It can be easy to mix up June 21 and September 30, but they aren’t interchangeable. Both are important Indigenous observances that go beyond a day off, and each comes with its own purpose and meaning. Here is a simple guide to what each day is for – and how CUPE members can show up in a good way and carry that commitment into the rest of the year.

June 21: A celebration

June 21, National Indigenous Peoples Day, is a day of celebration – a time to celebrate the vibrant traditions and cultures of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples, and their outstanding contributions to our communities.

It is also a moment to recognize the ongoing, fierce advocacy of Indigenous CUPE members and Indigenous communities across Canada. It is a reminder of our responsibility to respect the rights of Indigenous peoples on ceded and unceded territories, and to protect their cultures and languages.

CUPE’s national diversity vice-president representing Indigenous workers, Debra Merrier, says June 21 is also deeply personal. It is a time to spend with family and community, to connect with Elders, and to celebrate traditions by getting “deep into our spirituality and our culture.” “There are many different events that take place from coast to coast to coast on June 21. It’s also the longest day of the year – it’s a time for us to connect and it brings a sense of renewal and ‘new beginnings,’” she says, explaining the significance many people attach to the solstice.

One important truth that often gets lost: there isn’t one single Indigenous culture, and there isn’t one single way to celebrate. First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples include many distinct nations and communities across the country, with different languages, teachings, histories, and ways of gathering. That diversity matters, and it means celebration can look different depending on the region, the people gathering, and the relationships.

There are many ways to recognize Indigenous peoples in CUPE events, conferences and conventions, but National Indigenous Peoples Day isn’t a day when Indigenous members should be expected to organize cultural programming or performances.

“I always say June 21 is a time for us,” Merrier points out. “It’s not a time for us, as Indigenous peoples, to organize big events and invite people, because it’s our time. It’s a time to be with our families, to spend time on the land. Sometimes we hold ceremonies, sometimes we feast. Our events are more relationship-based, they’re about the people around us. That’s what June 21 is about.”

Across the country, Indigenous communities hold many different ceremonies and gatherings that mark different parts of the year, not just June 21. Some gatherings, like powwows, are more widely known, but there are many others too. Traditions can look different from region to region as people reconnect with culture and carry teachings with them as they move.

How to mark the day in a meaningful way

September 30: A memorial day

September 30 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. It is not a celebration day. It is a day for remembrance, truth, and responsibility. Inspired by the story of residential school survivor Phyllis (Jack) Webstad from the Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation, communities across Canada have commemorated September 30 as Orange Shirt Day since 2013 – a day to learn and reflect on the truth about residential schools and turn that learning into action.

As a six-year-old girl, Phyllis was given a new orange shirt by her grandmother before being taken to a B.C. residential school. The shirt was confiscated and destroyed on the first day of class, and that act has come to symbolize the colonial goal of residential schools: forced assimilation of Indigenous peoples.

Debra Merrier stresses that symbols like wearing an orange shirt on that day matter most when they lead us back to the truth. “People need to know what the truth is. A big part of Orange Shirt Day is the residential schools. It’s a memorial day to honour the children who never returned home, honour the survivors of the residential schools, and honour their families and community who are still hurting today,” she says. “It’s not a time to celebrate, it’s a time to reflect, to educate, and to acknowledge what we have lost: thousands of years of history.”

While records and recognition aren’t always complete, and some sites and experiences haven’t been consistently documented or acknowledged, the truth is that residential schools operated for more than a century in Canada. The first church-run school opened in 1831 in Ontario, and the last federally run school closed in 1996 in Saskatchewan. Merrier adds that 139 residential schools are formally recognized under the IRSSA and were operated by the government and churches, while also stressing that not all schools “on the land” were fully documented or acknowledged.

More than 150,000 First Nations, Inuit and Métis children attended residential schools, and the full truth is still being uncovered. At the 2025 CUPE National Convention, delegates adopted a resolution committing to fight anti-Indigenous racism and the denial of residential schools. “The public, the people, the community, have to remember residential schools have impacted so many,” Merrier says, noting how personal this day is for many families, including her own. “I’m the daughter of a residential school survivor. My mom was in a residential school for 14 years – she wasn’t able to come home during that time.”

