WE ARE SORRY (2009)

"WE ARE SORRY" is a page-work printed in Visual Arts News (Nova Scotia) in the Summer of 2009. For this piece Busby paired Stephen Harper's 2008 apology to First Nations people in Canada with archival images taken at Carcross Indian Residential School sourced from the Yukon Archives. 

In the article following this two page spread Busby notes her motivation in seeking out these records: 

"I have a particular interest in this school because after it was closed as an Indian [R]esidential [S]chool in 1970, it was transformed into the Carcross Community Education Centre. I attended this school 1974-75 when it was home to 90 people who had re-imagined it as an alternative community high school. Our vision was a place of mutual respect and trust where First Nations and non-First Nation students, 'patent members' and staff would live together. During this period we talked about many things, but what the place had been like during the 15 years before it was an 'alternative school' wasn't part of the picture." 

"WE ARE SORRY" is an extension of Busby's work with public apologies and reconciliation which include her iterative WE ARE SORRY and SORRY series'.