A message from VIU Interim President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Dennis Johnson
On September 30, we observe the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day. This day honours residential school Survivors, their families and communities, remembers the children who never made it home and recognizes the resilience of Indigenous Peoples.
It is also a time to acknowledge the history and ongoing impacts of the residential school system and to reflect on what truth and reconciliation asks of each of us.
Vancouver Island University is situated within a diverse and deeply connected Indigenous landscape. The regions surrounding our campuses are home to three distinct cultural and linguistic families: Coast Salish, Nuu-chah-nulth and Kwakwaka’wakw. Within these cultural families are 50 Nations, each with their own cultures, traditions, languages, histories and teachings and deep relationships with the lands and waters of Vancouver Island.
These relationships are part of who we are as a university. They are reflected in the three totem poles at Shq’apthut (A Gathering Place) on our Nanaimo campus, which represent the three cultural families, and in the Snuneymuxw flag that flies on campus year-round.
On September 29, our three campuses will host opportunities to gather, listen, learn and reflect, including film showings and discussion, ceremony, speakers, cultural performances, a community feast and reflection. I encourage everyone to make time to participate and engage in these meaningful opportunities.
There are also opportunities to continue learning beyond September. The 12th annual Indigenous Speakers Series returns in November, delivered in partnership with CBC Radio’s Ideas. More details will be shared in the coming weeks.
As VIU is closed on Wednesday, September 30 to give our community time to reflect, I encourage you to wear orange on Tuesday, September 29, when we are together on our campuses. Wearing orange is a visible reminder that Every Child Matters and that reconciliation is an ongoing responsibility, one we carry with us throughout the year.
Related Posts
