Local students come together for Orange Shirt Day
On Monday, students from Bishop’s University, Champlain Regional College, Bishop’s College School, and Alexander Galt Regional Highschool, gathered in front of Mcgreer Hall, located on Bishop’s campus, to march for Orange Shirt Day.
The march, which was organized by the Indigenous Cultural Alliance, a student organization at Bishop’s University, takes place every year on Sept. 30 in honour and in remembrance of the victims and survivors of the residential school system in Canada.
Many may wonder, what is Orange Shirt Day exactly? And why the color orange?
Orange Shirt Day was inspired by the experience of a young Indigenous girl named Phyllis Webstad. Phyllis, from the Dog Creek reserve in British Columbia, was getting ready to attend her first day of residential school when her grandmother bought her a brand new orange shirt to take along with her. As she arrived to her new school, her orange shirt was taken away from her and she was forced to wear the uniform that was appointed to her.
As a result of her opening up and telling her story, Orange Shirt Day was
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born to commemorate Phyllis and all Indigenous children who lived through similar experiences while in the residential schools. The event also aims to educate and make the public aware of the residential school system that was present in Canada and the lasting impact it has had on the Indigenous population.
Orange Shirt Day began in 2013 and Sept. 30 was designated as Orange Shirt Day as it was around this time that Indigenous children were taken from their homes and placed in the residential schools. Various educational institutions, provincial governments, and communities have come together to show their support for Orange Shirt Day ever since.
Among the speakers at the event were Melissa Poirer, Bishop’s Indigenous Student Support and Community Liaison Officer, Bishop’s students Alicia Moore-iseroff, co-leader of the Indigenous Cultural Alliance, and Shawna Chatterton, intern for the Turtle Island Internship, and a representative from Champlain College.
A land acknowledgement was also done before the walk, recognizing that the event was taking place on unceded Abenaki territory.
After the speeches, everyone rallied together, dressed in their orange t-shirts, and made their way across the St. Francis bridge to Bishop’s College School, where the march ended.
This is one step forward in Canada’s process of reconciliation.