Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to speak on a topic today which is important to all Northerners: reconciliation within Indigenous peoples.

For over a century, Indigenous children were removed from their communities and sent to residential schools. These government-funded, church-run schools attempted to whitewash and re-educate the spiritual, cultural, and intellectual development of generations of Indigenous youth. This was a terrible mistake that has stained our shared history, and we, as a society, must accept the trauma we intentionally inflicted upon Indigenous peoples from coast to coast to coast.

Orange Shirt Day is an important symbol that gives us all the opportunity to start serious conversations about what we did as governments and non-Indigenous Canadians and the cost we continue to pay as a society.

Mr. Speaker, Orange Shirt Day in 2018 took place on September 30^th. This day was chosen because it was historically the time of year in which youths were taken from their communities and homes to state- and church-run residential schools. September 30^th is an opportunity for educators to set the stage for anti-racism, anti-bullying, and reconciliation-oriented lessons for the school year. It also gives educators time to plan events that will include young Northerners, as we must ensure that we are passing these important lessons on to the next generations, in the hopes that these travesties of education will never again be repeated.

I have had the honour of participating in Orange Shirt Day activities several times at N.J. MacPherson School, which is located in my constituency. I applaud the efforts of the amazing administrators, teachers, and students. They are not only embracing Orange Shirt Day but are helping to build a roadmap on how we move forward together in the spirit of reconciliation.

Mr. Speaker, Orange Shirt Day is a good start, and so too is the proposed new statuary holiday now being considered before the federal parliament, but these actions are only the beginnings of the true process of reconciliation. Workshops and training programs that help Northerners understand the consequences of residential schools need to be held across communities and inside government institutions. We must all become acquainted with the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and commit to implementing them as a territory.

Reconciliation will not be easy, but we must always strive towards if we are to continue to live and thrive together in our shared land, country, and history. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.