On September 30th, the York University Staff Association (YUSA) stands in solemn reflection and solidarity with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities across Turtle Island to recognize the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day.
This critical day honours the Survivors of Canada’s residential school system, the children who never returned home, and the families and communities enduring the ongoing intergenerational impacts of colonial violence. As we wear orange, we remember Phyllis Webstad’s story and commit to ensuring that Every Child Matters.
As a progressive labour union, YUSA recognizes that workers’ rights and human rights are fundamentally linked. The broader Canadian labour movement has a long-standing history of organizing for social justice, equity, and fairness, and supporting Indigenous sovereignty is an essential part of that mandate. Unions like YUSA have consistently championed equitable workplaces and communities free from systemic racism, discrimination, and economic injustice. However, solidarity cannot remain a passive sentiment. It requires continuous learning, unlearning, and meaningful advocacy.
At York University, our staff members live, work, and build community on the traditional territories of many Indigenous nations, including the Anishnabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat, as well as the current treaty holders, the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation. Operating on these lands carries a profound responsibility to confront the truth of Canada’s past and address the structural inequalities that persist today.
Reconciliation demands more than symbolic gestures. It calls on all of us to actively implement the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action, including those focused on education, workplace equity, and economic justice. Unions play a vital role in pushing for structural changes, like advocating for policies that protect Indigenous workers, defending land rights, supporting Indigenous-led initiatives, and dismantling systemic barriers within our institutional spaces.
On this day, YUSA urges all members to spend time engaging in reflection and direct action. Listen to Indigenous voices, read the TRC report, attend local commemorative events, and support Indigenous creators, businesses, and grassroots organizations.
True reconciliation begins with truth. YUSA remains dedicated to walking alongside Indigenous peoples in the pursuit of justice, self-determination, equity, and lasting human rights for generations to come.
