PEIAbout 200 people gathered in Charlottetown on Tuesday to mark Truth and Reconciliation Day, and they heard a pitch from the chief of Lennox Island First Nation to have a monument erected in the city to honour the memory of Indigenous people sent to residential schools in past decades. ‘Sea of orange’ gathers at Truth and Reconciliation Day event near Shaw BuildingCarolyn Ryan · CBC News · Posted: Sep 30, 2025 4:02 PM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours agoOrange Shirt Day is another name for Truth and Reconciliation Day, in honour of Phyllis Webstad from the Stswecem’c Xget’tem First Nation. As a young girl, she arrived at a residential school only to be told she couldn’t wear the orange shirt her grandmother had given her. (Delaney Kelly/CBC)About 200 people gathered in Charlottetown on Tuesday to mark Truth and Reconciliation Day, and they heard a pitch from the chief of Lennox Island First Nation to have a monument erected in the city to honour the memory of Indigenous people sent to residential schools in past decades. “This year marks 10 years since the Truth and Reconciliation Commission issued its calls to action,” Chief Tabatha Bernard said during the ceremony. She noted that one of that report’s recommendations called on every provincial government in Canada to work with survivors to install a residential schools monument in each capital city to honour those who were lost and who survived. “Yet here in Abegweit, no such monument exists. This is unfinished work,” she said.”Meeting this call to action should be simple, but it is also deeply meaningful. Survivors, their families, and all Islanders deserve a visible, lasting place of honour and remembrance here in Charlottetown.”Lennox Island First Nation Chief Tabatha Bernard, second from right, is shown at Tuesday’s event along with Premier Rob Lantz, Elder Barbara Jadis and Dr. Wassim Salamoun, the province’s lieutenant-governor. (Delaney Kelly/CBC)Among those listening in front of the provincial Shaw Building was Rob Lantz, Prince Edward Island’s premier and the minister responsible for Indigenous relations. Like most members of the crowd, he was wearing an orange shirt as a sign of solidarity with those who attended the church-run, government-funded schools where generations of Indigenous children lost touch with their culture, language and families. I think it’s a very meaningful action we can all take easily together.— P.E.I. Premier Rob LantzMany were physically, emotionally or sexually abused as well. “We have a long, complicated history and relationship with our Indigenous Peoples in this country,” Lantz told CBC News in a later interview. Of Bernard’s call for a monument, he said: “I think it’s a great suggestion and I’m willing to work with them right away on it.”As she described it, it’s probably very low-hanging fruit, but also very meaningful to our Indigenous communities here. And I will work with our First Nations, [and the] City of Charlottetown here and see if that’s something that we can pursue… I think it’s a very meaningful action we can all take easily together.”A drum ceremony by the Mi’kmaq Heritage Actors formed part of the agenda at the Charlottetown Truth and Reconciliation Day event. (Delaney Kelly/CBC)Lantz said his past conversations with Bernard and other Indigenous leaders in the province have left him thinking that the communities have a bright future ahead, given the pride and vitality they show. “We’ll continue that open-door policy, open dialogue and work on projects of mutual interest … that advance the interests of our First Nations — not just economic interests, but their socio-economic interests,” the premier said. Bernard has been chief of Lennox Island First Nation for just over three months, so Tuesday was her first Truth and Reconciliation Day as leader. “It’s almost like a little sea of orange looking out,” she said of the crowd at the event. She acknowledged that she was “somewhat emotional … to come forth and to be able to speak to the people here and to be able to say, ‘You know what? I want to see change and I’m gonna work hard for this change.'”Treaty Day follows on WednesdayIn another measure marking the day, P.E.I.’s provincial administration building was scheduled to be lit up in orange Tuesday night. That’s followed on Wednesday by Treaty Day, which recognizes the historic Peace and Friendship Treaties between the Mi’kmaq and the Crown.A Mawio’mi is being held to celebrate at the Eastlink Centre in Charlottetown. Admission is free and the Grand Entry will take place at 1 p.m. AT. ABOUT THE AUTHORCarolyn Ryan is the copy editor for CBC P.E.I.’s digital news operation. A graduate of the University of Prince Edward Island and the Carleton University School of Journalism, she has spent decades writing, editing and assigning other staff as a print, radio and digital journalist. With files from Delaney Kelly
Lennox Island chief calls for a residential schools monument in Charlottetown
