Who owns 'Every Child Matters'?

Sept. 30 is an important and sombre day in Canada. It is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day—a time to remember and acknowledge the impact of Canada’s residential school system.

One of the ways to mark the day is to wear an orange shirt that may have the phrase "Every Child Matters" printed on it. The three words have come to represent the children who lived through and died within the Canadian residential school system. The schools ran from 1831 to 1996 in all regions of the country.

Indigenous children were stripped of their clothing, family, culture, and ultimately their identity. Orange shirts are sold all over the internet, in big-chain stores and inside small-scale retail stores like INAC in Winnipeg’s CF Polo Park Mall. It’s an Indigenous-run company that donates a portion of orange shirt sales to organizations supporting Indigenous communities.

This year’s orange shirts, like those in the past, are emblazoned with the phrase "Every Child Matters." “There's survivors across Canada,” said INAC owner Michelle Cameron, whose mother is a residential school survivor, “We donate to the National (Centre for) Truth and Reconciliation.” Michelle Cameron holding up an orange shirt that is for sale in her store at CF Polo Park on Sept.

24, 2024. (Michelle Gerwing/CTV News Winnipeg) But now, one non-profit organization is laying claim to the phrase in an attempt to control how it is used. The Orange Shirt Society (OSS) posted a noti.