‘World, watch out’: Phyllis Webstad on healing through the Orange Shirt Day movement 

Editor’s note: As a member of Discourse Community Publishing, The Wren uses quotation marks around the word “school” because the Truth and Reconciliation Commission found residential “schools” were “an education system in name only for much of its existence.” The Indian Residential School Survivors Society crisis line is available any time at 1-800-721-0066. Please reach out if you need support.

Phyllis Webstad’s journey toward truth and reconciliation began in 1973 when she prepared to attend St. Joseph’s Mission near Williams Lake. She vividly remembers shopping for a new orange shirt to wear to school, only to have it taken from her upon arrival. 

The loss of her shirt symbolized the broader attempt at erasure of her Northern Secwépemc (Shuswap) identity and culture – an erasure experienced by Indigenous children in residential “schools” across Canada. From the 1830s to the 1990s, roughly 150,000 children were taken from their homes and their families. 

Webstad’s commitment to reconciliation took a significant step in 2013 when she founded Orange Shirt Day. The grassroots movement immediately took off and successfully spread awareness of the residential “school” system’s lasting impacts while honouring survivors and their families.

Initially, Webstad balanced this work part-time, but in 2018, following the publication of her first children’s book The Orange Shirt Story and a cross-country tour, she dedicated herself fully to the initiative.

“I’m 57 — people my age did not learn about residential ‘school’ history when they went to school,” Webstad, of Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation (Canoe Creek Indian Band) tells The Wren. “Heck, we weren’t even talking about it in our own homes.”

Now, students graduating from high school are going out into the world with this knowledge from their entire kindergarten to Grade 12 education, she says.

“I have five grandchildren, and one is 15,” Webstad adds. “He’s learning as well as he goes along. So it’ll have a change in Canada, and that’s exactly what I look forward to.”

“Our young Indigenous people are gonna be like him. World, watch out.” 

On Jan. 23, Webstad will be honoured with a 2024 BC Reconciliation Award at a special ceremony in “Victoria,” presented by the Office of the Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia in partnership with BC Achievement Foundation. 

The BC Reconciliation Award “recognizes individuals, groups and organizations who demonstrate exceptional leadership, integrity, respect, and commitment to furthering the Calls to Action outlined in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s report,” according to its website.

“Phyllis’ advocacy ensures that the history of residential schools is remembered, transforming trauma into education and hope for future generations,” a statement reads.

‘The intergenerational impact story is so important’

Webstad’s groundbreaking work with Orange Shirt Day society also contributed to the creation of Canada’s National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Sept. 30. She advocated for this day as it is near the time of year when children were forced to attend colonial institutions. 

However, Webstad is careful to distinguish the two initiatives, expressing concern that the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, organized by the government, risks overshadowing the grassroots origins of Orange Shirt Day.

Orange Shirt Day is a movement of the people directly affected by colonial traumas.

“You can’t just skip the truth and hop over to reconciliation,” Webstad says. “Nothing gets a rise out of the survivors more than somebody coming in and wanting to talk about reconciliation. They’re like, ‘Hold it. We’re still in the truth.’”

Webstad believes that reconciliation cannot begin until the truth is heard. Many survivors’ stories remain untold, and the families of those affected continue to grapple with intergenerational trauma. 

“One day we won’t be here, and I don’t want Orange Shirt Day to be forgotten. It was Orange Shirt Day first,” she says.

Listening, she says, is the first step in the journey toward reconciliation. 

“When we were creating Orange Shirt Day and getting the wording for it at first, we used to say it was created to honour residential ‘school’ survivors and remember those that never made it home,” Phyllis explains. 

“But then I said, ‘No, we need to put families in there — residential “school” survivors and their families — because their families are impacted by what happened. We need to honour them and hear their stories as well.’”

“The intergenerational impact story is so important, and we need to hear more of it.”

Growing the Orange Shirt Day movement

Despite the widespread impact of her work, demand keeps growing. 

To expand the reach of survivors’ stories and to meet the demand for Orange Shirt Day events, Webstad has partnered with Mastermind Studios in Kamloops (Tk’emlúps) to create an online platform. 

This interactive system, designed for schools, teachers and corporations, will feature videos of Webstad and her family sharing their stories. Viewers will be able to click through different stories to hear perspectives directly from those impacted.

“I can’t keep up with the requests,” Phyllis says. “This is a way to answer that.”

She explains that while she is thrilled about the award and what it represents, this work to lift up the voices of intergenerational survivors has come at a significant personal cost. It has become hard to see her own family, including her husband, and to care for herself.

When she heard the news about the reconciliation award, she describes feeling so physically weak from travel and speaking events she could barely walk. 

“If I keep doing that, it is going to take years for my life,” she says. “So that’s why this is so important, and I’m so thankful to [Mastermind Studios’ owner Peter J. Cameron-Inglis] and the rest of the people that are stopping what they’re doing to help me.”

Webstad encourages others to step up and participate in sharing the truth. “Truth comes before reconciliation, and the truth is not yet fully told.”

To the intergenerational survivors she says, “Tell your story at every opportunity.”

“Keep talking, keep learning. Learn who you are and where you come from and what your history is and what your culture is or was. And try and do your best to bring it into the current day.”