The federal government is currently consulting on a new statutory holiday to honour Indigenous people in Canada, specifically the residential school survivors.
The government is floating two dates for the statutory holiday- June 21st, which is National Indigenous Peoples Day, or September 30th which is Orange Shirt Day in honour of residential school survivors.
@orangeshirtawarenessembedded via
The new holiday hasn't even been officially announced yet, but that's not stopping people from sharing their opinions about the proposed new day. Overall, Canadians are completely divided on the subject.
While some people are against it, one Indigenous artist and activist Wab Kinew believes Canada is long overdue for a specific day to honour the Indigenous community.
A national stat holiday to honour residential school survivors is very important - it will help ensure their stories are never forgotten.My personal preference is that it be marked on Orange Shirt Day on September 30 as many survivors have started to build this day up already.
In the winter when I was teaching about #ResidentialSchools in #CdnHistory my students were shocked that such a day didn't already exist. Imagine the awareness that will come along with an entire day dedicated to remembering this dark part of our history! https://t.co/2QddaSmlFi
Canadians who are opposed to the idea have been sharing their distaste on Twitter. They give a few different reasons, but the biggest seems to be the subject of Remembrance Day.
In Canada, Remembrance Day celebrated on November 11. It isn't an official statutory holiday, meaning students still have to go to school, and businesses and workplaces are up and running as usual.
Great - we need to recognize the legacy of the residential schools. But we also need a stat holiday for November 11th. The argument against a November stat is that children learn more about it by being in school on that day; I would argue that's even more relevant for RSs.
If Turdumb is going to force a new star holiday on us, it should be Remembrance Day
Most people opposed to the possible new day for Indigenous Peoples believe that, if Canada is going to have any new stat holidays, it should be Remembrance Day. On the same side of the argument though, others simply think a new holiday is a waste of money.
If Turdumb is going to force a new star holiday on us, it should be Remembrance Day
So, businesses now have to pay for the mistakes made in the past? Seems fair. 🙄🤦♀️
Both the proposed dates for the statutory holiday are already days celebrating Indigenous Peoples, and are even recognized as provincial statutory holidays in provinces like Manitoba.
