MONTREAL | KANIEN’KEHÁ:KA UNCEDED TERRITORY, Tuesday, September 23, 2025 – On Tuesday 30 September, the Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal, Resilience Montreal, POP Montreal, the David Suzuki Foundation and Alcoa are inviting everyone to take part in the fifth annual Every Child Matters March. This event is held on the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, to honour survivors of residential schools as well as the missing children that did not come home.
Participants are encouraged to wear orange T-shirts in a show of solidarity, and Indigenous people are invited to bring their drums. The march serves as a reminder of the importance of acknowledging past truths and working towards a future based on justice and reconciliation.
“This year also marks the 10 year anniversary of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Among the 94 recommendations put forward, only 15 have been implemented. With the recent passing of Murray Sinclair, it is imperative that we honour his legacy and carry out the remaining 79 recommendations. We call on the community, government and institutions to make this a reality.”
– Na’kuset, Executive Director of the Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal
‘’It has now been ten years since we received the results of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and its 94 recommendations. While Canada has officially acknowledged its wrongs against Indigenous communities through the residential school system, the mood of this reconciliation changes with each new government. However, one thing remains strong: the commitment of Canadian citizens to ensuring that what was done in their name in their country is never allowed to happen again. Today, we are walking because reconciliation is about rebuilding relationships through living and supporting each other.”
– Melissa Mollen Dupuis, Innu filmmaker, radio host, activist and Forest Campaign Manager at the David Suzuki Foundation
“Ten years later, Canada has ignored the majority of the TRC’s recommendations, and instead has put an enormous emphasis on “economic reconciliation.” Our ancestors endured systemic oppression so we can live freely as Indigenous people, not as pseudo-corporations. Every Child Matters reminds us that we must continue to center rights, dignity and healing. We call on the government to carry out the remaining recommendations, and not marry the concept of reconciliation with corporate profit.”
– Janelle Lapointe, Senior Advisor at the David Suzuki Foundation, member of Stellat’en First Nation
What: Every Child Matters March, a day of action for Truth and Reconciliation
When: Tuesday, September 30, 2025, at 1 p.m.
Where: Departure from Monument to Sir George-Étienne Cartier in Montreal (click here to see the march route)
Who: Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal and Resilience Montreal, with participation of the David Suzuki Foundation and POP Montreal
Media are welcome to arrive at noon for interviews.
Spokespersons available on site will be:
- Na’kuset, Executive Director of the Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal
- David Chapman, Executive Director of Resilience Montreal
- Janelle Lapointe, Senior Advisor, Indigenous Strategy at the David Suzuki Foundation
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For all media inquiries:
Bonnie Hannah, Executive Assistant, Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal
David Chapman, Executive Director, Resilience Montreal