Take Action with #94in94

This campaign was inspired by the recent discoveries in Kamloops and Brandon. Canadians are asking, what can they do in response to these discoveries? Instead of starting at square one, let’s take this opportunity to work together to ensure every single Canadian is familiar with the work and guidance of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, especially the 94 Calls to Action.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) was created through a legal settlement between Residential Schools Survivors, the Assembly of First Nations, Inuit representatives and the parties responsible for creation and operation of the schools: the federal government and the church bodies.

The TRC’s mandate was to inform all Canadians about what happened in residential schools. The TRC documented the truth of Survivors, their families, communities and anyone personally affected by the residential school experience. This included First Nations, Inuit and Métis former residential school students, their families, communities, the churches, former school employees, government officials and other Canadians.

The TRC concluded its mandate in 2015 and transferred its records to the safekeeping of National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR).

When the members of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (The Honourable Justice Murray Sinclair, Chair, Dr. Marie Wilson, and Chief Wilton Littlechild) finished their work, they published their findings in a number of documents:

• Summary of the Final Report
• What we have learned
• The Survivors Speak
• Canada’s Residential Schools: The History, Part 1
• Canada’s Residential Schools: The History, Part 2
• Canada’s Residential Schools: The Inuit and Northern Experience
• Canada’s Residential Schools: The Métis Experience
• Canada’s Residential Schools: Missing Children and Unmarked Burials
• Canada’s Residential Schools: The Legacy
• Canada’s Residential Schools: Reconciliation

They also created a short document with 94 calls to action for every member of society. The calls are broken into the following areas:

• Legacy
  • Child welfare
  • Education
  • Language and Culture
  • Health
  • Justice
• Reconciliation
  • Canadian Government and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP)
  • Royal Proclamation and the Covenant of Reconciliation
  • Settlement agreement parties and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP)
  • Equity for Aboriginal People in the Legal System
  • National Council for Reconciliation
  • Professional Development and Training for Public Servants
  • Church apologies and reconciliation
  • Education for reconciliation
  • Youth programs
  • Museums and archives
  • Missing Children and burial information
  • National Center for Truth and Reconciliation
  • Commemoration
  • Media and Reconciliation
  • Sports and Reconciliation
  • Business and Reconciliation
  • Newcomers to Canada

The calls are not just for government. They address multiple areas in society and all people need to know and act on them (see above).

The TRC final report states: “Reconciliation cannot be left up to governments, the courts, and churches alone. There must be dialogue and action in communities across the country. Reconciliation must happen across all sectors of Canadian Society.” (pg. 306).

We are listing all the calls on our website at this link. If you prefer to get an email each day you can sign up at Reconciliation Thunder. 

Be creative. Build your own campaign around this campaign by mobilizing those you lead and facilitating relationship-building and discussion.

1. Ensure those you lead are aware of the campaign and have the ability to read and share the posts each day
2. Plan several events with your organization/community to facilitate questions and discussion
3. Hire an Indigenous consultant/facilitator to answer questions that might arise over the course of the campaign
4. As an organization/community decide on an action that you can do corporately (cooperatively?) after the campaign is over
5. Facilitate the reading and group discussion of the other TRC reports listed above

During the 94 days, people will be asked to choose at least one Call to Action. As the campaign proceeds you will be able to search the #94in94 hashtag to see examples of what other organizations/communities are doing. Once you or your organization/community decides, post your story online using the #94in94 hashtag to inspire others to do the same.

Susan Dowan

Indigenous Recruiter
[email protected]
Cell: +1-705-761-3932

Reconciliation Thunder is a non-profit established to educate and empower corporate, government, and community leaders to respond to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action, address institutional racism, and create long term change. Resources are provided online via the Reconciliation Thunder website, and social media channels.