Orange Shirt Day

September 30 is Orange Shirt Day. It was launched in 2013 to call attention to 165 years of residential school experiences in Canada (1831-1996). Residential school survivor Phyllis Webstad wore a beautiful orange shirt to her first day of school in 1973. It was stripped from her and never seen again. The removal of the orange shirt was the first of a series of destructive methods enforced to deplete her sense of self-worth, erase her culture, and suppress her spirit. Her story is just one of the experiences described by countless survivors, but many others did not live to tell their own story. 

In recognition of Orange Shirt Day the National Film Board has published a playlist of five films about residential schools. Below is Christmas In Moose Factory by legendary Abenaki director Alanis Obomsawin.

Christmas at Moose Factory, Alanis Obomsawin, provided by the National Film Board of Canada