#orange-shirt-day

#orange-shirt-day

The Greater Toronto Area marked the fifth annual National Day of Truth and Reconciliation Tuesday in a variety of ways Tuesday, including flag raising, sunrise and drumming ceremonies. The day commemorates the lives lost to Canada's government-funded, church-run residential school system and honours the survivors and communities affected by ongoing trauma. In a news release Tuesday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Minister of Indigenous Affairs and First Nations Economic Reconciliation Greg Rickford said government buildings across the province would be lit orange.

The day commemorates the children who died while being forced to attend church-run and government-funded residential schools, as well as survivors and communities affected by ongoing trauma. Tuesday is also known as Orange Shirt Day, a tradition that began in 2013 to honour residential school survivor Phyllis Webstad, who had her orange shirt taken away on her first day at St. Joseph Mission Residential School.