Tomorrow, September 30, will mark the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
This day honours the lost First Nation, Métis, and Inuit children and Survivors of Residential Schools, their families, and their communities. Since May, 6,509 unmarked graves have been found at former Residential School sites, with many more Indigenous children still unaccounted for. The impacts of this systemic attempt to oppress and erase Indigenous cultures are actively felt, as are the impacts of countless others, past and present.
Tourism HR Canada will be closed on this solemn day. Our team members will remember, learn, contemplate, and act. We invite you to join us in meaningfully and thoughtfully acknowledging the oppression of lands, cultures, and the original Peoples in what we now know as Canada, and to consider how we can each move forward in a spirit of reconciliation and collaboration…not just tomorrow, but every day.
The Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada has shared a series of actionable steps to be an ally to Indigenous Peoples and communities. View them here.
Remember Me: A National Day of Remembrance will be livestreamed from Ottawa beginning at 10:00 AM Eastern Time. Click here for the full schedule and link to the YouTube stream.
Additional resources include:
National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation
Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to Action
Indigenous Canada, a free online course offered by the Faculty of Native Studies at the University of Alberta
native-land.ca, an interactive map of Indigenous territories, languages, and treaties
The National Residential School Crisis Line: 1-866-925-4419, 24 hours a day
As part of our organization’s journey, Tourism HR Canada is in the process of including land acknowledgments in communications and publications. Feedback is welcome.