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Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew, also the minister responsible for Indigenous Reconciliation, announced the establishment of the Orange Shirt Day Fund, a new grant program aimed at promoting awareness and reflection on the legacy of residential schools across the province.
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The $800,000 fund will support projects and activities commemorating Orange Shirt Day, observed annually on Sept. 30. This day serves as a solemn reminder of the history and ongoing impacts of the residential school system on Indigenous communities in Canada.
“Our government is proud that Manitobans will be able to observe it as a provincial holiday for the first time this year and we’re supporting projects that will help bring more Manitobans together to mark Orange Shirt Day,” said Kinew in a release on Wednesday.
The fund is intended to amplify efforts in fulfilling Call to Action No. 80 of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, which calls for a public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools.
“I want every child and every family in Manitoba to have the opportunity to reflect on the legacy of residential schools, the children who didn’t come home and the profound impacts of that trauma on families that still exist today,” said Kinew.
Applications for the Orange Shirt Day Fund are now open to grassroots and non-profit organizations, Indigenous communities, educational institutions, daycares, and municipal governments throughout Manitoba. Interested parties are encouraged to submit their proposals by August 1, 2024.
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