Canada 's Relationship With The Indigenous People

Residential schools ruined families' trust, children's lives, and generations to follow. Residential schools had an impact on Indigenous people resulting in fear, loss of identity, and loss of knowledge and traditions revealed in The Marrow

With the proposal of the ‘Statement of the Government of Canada on Indian Policy’ (hereafter referred to as the White Paper) in 1969 by Jean Chretien, existing tensions over the role and future of First Nations within Canadian society would finally come to a head. Prior to the introduction of this policy, government bureaucrats and missionary organizations had finally begun to realize that directed change and economic development were not taking place amongst First Nations communities as they had wanted, and decided in the favor of a change. This change in policy brought about the White Paper, which was a cleverly veiled assimilationist proposal of the Canadian government to the First Nations peoples of their country. This shift in policy

Since the colonization of Canada First Nations people have been discriminated against and assimilated into the new culture of Canada through policies created by the government. Policies created had the intentions of improving the Aboriginal people’s standard of living and increasing their opportunities. Mainly in the past hundred years in Canadian Society, policies and government implemented actions such as; Residential schools, the Indian Act, and reserve systems have resulted in extinguishing native culture, teachings, and pride. Policies towards the treatment of Aboriginal Canadians has decreased their opportunities and standard of living because of policies specified previously (Residential schools, the Indian Act, and reservation systems).

Residential schools started in the 1870s and ended in the 1990s. The last one to close was in 1996. Aboriginal children from the ages of 4-16 were forced out of their homes and put into residential schools. The point of these schools was “to kill the Indian in the child”. It is estimated that over 150,000 aboriginal children attended the residential schools.

Residential Schools were and still are a significant part of Canada’s history. They have had negative social and psychological effects on survivors and even their families. Grant Severight, Richard Wagamese, and Rita Joe and so many more are incredible authors who share their experiences on Residential Schools from either their or their families’ perspectives.

Thesis: Although their were contributions in improving the lifestyles for the native Canadians by the Canadian government the prejudice they faced does not nearly way out of how they were treated through deficient access to health care, poor living conditions, and lack of education.

In the Indigenous community, when the community is faced with a trauma, it takes seven generations for the community to heal (Trimble, 2015). People may underestimate how oppressed and how much suffering the Indigenous communities had to struggle with, and continue to struggle with these issues today. We may underestimate how severe the situation is because many of us were not taught much about the impact of colonization on the Indigenous communities in school. There are many myths people may have concerning Indigenous life experiences, particularly schooling. To address these myths, I would begin by giving a brief history of residential schools. I would then analyze how residential schools have impacted the indigenous community and how they continue to affect them today. I would also mention the current issues children on reserves are facing today regarding school. Lastly, I would mention some of the progress that has been made. I will use the work of Sefa Dei to demonstrate the importance of community in education regarding the Indigenous people.

Based on the historical relevance of suppression of Indigenous people, Option 2 has been the deemed the best option to enhance Indigenous health. This appendix will evaluate each option and why the other two options were not chosen based on current research about Indigenous people. Option 1 Option 1 is allowing the Indigenous people to determine when they are ready to start the transfer of health policy and begin to self-government. Currently, only British Columbia has taken initiative to accept health transfer by establishing the First Nations Health Authority (FNHA). Although this health authority has had many positives such allowing Indigenous people to make decisions related to health, there had been some barriers with communication, division

When residential schools began the kids were forcibly taken away, leaving the parents at home alone with no one to look after but each other. This became a huge issue within the communities because a huge part of First Nations life and culture is to educate your children, pass on the culture and to take care of them. These parents couldn’t do that, which left them feeling helpless and broken. Children are a huge part of First Nations culture, they are the future of the indigenous culture, if they are taken out of that cultural bubble at a young age and assimilated they will not be able to continue passing on the traditional ways of their ancestors. First Nations children are the future of the Aboriginal culture and its history by taking them away to those residential schools so long ago the churches/government have disrupted the education they would have received from their parents. Patricia Angus-Monture explains that First Nations children are the building blocks for the future of First Nations peoples,

An estimated 1 in 25 children died in residential schools, with an approximate 6000 children who died in total (Maloney, 2016). In reality, many people believe that residential schools are an issue in the past but, do the lingering effects truly exist in our society today? The fact is that there is a lot of controversy surrounding the residential school system and why it was even created in the first place, as it ultimately came crashing down in complete failure. In effect, residential schools impacted many Aboriginals from the negatives effects they caused even if the intended cause was not meant to. Specifically, this paper will examine the detrimental impacts caused by the residential school system through scrutinizing the intent of the education in residential schools, and the short and long-term

History has unveiled the early contacts of colonization from the Europeans that set motion to cultural oppression and exclusion of the Aboriginal communities (Kirmayer, Tait, Simpson & Simpson, 2009). The introduction of the residential school system was meant to eliminate the indigenous people’s cultural heritage and way of life, creating a historical trauma. As a result, survivors of the residential school system left the majority of the Aboriginal population without a sense of cultural heritage, lack of self-esteem, and depression (Gone, 2010). Aboriginal culture was suppressed, breaking the connection of traditional knowledge from parent to child (Kirmayer, Tait, Simpson & Simpson, 2009). Trans-generational trauma of the Aboriginal people has left psychologically and physically damage towards their own heritage (Gray & Nye, 2001).

The Aboriginal peoples of Canada had gone through many situations to get to where they are today with their education system. Pain, sorrow, doubt, and hope are all feelings brought to mind when thinking about the history and the future of Aboriginal education. By taking a look at the past, anyone can see that the right to education for Aboriginal peoples has been fought about as early as the 1870s. This is still is a pressing issue today. Elder teachings, residential, reserve and post-secondary schools have all been concerning events of the past as well as the present. Though education has improved for the Aboriginal peoples of Canada, there are still many concerns and needs of reconciliation for the past to improve the future.

The Canadian native aboriginals are the original indigenous settlers of North Canada in Canada. They are made up of the Inuit, Metis and the First nation. Through archeological evidence old crow flats seem to the earliest known settlement sites for the aboriginals. Other archeological evidence reveals the following characteristics of the Aboriginal culture: ceremonial architecture, permanent settlement, agriculture and complex social hierarchy. A number of treaties and laws have been enacted amongst the First nation and European immigrants throughout Canada. For instance the Aboriginal self-government right was a step to assimilate them in Canadian society. This allows for a chance to manage

Conflict between Canada and the First Nations has been going on since the Europeans first arrived. After their arrival the First Nations way of life was hindered severely; The Europeans brought many diseases that the Aboriginal people were unfamiliar with and had no resistance to, or cure for. “By the 16th century about 80% of Canada's Native population had died from the various diseases (Renneboog, 5).” The Europeans also came to Canada with the intentions of taking all of the land for themselves, disregarding the people who occupied the land before them. Over time the Europeans had manipulated the First Nations to their will and the Aboriginals were discriminated for their different complexion, culture, customs, and way of life. But

Residential Schools were systems set in place by the Government of Canada and enforced by Christian churches as a way to approach the “issue” of the First Nations. They were used by the government to assimilate the Aboriginal children into European culture. It is significant that Canadians remember this time in history because it's not so far in the past. We see the repercussions to this day. This source shows the perspective of the Government, and supporters of the Government. On the other hand Aboriginal people may disagree, they are still greatly struggling with misfortune due to Residential Schools. The perspective shown in the source should be looked into considering the government's insufficient response to the legacies left behind by Residential Schools. For example we see higher prison rates, more drop outs, and family abuse more than most cultural groups in