First National Day of Truth and Reconciliation at St. Thomas
In May of 2021, just 5 months ago, the remains of 215 Indigenous children were found in Kamloops, British Columbia. Ever since, mass graves have been found all over Canada, exposing a secret the nation had swept under a rug. September 30th marks the first ever Truth and Reconciliation Day, a National Day of Reflection and Remembrance for the lives lost while going to residential schools.
St. Thomas University will be closed Thursday the 30th, usually a day where students and teachers scramble to get from class to class, but on this Thursday, everything will be at a standstill.
The 29th was filled with orange shirts to commemorate Orange Shirt Day, at St. Thomas, as well as across Canada. Many gathered for the ceremony outside of JDH, and when walking through the courtyard, all you could see was orange.
“As an indigenous person, it hit close to home. And it was nice to see that so many people cared. And it was really nice to see that like even though so many of us are different, we can all say the same thing that things that happened were wrong and that they should never happen again.” STU student Bri Francis said about the ceremony.
“The the turn out was amazing for particularly the ceremony outside. I’ve been president for just about every ceremony that’s happened out there, and this was one of the best turnouts that I’ve seen…” STUSU President Ty Magee’s answer when asked about the turnout.
There were many places to get info on the day, such as in JDH where the St. Thomas Student Union set up an info center on Indigenous people and what Orange Shirt Day was about. You could peruse while going to your next class, or stay and chat with the people who set it up. Across campus, an info session at the Kinsella Auditorium was held by St Thomas’s Student Union after the ceremony at JDH had ended.
“It was really enlightening to see that the students want to take action and understand that there is a colonial past that Canada holds. And, that they want to move forward and help us in this common goal of teaching the truth and having reconciliation on campus.” Stevie DeMerchant said on the students eagerness to learn. Stevie is also Indigenous Rep on the Student Union, as well as Chair of STU Student Reconciliation Committee.
Since the first mass grave was found in May, across Canada there have been constant findings of other graves containing missing and murdered children at the hands of Residential School, with the potential number reaching over 6000 bodies. There is still much to do to ensure the safety of Indigenous people.
Perhaps the most controversial topic of the day was the fact premier of New Brunswick Blaine Higgs declined to mark September 30th a holiday, making most people upset and angry.
“…it seemed kind of very disrespectful and a slap in the face, that the premier is not honoring this huge loss…” STU Mental Health Counselor Wendy Matthews said. “I think tomorrow, for me, should be the national day for telling the truth.”
“I guess moving forward, it needs to be around reconcile-action because clearly words don’t mean anything to this government.” Michelle Sacobie added. “I think tomorrow, for me, should be the national day for telling the truth.”
Despite the government ruling, many businesses decided to take part in the holiday, and the city of Fredericton decided to recognize the day as a holiday, as many other cities in New Brunswick did. City Hall also raised the Wolastoqey Flag to permanently fly proud so Indigenous people will be represented everyday in the City of Fredericton.
It has been a long time coming for the Indigenous people of Canada. They are finally starting to be recognized and heard. There’s still a lot more to be done, but everything has to start somewhere.
