Orange Shirt Day takes place on Sept. 30 and symbolizes the experiences of Indigenous children that had their freedom, culture and self-esteem ripped away over the generations.
It is an indigenous-led awareness day marking that “Every Child Matters”.
Sept 30 is also the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in to honour of the indigenous survivors, their families and to pay respect to the children who never came home.
It is important to acknowledge the impacts of residential schools then and now and the tragedy of loss for many indigenous families.
“Let's work as a community and build that bridge,” stated Robin Berard, Barrhead Indigenous instructor.
Barrhead High School and Elementary School will have teepees set up and Berard will be there to perform opening ceremonies and sharing her stories on Sept. 27 for students and parents.
Barrhead Blue Heron will be hosting an event on Sept. 30 for National Truth and Reconciliation Day, and everyone is invited, with Berard leading the opening ceremonies.
Wearing orange on Orange Shirt Day honours the thousands impacted by residential schools.
“I'm the effects of a residential school. I broke that chain by healing myself,” explained Berard.
“My mom was in there for six years. She didn't know how to be a mom, and I was put up for adoption as soon as I was born.”
“She was an alcoholic and ended up getting raped. I'm the effects of that rape.”
“Only when I started having kids and understanding more of what she went through, I broke that chain.”
“I did a lot of healing on myself to get rid of that anger I had towards my mom.”
The federal Canada.ca provides the history and data of why it is important for every Canadian to understand the importance of Orange Shirt Day.
In Canada, from 1867 to 1996, there were 140 residential schools that were federally run.
More than 150,000 Aboriginal children were separated from their families and communities and put them in residential schools.
The Government of Canada acknowledges on their website that these children were deprived of their family’s care, culture and languages.
On June 11, 2008, Prime Minister Stephen Harper made a statement of apology to former residential school students.
On June 25, 2021, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau apologized for the residential school’s history.
The federal government made $27 million dollars available to Indigenous communities to located lost loved ones at residential school intuitions.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission ran from 2008 to 2015 and in its final report there was a call for 94 different actions.
Our federal statutory day on Sept. 30 is a response to Action 80 of that report.
“I want my children and my grandkids to learn a better way of life. I teach all the children because I truly believe that they are the ones that are going to change the future,” stated Berard.
