Growing up with family as a member of the Stswecem’c Xgat’tem (Canoe Creek Dog Creek) First Nation, Phyllis Webstad was forced to attend St. Joseph’s Mission Residential School at the age of six. Before leaving her family, Phyllis’ grandmother took her to Robinson’s Department Store to buy a new outfit for school. Phyllis picked an orange shirt but upon her arrival at St. Joseph’s Mission she was stripped of her clothes, including her brand-new orange shirt.

In May 2013, Chief Fred Robbins, Residential School survivor and member of the Esk’etemc Nation, led the St. Joseph’s Mission Residential School Commemoration Project and Reunion. The event brought together Residential School survivors, local Nations, municipalities, school districts and organizations in the Cariboo Region to honour the healing journey of Residential School survivors and to commit to the process of reconciliation. As an intergenerational trauma and Residential School survivor of St. Joseph’s Mission, Phyllis served as a spokesperson for the reunion group and shared her story about her experiences, including how her new orange shirt was taken from her. On September 30th of the same year, the first Orange Shirt Day was observed in hopes of creating conversation about the ongoing effects of Residential School and how all Canadians can support reconciliation. You may be asking, why September 30th? The date was picked to reflect when Indigenous children were taken from their homes to Residential school and creates the opportunity to teach children today about anti-racism and anti-bullying at the beginning of the school year.

Two years after the commemoration project and reunion, Phyllis Webstad founded the Orange Shirt Society to raise awareness of inter-generational trauma, as well as promoting reconciliation and that Every Child Matters. Phyllis and the Orange Shirt Society continue to offer programming throughout the province to further learning through her story and she hopes to continue to be a vehicle of change in Canada.

In December 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission released their Calls to Action, which included #80 which states ‘We call upon the federal government in collaboration with Aboriginal peoples, to establish, as a statutory holiday, a National Day for Truth and Reconciliation to honour Survivors, their families, and communities and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process.’ Orange Shirt Day gained traction in British Columbia schools, with curriculum changes created by the First Nations Education Steering Committee for Grade 5’s and Grade 10’s which now more accurately discuss the history of Residential School and the impacts of colonization in Canada. With growing support in March 2019, the House of Commons passed a bill designating September 30th as National Truth and Reconciliation Day but due to an election, the bill was never passed to the Senate.

With the announcement by Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation of the potential 215 unmarked graves on the site of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in May 2021, national attention was on the lasting impacts of Residential. For decades survivors shared the atrocities that went on during their time at Residential Schools, but this marked one of the first outcries of public support on a national level. A little over a week later on June 3rd, 2021 Bill C-5 was unanimously passed by the Senate to create September 30th as the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation which serves as a day for Canadians to reflect and learn about the impacts colonization and the impact that the Canadian government has had on Indigenous peoples. As of this year, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Manitoba, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and Yukon have recognized the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation as a statutory holiday.

 

If you’re looking on resources to support learning on the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, consider looking at the following materials:

• National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation
• Orange Shirt Day Society
• Indian Residential School Survivors Society
• Witness Blanket
• NCTR – A Story of Sports & Survival in Canadian Residential School
• Assembly of First Nations – It’s Our Time Education Toolkit
• Truth & Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to Action
• Orange Shirt Day – Phyllis Webstad
• Indian Residential School History & Dialogue Centre
• 21 Things You May Not Have Known About the Indian Act by Robert Joseph

 

If you’re looking to attend a National Day for Truth and Reconciliation event, consider the following events:

• National Day for Truth and Reconciliation at Tk’emlups te Secwepemc Powwow Arbour (September 27th, Kamloops)
• University of Victoria – Orange Shirt Day Event (September 27th, Victoria)
• BC Lions – Orange Shirt Day Game (September 27th, Vancouver)
• NCTR Virtual Lunch and Learns (September 23rd-27th, Online)
• National Day for Truth and Reconciliation at the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre (September 30th, Squamish)
• Walk for Reconciliation (September 30th, Penticton)
• Orange Shirt Day at the University of British Columbia (September 30th, Vancouver)
• National Day for Truth and Reconciliation at Parliament Hill (September 30th, Online)
• National Day for Truth and Reconciliation at Lheidli T’enneh Memorial Park (September 30th, Prince George)

 

The BC Sports Hall of Fame will be closed on Monday September 30th but we will be having Indigenous Sport Gallery featured Athlete and former Vancouver Whitecaps and Canadian men’s national team player, Terry Felix, at the Hall on Saturday September 28th from 2pm-3pm. Terry will be discussing his experience as an Indigenous professional athlete and how he hopes to continue to be an inspiration to future generations of athletes. If you are interested in attending the speaker series, visit bcsportshall.com/tickets.