrongs … would be hollow and without real meaning,” she said. “I renew our commitment to ensure we remain vigilant in precluding systemic barriers that could block an individual’s participation in military service.” Carignan called the apology a milestone on a difficult and much longer journey toward ridding the military of discrimination, racism and harassment. She said the military will “not tolerate backlash against this work” and that “racism has no place” in the Canadian Armed Forces. “It is under the shadow of ignorance regarding systemic racism that individual racist activity and attitudes flourish,” Carignan said. “We will not accept excuses that undermine real change.” A final settlement agreement on a class-action lawsuit about racism in the military directed the Canadian Armed Forces to acknowledge its history of systemic discrimination. The class action resulted in a settlement for members who experienced racial discrimination or harassment during their service from 1985 up to January of this year. The settlement is worth up to $150 million, with individual payments ranging from $5,000 to $35,000. The Canadian military also has been sued by its own members over sexual misconduct and discrimination against LGBTQ+ people. Planning for the historic apology took more than a year. Documents show National Defence was preoccupied with not re-traumatizing victims. “The (Canadian Armed Forces) is taking a trauma-informed approach to this event. This apology is an important, necessary, and solemn moment and could evoke strong emotional responses and/or cause trauma to resurface for in-person participants,” a Department of National Defence media advisory for the event stated. “As such, media will not be permitted in the room where the apology ceremony is taking place.” The apology was originally set for March but officials pushed the timeline back so it did not conflict with other events and did not appear rushed or insensitive to stakeholders. That’s according to an internal departmental memo prepared for Carignan and Deputy Minister of Defence Stefanie Beck and released through Access-to-Information law. “Given the evolving public environment, delays in the court decision, and the prorogation of Parliament, March 2025 has become a challenging timeline,” the internal note said, warning of a “volatile public communications environment.” Story by Kyle Duggan with files from Sarah Ritchie. Continue Reading