OTTAWA, ON, Sept. 29, 2026 /CNW/ -- On the eve of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Charlotte-Anne Malischewski, Chief Commissioner, Christopher T. Sutton, Accessibility Commissioner, Lori Straznicky, Pay Equity Commissioner, and the Federal Housing Advocate, Marie-Josée Houle, issue the following statement:
September 30 marks the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation as well as Orange Shirt Day. It is a day to honour the Survivors, their families, and communities affected by Canada's Residential School system, to remember the children who never came home, and to reflect on our collective responsibility to advance reconciliation in Canada.
Recent racist and hateful actions at Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc are a stark reminder of why the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation continues to matter. We stand with Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc, Survivors, their families and the community in condemning these acts. They remind us that reconciliation is not only about acknowledging the harms of the past. It also requires confronting anti-Indigenous racism and residential school denialism today. Denialism undermines reconciliation.
Reconciliation requires us to know and acknowledge the truth about our history and the lasting harms caused by Canada's Residential School system, including the loss of language, identity, culture, and family and community bonds. It means addressing the ways in which systemic discrimination continues to impact Indigenous people in areas such as policing, child welfare, and housing. We must listen to Survivors, their families, and Indigenous communities, whose voices and truths guide the path toward healing.
Reconciliation requires greater progress on the Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Calls for Justice of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. And it requires respecting the individual and collective rights of First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples.
Together, we call for the full implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which affirms the rights of Indigenous peoples to self-determination, culture, language, and land. And, we support the creation of human rights mechanisms led by Indigenous Peoples, for Indigenous Peoples.
If we are to learn from the harms of our past and build a better future together, we must confront anti-Indigenous racism and strengthen and uphold the fundamental human rights of all Indigenous Peoples.
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SOURCE Canadian Human Rights Commission
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