UUC's Acting for Racial Justice Team asks that you participate in the September 30 Orange Shirt Day to recognize the impact on our Indigenous kin from the residential schools.

“Each year on September 30, Orange Shirt Day offers an opportunity to remember the Native children who were taken from their families, communities, languages, cultures, and ways of life through residential and boarding school systems.” DCYF's Commitment & Call to Action | Orange Shirt Day | Washington State Department of Children, Youth, and Families

Orange Shirt Day began with the story of Phyllis Webstad, a Northern Secwépemc woman in Canada. When she arrived at residential school as a young child, the new orange shirt her grandmother had given her was taken away. Her story became a symbol of what was taken from generations of Indigenous children and gave rise to the message Every Child Matters. Orange Shirt Day

Unitarians were involved in programs to “kill the Indian and save the man” through the formation of places to educate adults from the Ute tribes to farm and speak English. A residential school was also established by the American Unitarian Association on the Crow reservation in Montana called the “Montana Industrial School for Indians” run by Unitarians Rev. and Mrs. Henry F. Bond.

For generations, Canadian and American Indian/Alaska Native children were removed from their families and Tribal Nations and sent to government- and church-operated boarding schools. Children were often prohibited from speaking their languages, practicing their cultures, wearing traditional clothing, or maintaining the relationships that connected them to their people.

The Washington State Tribal Advisory Council “found about two dozen boarding school facilities that operated in Washington state or territorial boundaries from 1850 through 1930... The report also lists other facilities, such as asylums and hospitals, that were used to separate Native children from their families.”

The Acting for Racial Justice Team encourages you to check out the following links and wear an orange shirt* on September 30.

National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition

WA State OAG: Indian Boarding School History

* https://orangeshirtday.org/about/faqs:

Where can I buy an Orange Shirt?

The Orange Shirt Society does not sell shirts or merchandise directly. However, we have many official retailers and partners to choose from. Visit our Official Merchandise page for more info or visit our License Finder page for licensed vendors.