Orange Shirt Day founder fears Sept. 30 being co-opted from survivors [Video]

Content warning: This article contains details about residential “schools.” Please read with care for your spirit.

The residential “school” survivor whose story sparked Orange Shirt Day — and the “Every Child Matters” movement — says she is worried the cause is being forgotten.

Phyllis Webstad, founder and CEO of the Orange Shirt Society, told IndigiNews she’s noticed a growing number of public posters and government campaigns are instead focused on the recently adopted National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (NDTR).

In 2013, Orange Shirt Day was born after she shared her childhood story of her new orange shirt — gifted to her by her grandma — being taken from her at age six, on her first day at the St. Joseph’s Mission in the early 1970s.

Orange shirts — often bearing the motto “Every Child Matters” — have become a symbol honouring children who never returned home from residential “schools,” …