‘Nobody can break us down as Indigenous people’ By: Malak Abas Posted: 7:47 PM CDT Tuesday, Sep. 30, 2025

As a sea of thousands clad in orange waited, Helen George braids her son’s long, straight hair.

They’re at the RBC Convention Centre, preparing for the grand entry ceremonies hosted by the Southern Chiefs’ Organization to mark the fifth annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Tuesday afternoon.

Originally from Ochapowace Cree Nation in Saskatchewan but living in Winnipeg, George is helping her son, Houston, get dressed for the upcoming powwow. For her, seeing so many families coming together to recognize the impact of the residential school system and celebrate Indigenous resilience is touching.

“It’s meaningful,” she said.

“It means we’re pushing our way along to get through all the barriers we’ve been through. Nobody can break us down as Indigenous people.”

The crowds, many of whom started their day at a morning pipe ceremony and march from Oodena Circle at The Forks to the RBC Convention Centre, filled the centre and surrounding streets. Dancers, many young children, were dressed in regalia and waving flags or eagle sticks.

Gallery: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

The floor shook and the sound of drums and jingle dresses roared as dancers performed for hours Tuesday afternoon.

“This is what we do, this is who we are, and this is how we come together — to celebrate together, to laugh together, to visit, to dance, to sing,” powwow emcee Darcy Malcolm told the crowd.

“This is what we do in Indian country. Man, I’m so proud to be an Anishinaabe person.”

While Sept. 30 was first recognized as a statutory holiday last year, it has been known as Orange Shirt Day since 2013, founded by residential school survivor Phyllis Webstad, named for an orange shirt that was given to her by her grandmother and taken away when she arrived at the school.

The Southern Chiefs’ Organization has hosted the day’s ceremonies not just to remember the past, but to recognize the youth of the future too, said SCO grand chief Jerry Daniels.

“We’re here to remember the children who never made it home, we’re here to make sure all of our children are given every single opportunity, because that’s the future we want,” he said.

Premier Wab Kinew, who danced in the powwow, called on Indigenous youth — along with his fellow Manitoba leadership, including chiefs — to come back next year in full regalia.

“When you dance powwow, you prove that the people who started the residential schools failed in their attempt to destroy Indigenous culture, and that Indigenous nations survive so that today we can thrive,” he said.

Those words rang true to Jordan Hamilton, who attended with seven of his twelve children Tuesday in hopes of giving them a chance to witness and take part in their cultural heritage.

“I hope they carry it on with each other,” he said.

Attending is healing for him, too — originally from Boissevain, Hamilton said he was currently living in transitional houing in Winnipeg after receiving support to overcome addiction.

“It helps me, because I’m in recovery, right?” he said.

“It helps me better when I see a lot of people together, and it shows that good spirit in people.”

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca

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Malak Abas
Reporter

Malak Abas is a city reporter at the Free Press. Born and raised in Winnipeg’s North End, she led the campus paper at the University of Manitoba before joining the Free Press in 2020. Read more about Malak.

Every piece of reporting Malak produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.