National Truth and Reconciliation Day marked by 5th annual march

Hundreds gathered in orange shirts at Montreal’s George-Étienne Cartier monument Tuesday to mark National Truth and Reconciliation Day during the 5th annual Every Child Matters march.

Hundreds of people gathered Tuesday at the George-Étienne Cartier monument for the 5th annual Every Child Matters march.

The event, held on National Truth and Reconciliation Day — a federal holiday commemorating the history of residential schools in Canada and also known as Orange Shirt Day — saw a sea of orange shirts fill the base of the statue as opening speeches were delivered.

The march was organized by Resilience Montreal and the Native Women’s Shelter, with support from the David Suzuki Foundation, the Alcoa Foundation and the POP Montreal festival.

Ben Geboe of the Red Lightning Family Unit said the event is “a beautiful way to come out and recognize that people are still living the effects of that.”

“It may be new to some people, but for Indigenous communities it’s been our life history, to have had these experiences that people really didn’t know about,” he added.

Lance Delisle, MC for the event, said the day is one of remembrance.

“We remember our elders and the struggles that they went through during residential school. This is a time for giving forth our stories to the community. It’s a really important day for us,” he said.