The provincial government is enshrining the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation into B.C. law to establish the day as a statutory holiday.
Provincial officials said this will ensure that the strength and resilience of residential school survivors are remembered and that the children that never came home are honoured.
“Many British Columbians have been marking Orange Shirt Day with humility, respect and reflection in their own ways for years,” said Premier David Eby in a release.
“Today, we are taking the important step to enshrine this day in law to acknowledge the wrongdoings of the past, and to take meaningful action toward reconciliation.”
B.C. will join the federal government, Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and the Yukon as jurisdictions that have made Sept. 30 a statutory holiday.
Provincial officials said making it a stat holiday will allow more British Columbians to participate in local reconciliation events.