By Dan Marshall

Orange Shirt Day remembers identities lost at residential schools

Sep 30, 2016 | 12:09 PM

NANAIMO — It’s Orange Shirt Day across Canada.

People are wearing orange to remember children who survived residential schools, and those who did not.

Wendy Beaton with the Tsawalk Learning Centre in Nanaimo says the movement towards reconciliation was inspired by the story of a woman from northern B.C. named Phyllis Webstad.

“She was given an orange shirt to wear to her first day of residential school,” says Beaton. “When she got there her shirt was taken away from her, so when she shared that story people started to really relate to that. Orange Shirt Day I think came from that giving people an opportunity to share their stories about what happened when they were taken to residential school.”

Beaton says stories of young children having their identity stripped away at residential schools are important for today’s students to hear.

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“It gives them an opportunity to ask some of the questions, to dig a little deeper, and to create a bit more understanding. It’s good for the students and it’s good for the adults. I think we need to see more of that happening around the city of Nanaimo and throughout the province and the country as well,” said Beaton.

Orange Shirt Day is not only being recognized by many organizations across Canada, but in the U.S. as well.

School District 68 marked the occasion on Wednesday because of Pro-D days Thursday and Friday.

The first Orange Shirt Day was held in Williams Lake in 2013.