'The right thing to do': N.B. makes National Day for Truth and Reconciliation provincial holiday
The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is now being declared a provincial holiday in New Brunswick.
The announcement comes days after First Nations chiefs called on the province to make the change.
The day honours the children who never returned home from residential schools, as well as survivors and their families.
A statement from the Mi'gmawe'l Tplu'taqnn Inc. (MTI) chiefs says while this holiday does not reconcile issues or differences with the government, it is a step in the right direction.
“By granting this holiday, the government of New Brunswick is giving New Brunswickers an opportunity to reflect on how we can learn from each other and work together as treaty partners,” the statement from MTI read.
The six chiefs of Wolastoqey Nation say they are pleased with the government's decision.
"Honouring Truth and Reconciliation with a proper day of reflection was always the right thing to do," said the chiefs in the statement.
New Brunswick Aboriginal Affairs Minister Arlene Dunn says she encourages residents “to reflect and be reminded that reconciliation is not just one day of the year.”
Sept. 30 will be treated as any other provincial holiday. Essential services, including health care, will operate as normal.
More than 150,000 First Nations, Metis and Inuit children were forced to attend residential and so-called Indian Day schools from the 1870s to 1996.
The federal government first commemorated the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in 2021.
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