Merrier remembers the scale of the system and the cruelty behind it: schools with hundreds of children, strict separation between boys and girls, and an education designed to erase language, culture and identity.

September 30 shouldn’t be treated like a generic awareness day. Truth and reconciliation can’t be rushed and reduced to a script, or stop at symbolism. It is also connected to our fight against ongoing systemic injustices and environmental racism. It calls on us to act differently because of what we now understand – what Merrier calls “reconcili-action”: moving from learning to changes we can implement in our workplaces, locals and communities.

How to mark the day in a meaningful way

  • Don’t treat the day like a celebration. Create a space for reflection.
  • Choose one credible resource and learn something specific, instead of raising “general awareness”. Use the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action as starting points.
  • Connect learning to one concrete commitment your local or workplace will take on after the day.
  • Host a learning session with an Indigenous speaker at your next virtual or in-person meeting.
  • Learn more about truth and reconciliation by taking CUPE’s Indigenous awareness workshop and human rights courses.
  • Download CUPE’s guide on bargaining language for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation to find out how you can observe the day and support reconciliation efforts.
  • Take the steps outlined in Walking the talk: A practical guide to reconciliation for CUPE locals to better include Indigenous members in our union.
  • Use CUPE’s guide Truth and reconciliation: CUPE taking action through collective bargaining and negotiate language to train members on Indigenous issues, including the history and legacy of residential schools, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, intercultural competency, and anti-racism.
  • Advocate for all Indigenous peoples to have fair and equal access to public services and infrastructure, both on- and off-reserve and in urban centres.
  • Order an Orange Shirt Day t-shirt through the official suppliers (part of the proceeds will go to the Orange Shirt Society).

Celebration matters, and so does truth. That is why June 21 and September 30 ask different things of all of us. As part of our ongoing efforts to foster reconciliation in our workplaces and communities, we encourage all CUPE members to take part in these days respectfully, and to take time to learn and reflect on the ongoing harms of colonialism and Canada’s treatment of Indigenous peoples.

Debra Merrier’s message is also clear: “As Indigenous peoples, why is it constantly our job to tell others, ‘Here are some things to do?’” We all have a responsibility to do the learning, engage with existing guidance and resources, and take action that goes beyond a single day or a single symbolic gesture.

So what can you do – and what can your local, your division or your district council do? Start by choosing one concrete step and follow it through. Offer educational materials to your members. Read the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action, particularly Actions 7, 43, 44 and 65. Have the conversations. Make space to hear the stories and learn from them, and carry all that learning into decisions we can point to in our workplaces and in our union.

And there are reasons to be hopeful. “I hope each division is doing something – getting CUPE locals involved, building community and relationships with Indigenous peoples. These are slow but positive steps,” Merrier says.

Resolution 108 adopted: CUPE’s commitment against residential school denial

Resolution No. 108 submitted by the Hospital Employees’ Union (B.C.)

(also covering Resolution No. 106 submitted by CUPE Vancouver Island District Council (B.C.) and Local 951 (B.C.)) was unanimously adopted at CUPE’s 2025 National Convention.

CUPE WILL:

1. Commit to combating anti-Indigenous racism and the denial of residential schools through education, advocacy, and solidarity with Indigenous communities;

2. Develop and promote educational materials to help members recognize and challenge false narratives that deny the realities of residential schools;

3. Work with Indigenous organizations and knowledge keepers to support truth-telling initiatives and amplify Indigenous voices;

4. Advocate for stronger policies and public education initiatives that counteract residential school denialism and promote reconciliation efforts;

5. Ensure its communications and training programs reflect accurate, respectful, and truth-based narratives about Indigenous history and rights.

BECAUSE:

• Indigenous communities continue to face systemic racism and discrimination, including the rise of narratives that deny the existence and impacts of residential schools;

• The denial of residential schools and their harms perpetuates historical injustices, undermines reconciliation efforts, and fosters racism against Indigenous peoples;

• Truth and education are vital in combating racism and ensuring that historical and contemporary injustices are acknowledged and addressed.