M’CHIGEENG—On Monday, September 30 Manitoulin Secondary School (MSS) marked Orange Shirt Day with a series of events designed to recognize the impacts of residential schools and honour the resilience of Canada’s Indigenous people. The day began with a Sunrise Ceremony and continued with activities that engaged students in cultural traditions and historical education.
The day’s events began at 6:45 am with a Sunrise Ceremony led by Gerard Sagassige, Anishinaabe Traditional Advisor and member of the Curve Lake First Nation. The ceremony was held on the school’s lawn, and school staff, school board representatives, and community members were in attendance. The group was seated around a sacred fire while Mr. Sagassige led the ceremony.
As students arrived at school, they were given the opportunity to participate in a semaa (tobacco) offering to the sacred fire. A tutorial on how to offer the tobacco to the fire was posted on the previous day’s morning announcements. Students would hold the tobacco in their left hand and walk clockwise around the fire, dropping the tobacco in as they went.
The school day began with a morning announcement educating students on what Orange Shirt Day is. The announcement read, “Each year on September 30, we wear orange to reaffirm our commitment to learning more about the intergenerational impacts of residential schools, to celebrate the strength and resilience of Indigenous peoples, and to honour the Survivors and the children who never came home.
Funded by The Crown and, later, the Government of Canada, residential schools operated from 1831 to 1996. The schools were largely run by the Catholic Church. According to then Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald, the goal was ‘to take the Indian out of the child’. Children were removed from their families, homes and communities, isolated in residential schools.
This is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Today, we honour the Survivors and remember the children who never came home. When we acknowledge the truth, we take another step on the journey towards reconciliation.”
Students then attended a morning workshop, an assembly with speakers Principal David Wiwchar, Gerard Sagassige and Elaine Nahwegahbow. Mr. Wiwchar gave a land acknowledgment and led students in a moment of silence for residential school victims. He then went on to present pictures of residential schools that were near Manitoulin Island and explained that this is where Indigenous people from Manitoulin were taken to. Next, he shared his experience from his eye-opening trip to the former Kamloops Residential School in British Columbia.
The presentation included quotes from MSS students taking the Indigenous Literature English class. One quote said: “Learning about Indigenous literature and perspectives is important because we should learn about the people who lived on this land before us. Along with literature, Indigenous culture and stories are also found through art, so the Indigenous arts class I was in last year was very informative and eye opening to that part of my culture.”
The next speaker, Gerard Sagassige, took to the mic to share stories from his life and experiences as an Indigenous person. His engaging storytelling was both educational and meaningful for the students in attendance.
Elaine Nahwegahbow then spoke about her experiences at a residential school. Hearing her personal story put things into perspective for the audience, and emphasized the importance of Orange Shirt Day. Ms. Nahwegahbow was honoured with a blanket after her speech, it was presented by her granddaughter and MSS student, Taylor Goodfellow.
Students then moved outside for the second workshop led by school staff member, Sunset Sagutch. Sunset guided students in assembling a teepee in front of the school with the help of some local police officers and volunteer students.
During lunch, students lined up to be served food in one of MSS’s potluck feasts. There are a few feasts organized throughout the year at MSS and they are always highly anticipated. Staff members bring in different dishes from turkey to chili to salad to brownies for everyone to enjoy. The feasts are a way to bring all students together and ensure that everyone can share a nice meal.
During lunch, students Cameron Meawasige and Taylor Goodfellow sang and drummed for the crowd. Shortly after, Ms. Meawasige, MSS’s Indigenous Student Senator, gave a speech about the importance of Orange Shirt Day and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s ninety-four calls to action. Ms. Meawasige concluded her speech with, “Today, we wear orange shirts because we recognize we are all responsible for educating ourselves about the traumatic effects of residential schools. It’s important to listen to the experiences of survivors and remember one day does not single-handedly make change. Truth and Reconciliation is actively working towards a future where we can promise safety, respect, and cultural freedom for all Indigenous families.”
by Alexandra Wilson-Zegil
