September 30th, 2022 will be the second official National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, which is a federal holiday to honour residential school survivors and the children who did not return, as well as their families and communities. Like last year, Fresh Roots will be closed to recognize the day as a paid statutory holiday to allow for time recognize and reflect meaningfully with this important day.
In addition, we are very exited to announce, that this year we are undertaking a collaborative project to explore the question “How schoolyard farms (and specifically, the work that Fresh Roots undertakes) can contribute to Indigenous food sovereignty and land-based learning”. We are working with our school district and Indigenous Education department colleagues, Indigenous Knowledge holders, Farm to School BC and the BC Chapter of the Coalition for Healthy School Food to design and deliver experiential workshop components as well as gatherings bringing everyone together for listening and sharing. We are grateful that this project is made possible with funding from the Real Estate Foundation of British Columbia. If you would like to learn more about this project, you can email ed@freshroots.ca for more information.
As with last year, we have compiled and wanted to show a some ideas from our team and community members that you can check out to commemorate this day and take actionable steps toward reconciliation:
Orange Shirt Day/NDTR events:
- Orange Shirt Day at Frog Hollow Neighbourhood House (2131 Renfrew Street, Vancouver)
on September 29, 4 to 7 PM – FREE family-friendly event where you can grab some food inspired by Indigenous recipes and learn more about traditional foods and Indigenous food sovereignty. All funds raised at our crafts and jewelry tables will go to the Indian Residential School Survivors Society. Counsellor will be onsite to offer emotional support and smudging and medicines will be available. Part of Vancouver Urban Food Forest Foundation‘s Neighbourhood Food Week. - Orange Shirt Day with Britannia Community Centre on September 30 at 9 AM assemble outside the Vancouver Aboriginal Community Policing Centre (1719 Franklin Street) and walk to Grandview Park where there will be a ceremony and activities (lunch, drum circle, crafting and sharing) until 2 PM.
- Orange Shirt Day at Templeton Pool Welcome Garden (700 Templeton Drive, Vancouver) on September 30, 2 to 5 PM – Performance by Indigenous Women Rise Drum Group, Elder stories, Indigenous Plant Walk with Lori Snyder, snacks, tea, ice cream and more! Part of Vancouver Urban Food Forest Foundation‘s Neighbourhood Food Week.
- National Day for Truth and Reconciliation at Westminister Pier Park (1 6th Street, New Westminster) on September 30, 3 to 6 PM – FREE family-friendly event that will start with a welcoming, listening to guest residential school survivors, a pipe ceremony: “Beginning the Journey Home”, children’s giveaway, and free snacks while quantities last; hosted by the Spirit of the Children Society.
- Skookum Surrey’s National Day for Truth and Reconciliation at Holland Park (13428 Old Yale Road, Surrey) on September 30, 2 to 4 PM – join for an afternoon of drumming, sharing, tea and bannock.
- Vancouver Career College Healing Walk (2121 Clearbrook Road, Abbotsford) on September 30, 10:30 AM to 2 PM – Walk and BBQ to discuss the meaning of this National Holiday and make new connections within the community.
- Fraser River Indigenous Society’s We Stand With You Through Truth and Reconciliation at Memorial Peace Park (11930 224 Street, Maple Ridge) on September 30, 10 AM to 2 PM
- Every Child Matters Canada’s National Day for Truth and Reconciliation at John Hendry Park in Trout Lake (3300 Victoria Dr, Vancouver) on September 30 from 1 to 3 PM – organized by the Nisga’a Ts’amiks Vancouver Society, including ceremony, stories, drumming, and songs. Please meet at the south side of John Hendry Park.
Attend:
- Sharing Farm’s Reconciliation Workshop With Charlene Seward (2771 Westminster Highway, Richmond) on September 28 from 7 to 8:30 PM
- Carousel Theatre for Young People is putting on Manitoba Theatre for Young People’s award-winning play, FROZEN RIVER (nîkwatin sîpiy) from September 28 to October 16, 2022 (No shows on Mondays) at Waterfront Theatre (1412 Cartwright Street, Vancouver)
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In Conversation: Chrystal Sparrow, T’uy’t’tanat-Cease Wyss and Rena Soutar at Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre (181 Roundhouse Mews, Vancouver) on September 29 at 7 PM
- City of Delta’s Blanket Exercises, an interactive and experiential teaching tool that explores the historic and contemporary relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples
- September 30, 1-4pm; Register for the Blanket Exercise in Ladner at the Harris Barn
- September 30, 6-9pm; Register for the Blanket Exercise in North Delta at the North Delta Recreation Centre
- October 1, 9am-noon; Register for the Blanket Exercise in Tsawwassen at South Delta Recreation Centre
- Be the Change You Want to See – Join First Nations Artist and Facilitator, Christine Mackenzie, for a free, public community art workshop on September 30 at Place des Arts (1120 Brunette Avenue, Coquitlam) from 1 to 3 PM that will be added to Place des Art’s Community Engagement Project display
- On Truth and Reconciliation: Indigenous artist James Harry online talk and Q&A on September 30 from 1 to 2:30 PM; part of the Griffin Art Projects
Visit:
- Chilliwack Museum (45820 Spadina Avenue, Chilliwack) – Where are the Children? Healing the Impacts of Residential Schools exhibit from June 30 to October 15
- Museum of Vancouver (1100 Chestnut St, Vancouver) – c̓əsnaʔəm: the City Before the City exhibit plus FREE ADMISSION for guests wearing an orange shirt on September 30
- Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery (1825 Main Mall, Vancouver) – Elemental Cinema: Denise Ferreira da Silva and Arjuna Neuman exhibit from September 6 to December 11
- UBC Okanagan Library (3287 University Way, Kelowna) – Legacy of Hope Indian Day Schools in Canada—An Introduction exhibit from September 20 to October 7
- Sk̲wx̲wú7mesh L̓il̓wat7úl Cultural Centre (4584 Blackcomb Way, Whistler) – FREE admission from September 30 to October 2
Watch:
- Premiere of Tsartlip First Nation artist Priscilla Omulo’s short film, ‘Weaving our Story Towards Reconciliation‘ ONLINE on September 30
- Free screening of documentaries (Honour Senator Murray, The Story of the Coast Salish Knitters, Keepers of the Fire) at Port Moody Station Museum (2734 Murray Street, Port Moody) on September 30, 10 AM to 1:30 PM
- Vancouver International Film Festival – Bones of Crows, directed by Marie Clements on October 4 at 9 PM at the Centre for Performing Arts (777 Homer Street, Vancouver)
- Vancouver International Film Festival’s interactive exhibition Signals: see the short film ‘This Is Not a Ceremony’ by Colin van Loon, which immerses viewers in stories that explore the dark truths of colonialism in Canada from October 1 to 3 at Emily Carr University’s Centre for Digital Media and Departure Lounge (685 Great Northern Way, Vancouver)
- We encourage everyone to watch/listen to this short interview with former senator and chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Murray Sinclair.
- The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation also has a week of speakers from across turtle island, all accessible for free on their Youtube channel.
- How to watch and listen to National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on CBC | CBC Arts
- Savage, Lisa Jackson, Director
- Indian Horse, Based on the award-winning novel by Richard Wagamese
Create:
- Be the Change You Want to See – First Nations Artist and Facilitator, Christine Mackenzie, will be hosting a free, public community art workshop on September 30 at Place des Arts (1120 Brunette Avenue, Coquitlam) from 1 to 3 PM that will be added to their Community Engagement Project display
- The Orange Shirt Project – handmade contributions can be sent to ‘Lorrie Miller, 2125 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4’
Read:
- 94 calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. In a summary report released earlier this year, the commission published 94 “calls to action” urging all levels of government — federal, provincial, territorial and aboriginal — to work together to change policies and programs in a concerted effort to repair the harm caused by residential schools and move forward with reconciliation. The act of reading these recommendations is an important step toward reconciliation. And taking it one step further to figure out ways to actively engage with the calls to action. Check out the progress report HERE.
- Summary of the Indian Act: A brief, plain language explanation of an act which is still in effect today in spite of its initial objective of control and assimilation, to “continue until there is not a single Indian in Canada that has not been absorbed into the body politic, and there is no Indian question, and no Indian department.” Say what??
- Orange Shirt Day Book, Phyllis Webstad
- Fatty Legs: A True Story, Christy Jordan-Fenton & Margaret Pokiak-Fenton
- Indigenous Writes: A Guide to First Nations, Métis & Inuit Issues in Canada, Chelsea Vowel
- They Came for the Children: Canada, Aboriginal Peoples, and Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada staff: The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada published this history as a part of its mandate to educate the Canadian public about residential schools and their place in Canadian history.
- From the Ashes: My Story of Being Métis, Homeless, and Finding My Way, Jesse Thistle
- Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimerer
- 21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act, Bob Joseph
- The Inconvenient Indian, Thomas King
Listen:
- The dark history of Canada’s Food Guide: How experiments on Indigenous children shaped nutrition policy | CBC Radio
- Media Indigena: a weekly podcast by Indigenous producers on a variety of Canadian news topics
- The Secret Life of Canada podcast: “a history podcast about the country you know and the stories you don’t.”
- Metis in Space, What happens when two Métis women, who happen to be sci-fi nerds, drink wine and deconstruct the science fiction genre from a decolonial lens? Molly Swain & Chelsea Vowel break down tropes, themes & the hidden meanings behind the whitest genre of film & television we’ve ever known.
Wear orange!
- Read Phyllis Webstad’s story HERE
Learn
- Take the Indigenous Canada Online U of A Course. Indigenous Canada is a 12-lesson Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) from the Faculty of Native Studies that explores Indigenous histories and contemporary issues in Canada. From an Indigenous perspective, this course explores key issues facing Indigenous peoples today from a historical and critical perspective highlighting national and local Indigenous-settler relations.
- How to properly acknowledge the land we live on.
Donate
- Donate directly to The Indian Residential School Survivors Society. The Indian Residential School Survivor Society (IRSSS) is a provincial organization with a twenty-year history of providing services to Indian Residential School Survivors. They strive to provide physical, emotional, intellectual, spiritual growth, development, and healing through culturally-based values and guiding principles for Survivors, Families, and Communities.
Please let us know if you have any resources we should know about and we hope our list provides you with some ideas about how to engage with and make acknowledging this important holiday meaningful for you.
