Calgary to recognize National Day for Truth and Reconciliation when province won't
'It’s an opportunity for us to understand, grow and to build bridges with Indigenous people'
Author of the article:Brittany Gervais
Publishing date:Sep 08, 2021 •
Members of the Bear Clan sing and drum at the Calgary City Hall memorial for children who did not return home from residential schools on Thursday August 26, 2021. The City is looking at creating a permanent memorial site.
PHOTO BY GAVIN YOUNG/POSTMEDIA
The City of Calgary is marking Sept. 30 as the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation by making it a permanent statutory holiday for all city employees, despite the province’s refusal to do the same.
The federal government recently passed legislation to make Sept. 30 a federal stat holiday, giving Canadians an opportunity to recognize the brutal hardships endured by Indigenous people in the residential school system and honour Indigenous legacies.
The decision in Calgary was made after the city held conversations with community members and the city’s Indigenous Relations Office, according to a news release.
“We believe this decision is consistent with the spirit of reconciliation and aligns with actions outlined in our White Goose Flying Report,” said city manager David Duckworth.
“This National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is incredibly important to reflect on a relevant issue in our society . . . It’s an opportunity for us to understand, grow and to build bridges with Indigenous people.”
The 2016 White Goose Flying Report is named after Jack White Goose Flying, a 17-year-old from the Piikani Nation who died at a Calgary residential school.
The report looked at the 94 calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and how those could be addressed by the City of Calgary.
The City of Calgary is marking Sept. 30 as the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation by making it a permanent statutory holiday for all city employees, despite the province’s refusal to do the same.
The federal government recently passed legislation to make Sept. 30 a federal stat holiday, giving Canadians an opportunity to recognize the brutal hardships endured by Indigenous people in the residential school system and honour Indigenous legacies.
The decision in Calgary was made after the city held conversations with community members and the city’s Indigenous Relations Office, according to a news release.
“We believe this decision is consistent with the spirit of reconciliation and aligns with actions outlined in our White Goose Flying Report,” said city manager David Duckworth.
“This National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is incredibly important to reflect on a relevant issue in our society . . . It’s an opportunity for us to understand, grow and to build bridges with Indigenous people.”
The 2016 White Goose Flying Report is named after Jack White Goose Flying, a 17-year-old from the Piikani Nation who died at a Calgary residential school.
The report looked at the 94 calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and how those could be addressed by the City of Calgary.
First Nations furious over province's refusal to declare holiday recognizing residential school tragedies
Indigenous people in Calgary on the need for truth as city moves on long-term memorial plans
In the news release, Duckworth said the city will encourage staff to take the day to learn more about Canada’s assimilation policies, including residential schools, and the resulting intergenerational trauma caused to Indigenous people.
Recognizing Sept. 30 as a time to reflect and learn about Indigenous issues aligns with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s call for all levels of government to provide education to public servants on the history of Indigenous peoples.
This includes “the history and legacy of residential schools, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Treaties and Aboriginal rights, Indigenous law, and Aboriginal-Crown relations.”
City operations and services will be on a reduced schedule to recognize the day. A list of events to commemorate the holiday will be made available on the city’s website closer to Sept. 30, according to the city.
Province refuses to recognize holiday
Meanwhile, the province faces criticism for refusing to recognize the national holiday.
In the legislation, the federal government left it up to provinces and territories to decide whether to recognize the date as a holiday. The UCP government elected to leave it to employers in provincially regulated industries to decide whether to give their staff that day off work.
Canada’s residential school system tore more than 150,000 Indigenous children away from their families and subjected them to physical, mental and sexual abuse, poor living conditions and cultural genocide for decades. In the past year, more than a thousand unmarked graves of children have been uncovered at former school sites.
With 25 locations, Alberta had the highest number of residential schools of any province in Canada. The last residential school in Canada closed in 1996.
Adrienne South, press secretary for the ministry of Indigenous Relations, previously told Postmedia the government encourages all Albertans to reflect on the legacy of residential schools, but called the decision to make the day a holiday the responsibility of individual employers.
She said the province on that day will also lower flags to half-mast “to honour lives lost at residential schools, and commemoration ceremonies will take place.”
The Assembly of First Nations Alberta Association has accused the UCP government of giving short shrift to reconciliation by not declaring a statutory holiday.
In a statement, regional Chief Marlene Poitras said the province’s refusal “flies in the face of reconciliation with First Nations and shows a disdain and lack of care or respect for Alberta’s Indigenous population.”
Institutions in Calgary recognizing the national holiday include the Calgary Catholic School District, the Calgary Board of Education and the University of Calgary.
— With files from Bill Kaufmann
JUST LIKE ALBERTA
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation will not be provincial holiday in OntarioBy Ryan Rocca Global News
Posted September 8, 2021
A trio of B.C. First Nations and the Archdiocese of Vancouver are launching an investigation into the former St. Paul's residential school site. Aug 10, 2021
The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation will not be considered a provincial statutory holiday this year, an Ontario government spokesperson says.
Curtis Lindsay, press secretary for Indigenous Affairs Minister Greg Rickford, confirmed the decision in an email to Global News.
“Ontario is working in collaboration with Indigenous partners, survivors and affected families to ensure the respectful commemoration of this day within the province, similar to Remembrance Day,” Lindsay said.
READ MORE: New Brunswick won’t have Truth and Reconciliation holiday on Sept. 30: premier
“While the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is not a provincial public holiday this year, employers and employees may agree to treat this day as such, and some may be required to do so if it has been negotiated into collective agreements or employment contracts.”
The House of Commons unanimously supported legislation in June giving the Sept. 30 statutory holiday to all federal employees and workers in federally regulated workplaces.
It is meant to serve as a day of reflection so that people can recognize the harmful legacy of the residential school system in Canada.
Some provinces and territories, including British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and the Northwest Territories are observing the federal holiday, while many others are not making it a stat.
— with files from The Canadian Press
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