October 6, 2023 | buffalonews.com
Photo: Jordan Cooke, Seneca language teacher at Lake Shore High School, shares the significance of Orange Shirt Day with students at John T. Waugh Elementary School in Angola. The day allows students to learn painful truths that shouldn’t be hidden. ~ Joshua Bessex photos, Buffalo News
The horrors pressed upon the Indigenous people cannot be overstated, and the fact that these awful indignities continued until the not-too-distant past is even more egregious. By now, most of us are familiar with Canada’s residential schools for Indigenous children. These schools, along with those in the United States, became the places where nightmares came true for thousands of innocent young people.
The recent discovery of unmarked graves in Kamloops, British Columbia, and Cowessess reserve in Saskatchewan has sent shockwaves through our collective conscience. It has forced us to confront a painful truth: These institutions were sites of unspeakable suffering and abuse, where Indigenous children were stripped of their heritage, dignity and humanity.
However, amid this darkness, there is a glimmer of hope. Communities, both in Canada and beyond, are taking action to remember and reckon with this painful history. One such initiative is the declaration of Orange Shirt Day in several Western New York school districts, most of which have sizable Indigenous populations. The day serves as a powerful reminder of the families and communities affected by Indigenous residential or boarding schools in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Orange Shirt Day derives its name and significance from the heartbreaking experiences of Phyllis Webstad, a survivor of Canada’s residential school system. As a 6-year-old in 1973, Phyllis chose to wear a shiny orange shirt on her first day of school. But upon arriving, school staff stripped her of her clothes, including the orange shirt, effectively alienating her and countless other children from their language, culture and families. The orange shirt has since become a symbol of the motto that “every child matters.”
Canada has taken steps to confront its past by designating Sept. 30 as the national day for truth and reconciliation. This is a commendable effort to acknowledge the injustices committed against Indigenous peoples and work towards healing and understanding.
In Western New York, school districts including Buffalo, Gowanda, and Niagara-Wheatfield are also observing truth and reconciliation, fostering an environment where students are educated about the painful history and its impact on Indigenous communities.
At Akron High School, students are raising awareness and promoting understanding. They read Phyllis Webstad’s book to elementary students, watched a video featuring local experts on residential schools, and even participated in contests to design orange T-shirts that serve as powerful reminders of the need to confront the past and ensure such atrocities never happen again.
These efforts are a welcome development in another way, as well. They help put to shame the efforts in other states, including Florida, to whitewash the nation’s hard racial history, including the sin of slavery. Acknowledging such painful truths is the only path of value. Students need to know.
Orange Shirt Day is a lesson for us all about humanity and the need to treat everyone with dignity and respect, while celebrating the multifaceted cultures that make the world a better place. It is a reminder that our shared history contains both moments of pride and darkness, suffering and resilience. It is our collective responsibility to ensure that “every child matters” is not just a motto but a guiding principle for our future.
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