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picture of book cover for residential schools by Larry Loyie

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

Orange Shirt Day

September 30, 2024

I have enjoyed 65 rotations around the sun, and yet it was not until I moved to the Yukon, on the eve of my 27th birthday, that I heard about the residential school system and the injustices that occurred.  The first time I heard about what had happened in the Yukon, and of course across Canada, was sitting around a fire beside Lake Laberge and listening as an Indigenous woman spoke of her experiences.  Her family lived off the land and moved around as the seasons progressed harvesting what was in season and hunting what was available. She was removed from her family and only saw them for a few days per year.  The nuns who ran the residential school in Whitehorse were very strict with the rules.  All the Indigenous children were not allowed to utter a word in their own language and were punished if they did.  Silently she reached down to pull up her long skirt and showed us the overwhelming number of scars on her knees. She said that each time she spoke to her siblings, or a friend, and was caught, she was forced to kneel in a bed of coals.  I was horrified, and I think this is a common reaction as the barbaric circumstances the children were subjected to came to light.

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is September 30th, and I believe it is important to understand what happened so that history does not and will not repeat itself.  I again saw the devastation of the residential school system when I lived for many years in Moosonee.  The carnage passed down from traumatized parents to traumatized children is still taking lives and destroying joy in communities such as this.  But I also saw the determination to heal and move forward in health and hope!

We now also mark this day as Orange Shirt Day, and I hope you will take a moment to reflect on the experiences of our Indigenous community members and educate yourself on what really happened.  Here is a list of books that speak to this experience for young children, teens, and adults.

Books for children:

  • Every Child Matters by Phyllis Webstad JX WEB
  • I sang You Down from the Stars by Tasha Spillett-Sumner JX SPI
  • The Orange Shirt Story by Phyllis Webstad JX WEB
  • I am Not a Number by Jenny Dupuis and Kathy Kacer JX DUP

Books for junior and young adult readers:

  • Canada’s First Nations and Cultural Genocide by Robert Cohen J 971,004 COH
  • These Are My Words-Residential School Diary by Violet Pesheens  J DEA
  • Righting Canada’s Wrongs-Residential Schools by Melanie Florence J 371.82 FLO
  • Shannen and the Dream for a School by Janet Wilson J 971.004 WIL

Books for adults:

  • Truth Telling by Michelle Good 305.897 GOO
  • Indigenous Relationships, Insights, Tips & Suggestions to Make Reconciliation A
    Reality     by Cynthia and Robert Joseph 305.89 JOS
  • Call Me Indian: From the trauma of Residential School to Becoming the NHL’s First Treaty Indigenous Player by Fred Sasakamoose BIO SAS
  • Residential School-With the Words and Images Of Survivors by Larry Loyie 371.8289 LOY