National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

September 30^th marks the annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Canada. The day has been set aside as a statutory holiday, although it is less about celebration than it is recognizing and honouring the Survivors of Canada’s long and tragic abuse of Indigenous Peoples in the residential school system and beyond. The day is not be confused with National Indigenous Peoples Day, a much more celebratory occasion focusing on the culture, languages, and traditions of the First Nations, Metis, and Inuit communities, and that takes place on the summer solstice, June 21, with the entire month of June being dedicated to National Indigenous History Month.

Canada’s now infamous residential school system, overseen by the Canadian government and administered by the Catholic Church, ran from around 1883 with the last school closing in 1996. Over 150,000 Indigenous children were forcibly removed from their families and communities and into these schools where the public facing agenda was to educate Indigenous children and assimilate them into Canadian society, a poorly masked way of meeting the behind-closed-doors goal of “taking the Indian out of the child”.

Orange Shirts have become a familiar symbol for the recognition of traumas suffered by Indigenous people at the hands of church and State. Orange Shirt Day commemorates the residential school experience, witnessing and honouring the healing journey of the Survivors and their families, and has become a symbol of hope, reconciliation and a commitment to a better future.

Although Orange Shirt Day falls on the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, it is a separate, stand-alone statement. Phyllis’s Story, the origin story of Orange Shirt Day, was born out of Phyllis (Jack) Webstad’s experience as an enthusiastic six-year old who, in 1973, was gifted a beautiful orange shirt by her Grandmother, to wear on her first day at Mission (residential) school, an adventure Phyllis anticipated with great excitement. On that first day at school, Phyllis and other children were stripped of their belongings, the goal being the dehumanizing and deculturalization of “Indians”. Phyllis never saw that beloved shirt again, and thus began her life journey into and through adulthood.

As part of her healing, Phyllis grew up learning how to face the traumas to which she and so many of her people were subjected. She went on to establish the Orange Shirt Society in 2013, from which the phrase “Every Child Matters” was born in response to the discovery of mass graves at residential schools across the country. Phyllis speaks to audiences around the world of her experiences, helping to bring insight, compassion, and healing to others.

By wearing an orange shirt and participating in the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30^th, we make a statement to support reconciliation and commit to the enduring truth that Every Child Matters. Any by wearing that same shirt throughout the year, we show support for the idea that Every Child Matters Every Day.

Every year at this time we are inspired to ask ourselves what we can do to honour this important commitment. Here are a few ideas:

• Take part in an event in your area on our National Day of Truth and Reconciliation. An online search for events should net you some good results, or you can call your local city hall, or Indigenous organizations in your area to find out what might be taking place.
• Order the pocket-sized edition of the Truth & Reconciliation Calls to Action, from the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, which includes the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People.
• Read it. Discuss it. Act on it, and share it.
• Purchase and wear an Orange Shirt on September 30^th. Search for artwork created by an Indigenous artist, and where the proceeds will go to that artist and/or to an Indigenous organization. Wear the shirt on other days too, because “Every Child Matters everyday”.
• Donate to an Indigenous organization that is doing work that is meaningful to you. The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation might be a good place to start, but there are many others, right down to local Indigenous run community centres.
• Visit a local Indigenous community centre, talk to staff about any programs they might offer that, for instance, might help join people together over shared concerns.
• Keep an open mind and an open heart, and share that with everyone.

As Stewards of the land, air, and water, we can learn a great deal from those who nurtured the land long before our arrival in North America, or Turtle Island as it is referred to in many Indigenous communities. We invite you to join us in learning some of these more challenging lessons leading up to, and on September 30^th, the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation.