Friends,
On February 23th, 2022, many across Canada and the world will choose to wear pink shirts to take a stand against bullying.
In 2007, two Nova Scotia students took action after witnessing a younger student being bullied for wearing a pink shirt to school. The students bought 50 pink T-shirts and encouraged schoolmates to wear them and send a powerful message of solidarity to the bully. Since 2008, through the sale of the shirts, $1.5 million has been raised for a number of anti-bully programs, including Kids Help Phone, KidSafe Project and Boys and Girls Clubs of Western Canada.
These Pink Shirt Day designs are by artist Chantelle Trainor-Matties (Dip.VA), who draws on her Nisga’a and Métis heritage to create beautiful pieces. This year’s design is a wolf. The Nisga’a word for wolf is “gibuu”; the wolf is loyal, smart, strong and they come together as a pack, as a team, representing unity. The world is full of hate, we are given the opportunity to work as a team, to be members of the pack, to “spread love” to one another and to stand up against bullying.
These designs are available here, and include masks, shirts, and pins.
On Indigenous Pink Shirt Day, an event called Traditional Teachings of Community Wellbeing will be held, co-sponsored by the Urban Indigenous Circle, Chinook Winds Region and Pacific Mountain Region. More details on this event can be found here.
A series of videos containing reflections on Indigenous Pink Shirt Day, intended as an offering for communities of faith, ministries and groups, who are welcome to use these videos for discussion can be found here.
Rev. John Snow