BC Day: What Are We Really Celebrating?
🌲 BC Day: A Closer Look
Every year, on the first Monday of August, people in British Columbia get a long weekend to celebrate “BC Day.” But what does this holiday actually represent, and who is it really for?
For some, it’s a day of rest, celebration, barbecues, beach time, or reconnecting with family. For others, it’s just another workday, often without holiday pay. And for many Indigenous people and allies, it’s a painful reminder of the colonial history behind the name “British Columbia” and the fact that this land is unceded Indigenous territory.
🕰️ A Bit of History
BC Day was first introduced in 1974 as a civic holiday. The idea was to celebrate the founding of the colony of British Columbia in 1858 and to acknowledge the province’s diverse culture and role in the Canadian Confederation.
But here’s the problem:
That “founding” was not a beginning — it was a violent interruption. Indigenous Nations have lived on this land for thousands of years. British Columbia — a name tied to colonial expansion — was imposed without consent, and to this day, most of this land is unceded, meaning no treaties were signed.
So what exactly are we celebrating?
💸 A Holiday for Whom?
Even if you ignore the name and focus on rest or cultural pride, there’s another issue: not everyone gets the day off.
✅ Who Usually Gets the Day Off?
- Government workers
- Office staff
- Unionized employees
- Most salaried positions
❌ Who Often Doesn’t?
- Minimum wage workers
- Hospitality, grocery, and service staff
- Gig economy workers
- People on social assistance, disability, or underemployed
Some people get a paid break. Others just keep struggling — often doing work that keeps the rest of society running while being excluded from its benefits.
💬 Let's Be Honest
We can’t keep pretending holidays like BC Day are universally joyful. We live in a province with:
- A housing crisis
- A toxic drug crisis
- Sky-high inequality
- Disregard for Indigenous sovereignty
We need to ask ourselves:
Who is free to relax, and who is fighting just to survive?
Whose history is celebrated, and whose is erased?
✊🏽 Reimagining the Day
Instead of blindly celebrating, what if we reclaimed BC Day as a time to:
- Learn about Indigenous land rights and history
- Support mutual aid efforts or frontline workers
- Reflect on how to make our province more fair and inclusive
- Acknowledge the land we’re on and the systems we’re upholding
🧠 Reflective Questions for Readers:
- How do you feel about the name “British Columbia”? Should we rename the province to reflect its Indigenous roots?
- What actions can we take to make civic holidays more inclusive?
- What does it mean to live on unceded territory, and how should that affect our celebrations?
- Do you feel that BC Day reflects your experience living here? Why or why not?
📍Land Acknowledgement
Let’s remember: BC exists entirely on unceded Indigenous land. From the Coast Salish to the Nuu-chah-nulth to the Secwépemc and beyond, the land was never surrendered. This is a truth that should guide how we live — and how we celebrate
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