Sept. 30 marked Canada’s National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
As to how many actually used the day for its intended purpose to honour residential school survivors or acknowledge that Every Child Matters, and how many instead just used it for an extra day off work– that is not the subject of this editorial.
What is the subject of this editorial is the fact that First Nations and Indigenous peoples continue to experience generational trauma as they reckon with the consequences of that colonial legacy. For them, Orange Shirt Day is a day for grieving and opening old wounds. Showing support, engaging with survivors, and taking part in public events to mourn with these peoples can help bring consolation to those who are suffering. It also shows we are there for them, even if there is little else we can do.
Orange Shirt Day was originally established thanks to Phyllis Webstad, who received a hand-beaded orange shirt from her grandmother before she was sent to residential school. Upon arrival, the shirt was forcefully stripped from her back, and Phyllis was stung deeply that a personal and beautiful gift from her grandmother, which honoured the traditions of her people, was taken this way and never returned; much as the land, language and cultures of previous generations of Indigenous peoples were also forcefully taken away and never returned.
“The colour orange has always reminded me of that and how my feelings didn’t matter, how no one cared and how I felt like I was worth nothing,” Webstad said years later. “All of us little children were crying and no one cared.”
Deep inside, many residential school survivors are still weeping.
By wearing orange, and taking time to reflect on this legacy of injustice, we are no longer turning our backs.
