On Friday, Canada will mark the second official National Day for Truth and Reconciliation — a federal statutory holiday that is meant to give public servants an opportunity to recognize the legacy of residential schools.
“We have to remember that this is called Orange Shirt Day,” said Crystal Gail Fraser, an assistant professor of History and Native Studies at the University of Alberta.
“This day is an Indigenous-led, grassroots day for remembrance, for reconciliation, for ceremony, for healing. And it originated out of the story of Indian Residential School survivor Phyllis Webstad, and how she was institutionalized in the early 1970s and had her orange shirt — a gift from her mother — taken away from her.”
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Sept. 30 was designated a paid holiday for federal employees in June 2021 and addresses one of the 94 calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
“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,” the TRC report stated.
Fraser said she’s glad the federal government implemented the TRC’s call to action by creating the national holiday, it’s just a starting point.
She referenced the document Calls to Action: Accountability, a 2021 status update on reconciliation by Eva Jewell and Ian Mosby.
“In this particular report, they say that approximately 14 per cent of the 94 calls to action have been implemented,” Fraser said.
“But what they really encourage…
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