Chief says he’s offended by mandatory federal branding on Orange Shirt Day funding

OTTAWA — The chief of James Smith Cree Nation says he’s offended by Ottawa’s requirement that promotional materials for Orange Shirt Day events funded by the federal government carry government branding.

Kirby Constant told The Canadian Press the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is meant to honour survivors of residential schools and day schools — and those who never made it home — and to mark the legacy of those institutions in First Nations communities today.

James Smith Cree Nation received roughly $6,700 from the federal Canadian Heritage department to hold events in the community for Orange Shirt Day on Sept. 30. The community’s events included a memorial walk, a sweat ceremony, a feast and a beading class. Some of that money was also spent on honorariums for firekeepers.

But as a condition of that funding, the First Nation was required to put Government of Canada branding on promotional materials — standard practice for projects paid for by Canadian Heritage.

“Acknowledgment is a condition of funding,” said a government email sent to the First Nation.

Constant said it defies the spirit of reconciliation for the federal government to force his community to publicly thank Ottawa for funding to memorialize the grim legacy of the residential school system it helped to create.

He said it feels like the government is shoving words in his mouth.

“Here’s your $6,700, but you gotta have this at the bottom of your programming just to say that Canada is doing something,” Constant said.

“I picture myself going to residential school (and someone saying), ‘You can’t talk these words, but here, you gotta say these words.”

The federal government, largely in partnership with the Catholic Church, funded the residential school system. Roughly 150,000 Indigenous children were forced to attend the schools, which were often rife with abuse and located far away from the children’s home communities. The last residential school was closed in 1996.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which was launched as part of a legal settlement between the federal government and survivors of residential schools, concluded the goal of the schools was to erase Indigenous cultures.

An estimated 6,000 children died while attending the schools, although experts at the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, who continue to comb through millions of records, say the actual number could turn out to be much higher.

Along with the acknowledgment of federal funding, Constant is also required to submit a report on the activities his community organized.

According to a federal government document sent to James Smith Cree Nation, projects funded by the department must address three objectives: increasing awareness of residential schools, honouring survivors and those who never returned, and providing a forum to promote healing.

In an emailed statement, a Canadian Heritage spokesperson said all funding recipients are required to acknowledge where the money came from.

“This acknowledgment ensures transparency of government spending and highlights the government’s role in supporting initiatives that benefit communities and people,” Ines Akué wrote.

“We recognize and respect the concerns raised and will continue to shape our actions in a way that is sensitive to this complex reality.”

Constant said he continues to live with the legacy of residential schools himself, having grown up without learning his language or understanding his culture.

“(The federal government) really did a number on us, and I could see that daily,” he said.

He said he’s trying to change that legacy with his own children by including them in traditional ceremonies and incorporating more spirituality in their lives.

“But we also have to coincide with this Western culture, where we have to be educated. It’s kind of like walking in two paths at once,” Constant said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2025.

Alessia Passafiume, The Canadian Press