National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

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September 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, honours the Indigenous people affected by residential schools: the survivors, the children who never made it home, the families and the communities.

There were 140 federally-run residential schools in Canada between 1867 and 1996. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission provided the opportunity for those affected by the schools to tell their stories then created a report detailing 94 calls to action. Truth and Reconciliation Day is Call to Action 80: a federal statutory day of commemoration. The government of Canada is working closely with provinces, territories, First Nations, the Metis Nation, Inuit groups and church entities to implement the calls to action. This day is an important part of the reconciliation process. To commemorate it, we can acknowledge the struggle that Indigenous people have gone through, and are still going through because of residential schools: by wearing orange shirts, taking part in the events held on the day, and learning more about what residential schools were.

To learn more about residential schools, No Child Left Behind, Truth and Reconciliation Day and the meaning of orange shirts, there are numerous books and movies written and produced by Indigenous creators :

A few of the many books written by Indigenous authors about truth and reconciliation and residential schools:

Indian Horse – Richard Wagamese
Five Little Indians – Michelle Good
The Education of Augie Merasty – David Carpenter & Joseph Auguste Merasty

For children:

Shi-shi-etko – Nicola I. Campbell, illustrated by Kim LaFave
Fatty Legs – Christy Jordan-Fenton & Margaret Pokiak-Fenton, illustrated by Liz Amini-Holmes

Documentaries and movies:

Indian Horse – found on Netflix, Amazon Prime, YouTube, Crave, Apple TV and Google Play
Bones of Crows – found on CBC Gem, Apple TV, YouTube, Amazon Prime, and Google Play
Sugarcane – found on Disney+