Orange Shirt Day – September 30th
Sep 15, 2016
Orange shirt day is nationally recognized and it’s awareness is growing across the country. This is the 4th year that Canadians are asked to join First Nations in wearing an orange shirt on September 30th in the spirit of healing and reconciliation.
Orange Shirt Day is a legacy of the St. Joseph Mission (SJM) residential school commemoration event held in Williams Lake, BC, Canada, in the spring of 2013. It grew out of a residential school survivor’s story of having her shiny new orange shirt taken away on her first day of school at the Mission, and it has become an opportunity to keep the discussion on all aspects of residential schools happening annually.
The date was chosen because it is the time of year in which children were taken from their homes to residential schools, and because it is an opportunity to set the stage for anti-racism and anti-bullying policies for the coming school year. It also gives teachers time to plan events that will include children, as we want to ensure that we are passing the story and learning on to the next generations.
Orange Shirt Day is an opportunity for First Nations, local governments, schools and communities to come together in the spirit of reconciliation and hope for generations of children to come.
Check out the website for resources and ideas.
http://www.orangeshirtday.org/
