An Indigenous Legacy Gathering is being held at Nathan Phillips Square to commemorate the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, also known as Orange Shirt Day, on Tuesday.
The gathering, hosted by the Toronto Council Fire Native Cultural Centre, will be a vibrant celebration of Indigenous culture, community, and intergenerational connection, beginning with a sunrise ceremony at 7 a.m.
Full details about the day can be found on their website.
To mark the day, the City of Toronto will also lower all flags at City Hall, civic centres and other City facilities to half-mast, and the Toronto sign will be lit orange.
The Survivors Flag, which is meant to honour residential school survivors and all the lives and communities impacted by the residential school system in Canada, will also be flown at half-mast.
Orange Shirt Day is an Indigenous-led grassroots commemorative day recognizing the effects of residential schools.
The initiative began in 2013, inspired by Phyllis Webstad’s story of having the orange shirt her grandmother gave her taken away when she arrived at a residential school in 1973 at the age of six.
September 30 was first marked as a national statutory holiday in 2023, after being celebrated as a day of remembrance since 2013.
Some closures are in place for the federal statutory holiday
The day is a federal statutory holiday, but not a provincial one in Ontario. Here are some places that will be open and closed on Tuesday.
Banks
All banks and financial institutions will be closed on Tuesday.
Transit
TTC and GO Transit operate on a regular schedule on Tuesday.
Government services
Government of Canada offices and buildings will be closed. The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), passport offices and Service Canada are also closed.
Grocery stores
Most grocery stores will be open on Tuesday. Check your local establishment’s hours, just in case.
Malls/shopping centres
Most malls and shopping centres will be open on Tuesday.
LCBO/The Beer Store
Most LCBOs will open at noon on Tuesday and resume regular hours on Wednesday. The Beer Store’s hours will remain unchanged.
Attractions
- Canada’s Wonderland – closed
- The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) – open
- Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) – open
- The Gardiner Museum – open
- CN Tower – open
- Ripley’s Aquarium – open
- Toronto Zoo – open
- Hockey Hall of Fame – open
- The Distillery Historic District – open
