Photo Credit: Orange Shirt Day Grande Prairie

By Shane Clausing

orange shirt day

Orange Shirt Day kicks off in Grande Prairie

Sep 30, 2020 | 5:30 AM

September 30 is Orange Shirt Day across Canada.

The goal of Orange Shirt Day is to educate and bring awareness to Canadians of all ages about the residential school system and the impact it has had on Canada’s Indigenous communities.

The day was started in Williams Lake, B.C. and grew out at St. Joseph’s Mission residential school.

A girl named Phyllis Webstad was given an orange shirt for the first day of school from her grandmother. Webstad wore the shirt to school and upon arrival, the shirt was taken away from her, never to be returned.

Since that day, Orange Shirt Day became an opportunity to keep the discussion on all aspects of residential schools happening annually.

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“The date was chosen for this time of year, because this was usually when children were taken from their homes and placed into residential schools,” explained Shauna Livesey with the Northwest Aboriginal inter-agency committee.

“What the hope is (that) it’s 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 this story and learning onto the next generations, and that’s how we move forward and grow.”

Livesey says educating younger people about the history and reality of Residental Schools in Canada is crucial.

“I think its vital to moving forward and acknowledging what happened and learning from what happened.”

Several different organizations have also jumped on board to help show their support with the event. The City of Grande Prairie, Grande Prairie Friendship Centre, Grande Prairie Regional College and all of the school divisions within Grande Prairie and the Peace Region are involved in the day.

This year for Orange Shirt Day, the committee has created a video to help educate all ages about the importance of the day. The goal of the video is to make the campaign all about community.

Livesey says that they put out a call to the community, asking people to submit their own videos and talk about how they support Orange Shirt Day.

On September 30, an event is also being held at Muskoseepi Park where a new bench is being placed to commemorate Orange Shirt Day. The event will take place at 103 Street and 99 Avenue by Bear Creek.

Location of Orange Shirt Day ceremonies. Photo Credit: Orange Shirt Day Grande Prairie.

A fire ceremony, along with tea dance drummers will get underway at 1:30 p.m. Those attending are encouraged to bring your own lawn chair and women attending are asked to wear a long skirt.