Along the Graybeard Trail

3Orange Shirt Day – Every Child Matters began in Williams Lake, British Columbia, on September 30, 2013. Established to honor Residential School Survivors, their families, and those who never returned home, it serves as a powerful reminder of the lasting impacts of the Residential School system on First Nations peoples and all of Canada. It is called Orange Shirt Day to honor one girl whose treasured orange shirt, given to her by her grandmother, was taken away from her at residential school. The observance began as a grassroots initiative has. It has evolved into a nationally recognized movement in Canada, with individuals, organizations, and communities across the country participating in acts of remembrance, reflection, and reconciliation each year.

The National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition (NABS), along with other Native American individuals, groups, and allies will honor a National Day of Remembrance for U.S. Indian Boarding Schools. In the United States the effort to crush the cultures of Indigenous Peoples included over 500 boarding schools, many run by churches that functioned in a similar manner to Canada’s Residential Schools. NABS provides information about the history of U.S. Indian Boarding Schools, healing projects for Indigenous persons, action suggestions and an online store with shirts and other products.

The peoples present in Australia when colonizers arrived endured a similar experience. Numerous government laws, policies and practices resulted in the forced removal of generations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families and communities across Australia. They are referred to as The Stolen Generations.

Lost Souls – Tom Jackson Lost Souls
Residential School Song (Indian Boarding School Song) – Cheryl Bear
Child of the Government – Jayli Wolf
BEFORE – A Tribe Called Red, feat. Joseph Boyden
Apatapasiq – Mike Bern
Battlefields – Twin Flames
Savage Mob – Snotty Nose Rez Kids, feat. Nooky & Birdz
open window – nêhiyawak
Took the Children Away – Archie Roach, Australian Art Orchestra, Paul Grabowsky & Ruby Hunter (the Australian Indigenous experience)
Take Me Home – Indian City
Spirit Horses – Annie Humphrey
The Land of the Blind – Ira Provost
Why Us – N’we Jinan Artists
500 Years – Rhonda Head
Residential School – Jerry Alfred & The Medicine Beat
Cut My Hair – Digging Roots
Residential School – Chris Pierce
For Our Children – Bryan Akipa