Canada’s residential school system has been recognized as cultural genocide.
Orange Shirt Day came about when residential school survivor Phyllis Jack Webstad shared her story in 2013, about her first day at residential school. She was a six-year-old girl when the school stripped her, including her orange shirt, which was bought by her grandmother.
September 30, the annual date of the event, signifies the time of year when Indigenous children were historically taken from their homes to residential schools. In June 2021, the Government of Canada passed Bill C-5 to name September 30 as a federal statutory day. It is observed as the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Support for Survivors
Residential School Survivor Support Line
24-hour crisis support to Survivors and their families.
1-866-925-4419
Alberta: 1-888-495-6588
British Columbia: 1-877-477-0775
Manitoba: 1-866-818-3505
Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland, and Labrador: 1-866-414-8111
Ontario: 1-888-301-6426
Quebec: 1-877-583-2965
Saskatchewan: 1-866-250-1529
Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut: 1-800-464-8106
The Hope for Wellness Help Line
Offers help to all Indigenous peoples across Canada.
1-855-242-3310 (Available in Cree, Ojibway, Inuktitut)
Indian Residential School Survivors Society
A provincial organization with a 20-year history of providing services to Residential School Survivors.
Crisis Support: 1-800-721-0066
Regular: 604-985-4464
Learning Resources For Allies
- Learn the history of the land you are on.
- Familiarize yourself with the Calls to Action identified by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.
- Familiarize yourself with the Calls for Justice identified by the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
- Learn about #LandBack.
- Learn from the Assembly of First Nations’ Digital Education Toolkit’s classroom resources to help educators and students learn about residential schools and treaties.
- Listen to Indigenous perspectives from the Yellowhead Institute, an Indigenous-led research and education centre, offers resources to support the reclamation of Indigenous land and life.
Here is a list of resources curated by Myseum Toronto.
Organizations to Support
The Indian Residential School Survivors Society
A provincial organization with a 20-year history of providing services to Residential School Survivors
Native Women’s Association of Canada
A national Indigenous organization representing political voices of Indigenous women, girls, and gender-diverse people in Canada
Preserves, promotes and strengthens Indigenous language, culture, art and history
A national Indigenous registered charity that invests in the education of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples