Today is the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, and we hope that this edition of the Times Colonist will help you to honour its intent.
The day was declared by the federal government in June. It is designed to commemorate the lives of the Indigenous children who died while attending residential schools, and to pay tribute to the survivors, families and communities still dealing with the abuses of the residential school system.
In creating the special day, the federal government was acting upon one of the 94 calls to action in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s report, which was released in December 2015.
This is not meant to be a holiday like other days off with pay. It should be a day of truly important reflection. Please, please make time to reflect on the true meaning instead.
After all, in its report, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission expressed the hope that this day would “ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process.”
More broadly, it’s an opportunity to confront the reality — one so deeply rooted and widely recognized that many have come to take it for granted — that while Canada might be one of the most comfortable, stable, safe and affluent countries on Earth, not all of us share in that equally.
This has been a difficult year for many Canadians as more and more burial sites were discovered near former residential schools.
Such discoveries should make us feel uncomfortable and upset, and make us think harder about the past, the present and the future.
As difficult as it might have been to hear of the burials, imagine what the decades have been like for the families whose children did not come home.
Never forget that these discoveries were no surprise to Indigenous families; they had been speaking of abuses and deaths for many years.
In today’s edition, we are publishing a powerful full-page poster, a reminder of the simple truth: Every Child Matters. We are also including all 94 calls to action from the commission’s report.
On our Comment page, John Price, a professor emeritus at the University of Victoria, urges us to listen and learn — and do more than just talk about reconciliation.
Our goal is to help, in a small way, with the reflections and discussions that are needed to help us move forward.
Please don’t ignore the true meaning of this day. To do that would be to insult the memory of the dead children, and disrespect the families whose children did not come home.
Dave Obee is editor and publisher of the Times Colonist.
