St. FX University hosted a remembrance ceremony marking the inaugural National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Thursday. The ceremony was a collaboration with local Mi’kmaw communities and the school’s Indigenous Affairs Office.
St. FX President Dr. Andy Hakin says the university was closed on Thursday so people can come
Tying orange ribbons at Alumni Plaza. (St. FX University photo)
together to listen and to reflect on a shared history that challenges us. Hakin says to have reconciliation, we must learn and speak the truth, and we must come together to reflect on the historical injustices inflicted on Indigenous peoples, injustices that continue today.
The coordinator of Indigenous Student Affairs at St. FX Terena Francis, a descendant of Indian Residential School survivors, shared the stories of her parents and how that experience affected them. She asked those at the ceremony to continue to learn about what happened.
After the ceremony, those in attendance were invited to tie an orange ribbon on an installation at Alumni Plaza in memory of the more than 6,500 children who died in the residential school system.