Wear an orange shirt on Friday, September 28 and Sunday, September 30.

Sunday, September 30th is Orange Shirt Day.

Join us (and a number of other departments on campus, school divisions, and communities across the country) who are participating in Orange Shirt Day on Friday, September 28, 2018. Wearing orange represents an active commitment to reconciliation. In wearing orange, you are acknowledging the history and truth of residential schools and their legacy, respecting survivors, and remembering those who were affected.  It is important to recognize that one day of honoring the survivors is important, but this needs to be an ongoing dialogue, a conversation every day.

History of Orange Shirt Day

Orange Shirt Day began in 2013 after Phyllis Webstad told her story at a reunion of other survivors:

In 1973 six-year old Phyllis Webstad was gifted a brand new orange shirt from her grandmother and wore it to the residential (mission) school she attended in British Columbia. Upon her arrival, school officials removed and discarded the shirt from her and replaced it with a school uniform. This greatly impacted the mental and emotional well-being of Webstad and symbolized that "her feelings never mattered." September 30 was chosen as the date to commemorate all the children that attended residential schools as it was also the time of year that children had to leave their homes and communities to attend the schools.¹

How can you participate? 

Wear an orange shirt!

Read, learn, and listen to the stories of survival and resilience from survivors of the Residential School system. It is important to acknowledge the legacy and impact these schools have had on our communities and how colonialism continues to impact Indigenous lives. 

Read more about Orange Shirt Day and Every Child Matters.

Read the stories of Survivors.

Watch

Indian Horse

We Were Children

Rhymes for Young Ghouls

Join:

Wednesday, September 26
Reconciliation Saskatoon
Orange Shirt Day Speaker Event
11:00 am - 1:00 pm

Friday, September 28
Orange Shirt Day Regina
Diversity & Inclusion Network
11 am - 1 pm 

Sunday, September 30
Community Pancake Breakfast
Western Development Museum, Saskatoon
10:00 am - 11:30 am

¹http://www.etfo.ca/BuildingAJustSociety/FNMI/pages/orangeshirtday.aspx