Reflecting on the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

This September 30^th, the Okanagan Indian Band would like to reflect on what ‘Truth and Reconciliation’ means to us.

The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is a day to pay respect to all of the scəcmalaʔ (children) who never returned home and to honour our survivors and their families. It is a day to listen, to learn, and to acknowledge the deep and lasting impacts that the Residential School System has had on our people, our community, and our families.

It is equally a time to recognize the strength, courage, and resilience of our people. In 1997, less than 30 years ago, the last Residential School officially closed. Since then, through the hard work, dedication, and determination of our Elders, Knowledge Keepers, Teachers, and Community, our Language and Culture has not only survived, but are thriving once again. niʕ̓íp kʷu saláʔx (we have always been here), sharing our language, our culture, our songs, and our ways of living and being.

This year, our new nk̓maplqs iʔ snm̓am̓ay̓aʔtn iʔ k̓l sqilxʷtət (The Place Where our Children Learn our Indian Ways) opened its doors, giving our children the opportunity to grow in an education grounded in our language, our culture, our traditions, and our Syilx ways of being. This school stands as the direct opposite of those that were forced upon us; it is a powerful act of reclamation, a testament to our resilience, and an investment in our future. It is a promise that every child does matter.

əts ha̓ stim iʔ scəcmalaʔ | Every child matters.

Okanagan Indian Band