09/30/2026
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, also known as Orange Shirt Day, is a day of remembrance, reflection, and recognition of the atrocities and intergenerational trauma inflicted upon Indigenous communities through the Canadian residential school system.
Orange Shirt Day is observed annually on September 30. It honours and remembers the Indigenous children who never returned home, while acknowledging the experiences of more than 150,000 First Nations, Inuit, and Métis children who were forcibly removed from their families and communities to attend residential schools as part of so called canada’s policy of forced assimilation. This day also recognizes the resilience and continued healing of survivors, their families, and their communities while reminding us all of our collective responsibility to advance truth & reconciliation. today we wear orange to acknowledge that despite the settler-colonial state’s efforts to strip away Indigenous identity, culture, and customs, they persist. What was once used to strip away their identity has become a symbol worn by millions, proving that stories, like roots beneath scorched earth, survive attempts at destruction and return stronger, turning memory into resistance and remembrance into a refusal to be erased.
On this day, the York Federation of Students implores you to reflect upon your role in truth & reconciliation. Wear orange, engage with Indigenous organizations, learn the history of the land you live on and the communities who have looked after it for centuries, and advocate for recognition of the lasting impacts of the residential school system. Today and every day, we stand in solidarity with Indigenous communities across Turtle Island.
EVERY CHILD MATTERS
