REGINA, Sask. — A Regina community gathering will use Orange Shirt Day to move beyond remembrance, bringing people together for ceremony, cultural learning and conversations about what truth and reconciliation require.
The Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Network, working with community partners, will host What They Sought To Erase From Us on Wednesday, Sept. 30, at mâmawêyatitân centre. The free event runs from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and is open to the public.
The day begins with a traditional Pipe Ceremony led by Elders and Knowledge Keepers before moving into presentations, cultural performances and hands-on learning.
Among the featured speakers is Dr. Blair Stonechild, an Indigenous scholar, author and educator from Muscowpetung Saulteaux First Nation who is also a residential school Survivor. Stonechild is an adjunct professor at the University of Regina and a professor of Indigenous Studies at First Nations University of Canada, with research interests that include Indigenous history, policy, spirituality and residential schools.
His presentation will focus on education, truth, healing and reconciliation.
The program also includes traditional drumming and jingle dress dancing, Indigenous language lessons, traditional medicine teachings and a screening of Our Hair, Our Spirit.
The afternoon will shift toward interactive exhibits and learning stations, giving participants opportunities to explore cultural teachings, reconciliation resources and community commitments alongside Indigenous organizations and cultural educators.
Organizers say the event is intended to honour residential school Survivors, remember the children who never returned home and recognize the continuing effects of the residential school system on Indigenous Peoples, families and communities.
That history reaches far beyond the classroom. Parks Canada estimates that at least 150,000 First Nations, Inuit and Métis children attended residential schools, which operated in Canada into the late 1990s. Thousands of children died while attending, and many burial sites remain unknown. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission described the residential school system as cultural genocide.
Sept. 30 became the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation following the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action 80, which called for a statutory holiday to honour survivors, their families and communities and ensure public commemoration of the residential school legacy remained part of reconciliation.
The date also coincides with Orange Shirt Day, an Indigenous-led movement inspired by residential school Survivor Phyllis Webstad’s experience of having her new orange shirt taken from her on her first day at school. The orange shirt has become a symbol of the message that every child matters.
But organizers in Regina are framing the day as more than an opportunity to look backward. The interactive portions of the event are designed to encourage dialogue and give participants practical opportunities to learn from Indigenous community members, explore reconciliation resources and consider their own commitments.
That approach reflects the broader work called for by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation says its 94 Calls to Action are intended to mobilize governments, organizations and individuals to address the legacy of residential schools and advance reconciliation.
The Regina event will also offer complimentary soup and bannock, wellness supports and opportunities to connect directly with community organizations and Indigenous cultural educators.
For people who want to take part in Orange Shirt Day through more than observation, organizers say the gathering offers a place to listen, learn and connect.
