FORT ERIE (September 23, 2021) Fort Erie Native Friendship Centre, Town of Fort Erie and Fort Erie Diversity and Inclusion Coalition are encouraging everyone to actively acknowledge the terrible legacy of residential schools in Canada by spreading the colour orange throughout Fort Erie in anticipation of the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation on September 30. 

“The colour orange is symbolic of the tragedies that occurred at the hands of Canada’s residential school system. By hanging an orange shirt in your window, you are encouraging conversations between those who walk by your home. We believe that one orange shirt has the potential to spark many important conversations.”

“September 30 will bring much-needed awareness to the history of residential schools in Canada. We are urging everyone to take the time to honour the victims, celebrate the survivors, and reflect on what we can do as a society to ensure this never happens again,” said Riley Zimak, director, Fort Erie Native Friendship Centre, and, co-chair, Fort Erie Diversity and Inclusion Coalition.

To help raise awareness, residents can: 

• Display orange outside their home (e.g. hang an orange shirt in your window, tie an orange ribbon around a tree, raise an orange flag, etc.) 
• Wear orange on and leading up to September 30 (e.g. small looped ribbon pinned, orange shirt, etc.)

To learn more about residential schools in Canada:

• Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada – https://nctr.ca/about/history-of-the-trc/trc-website/
• National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation – https://nctr.ca/
• Indigenous Canada (University of Alberta) – https://www.coursera.org/learn/indigenous-canada

September 30 was selected for being around the time that those children were taken from their homes.