Saturday, September 30 marks the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. River Bookshop will be recognizing this important day in a number of ways. As you know, our values are to educate, entertain, inspire, and engage, and these values guide us as we reflect upon the history of this land we live and work on.
Orange Shirt Day
Orange Shirt Day honours the thousands of Survivors of residential schools, and it makes visible the concept that Every Child Matters. In honour of this day, our booksellers will be wearing our orange shirts, and we encourage others to do the same.
Calls to Action
In 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada published 94 Calls to Action as part of a plan to accept responsibility and seek forgiveness in the spirit of reconciliation. Unfortunately, as of the last audit in late 2022, only 13 have been completed. On Saturday the 30th, you can visit our Art Alley behind the shop to see our Call to Action Wall. You will be able to read all 94, reproduced in orange as below, and to read more about their history and their progress. You can also find them throughout our store.
Indigenous Voices
Our booksellers have curated a selection of books to amplify Indigenous voices. On Saturday and Sunday, every book on this display is 13% off. Examples of our recommendations are 21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act by Bob Joseph and Our Voice of Fire by Brandi Morin.
We are also recognizing these voices in another way. In our Art Alley, when you are reading the Calls to Action, you will also find framed quotations from Indigenous authors. These quotes bring awareness to uncomfortable truths, educate us, and inspire reconciliation. In displaying this work, we hope to pay tribute to Indigenous authors.
Indigenous Art
Did you attend our Art Crawl earlier this month? If not, you may not know that we have two new murals in our Art Alley, behind the bookshop and The Panetteria. These two works are by Indigenous artist Naomi Peters. Both portray Shawnee chief Tecumseh. You can see one below. We recommend coming to see both in person to experience the full effect of this art.
Town of Amherstburg
We also want to highlight what the Town of Amherstburg is doing to recognize this day. On Saturday the 30th, in the King's Navy Yard Park, join the Ska:na Family Learning Centre for an afternoon of storytelling, drumming, Indigenous vendors, children's activities, and more. For details, visit visitamherstburg.ca/reconciliation.
——
We still have much to learn, and we hope to help others do the same.
Meghan and The River Bookshop Team