On September 27, Edmonton joined in the Orange Shirt Day celebration at Edmonton City Hall.
City of Edmonton Ward 4 Coincillor, Aaron Paquette, summarized Orange Shirt Day in his characteristic artistic tone “…is a remembrance of those who were stolen from their homes as children and forced to go to residential schools…We celebrate Orange Shirt Day to remember that, that will never happen again…and we can build a bright future together, where every child has the right to be raised in their own home, in their own language, and in their own culture…”
Orange Shirt Day is an event that started in 2013. It was designed to educate people and promote awareness about the Indian residential school system and the impact this system had on Indigenous communities for more than a century in Canada, and still does today. It is held annually on September 30 in Canadian communities with students and staff being encouraged to wear an orange shirt to school that day.
