Today is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Across Canada, people are wearing orange, schools are holding assemblies, and flags are coming down to half-mast.
Here in Brantford, this day isn’t abstract. The history it asks us to face is right here, on Mohawk Street.
What the Day Is About
It began as Orange Shirt Day in British Columbia in 2013 and has grown into a nationwide occasion to honour residential school survivors, their families and the children who never came home. In June 2021, September 30 was officially recognized as a federal day, answering one of the 94 Calls to Action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. This year marks the sixth annual observance.
The Mohawk Institute Is Part of Our City
Most Canadians learn about residential schools as something that happened “somewhere else.” For us, it happened here.
The former Mohawk Institute, also known as “The Mush Hole,” was the oldest and longest-running residential school in Canada. It got that nickname because of the poor food, and it was run by the Anglican Church and the federal government from 1828 to 1970, taking children mainly from nearby Six Nations of the Grand River. Around 15,000 children from 60 communities across Canada attended, and at least 105 died while enrolled there, according to the Survivors’ Secretariat.
The work of finding the truth is still going. A ground search of the lands began on November 9, 2021, with community members and Six Nations Police officers trained on ground penetrating radar and paired together to search. Since then, the Secretariat has gathered more than 36,000 records and identified over 6,000 children who attended the school.
Those are numbers, but they’re also kids. Kids who grew up a short drive from where many of us live, work and raise our own families.
Why This Sits With Me
I’ve called Brantford home since 2015, and I’ve spent more than 15 years helping people find their homes here. I talk about home every single day. It’s hard to write that without thinking about the thousands of children who were taken from theirs, in the same city where I hand over keys.
Brantford is named after Joseph Brant (Thayendanegea), and our whole community grew up along the Grand River, right beside Six Nations of the Grand River. Reconciliation isn’t someone else’s job here. It’s ours.
How to Mark the Day in Brantford
Visit the Woodland Cultural Centre today. The event runs from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at 184 Mohawk Street, with speeches starting at 9:30 a.m. You’ll find cultural performances, guest speakers, film screenings, an Indigenous artisan market, food and drink vendors, a community mural installation and a dedicated survivor space. Timed self-guided tours of the Mohawk Institute are offered throughout the day, with pre-registration and a minimum donation required.
Support the Save the Evidence campaign. It’s the Woodland Cultural Centre’s effort to preserve the building so that history isn’t lost.
Read the Calls to Action. The City of Brantford encourages residents to learn about the TRC’s Calls to Action, which offer a roadmap for healing and understanding between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. Pick one and actually learn about it.
Keep it going past today. Buy from Indigenous artists and businesses. Listen to survivors when they share their stories. Take your kids to the Woodland Cultural Centre on a regular Saturday, not just on September 30.
Every Child Matters
Wearing orange is a good start. Showing up, learning and listening is better. We’re lucky to live in a city with so much history, and part of loving this place is being honest about all of it.
If this day brings up hard feelings for you or someone you love, the Indian Residential School Crisis Line is available 24/7 at 1-866-925-4419.
