Aboriginal Apology Case Study

From the 1870’s until the last school closed in 1996, at least 150,000 Indigenous children attended residential schools in Canada. More than 130 government mandated schools existed across the country. These schools were church administered, with the express purpose of forcibly removing Indigenous children from their native culture, in an effort to assimilate them into Euro-Canadian culture and thereby “kill the Indian in the child”. Countless families were torn apart as the Canadian government placed

Education looked remarkably different than the Education that takes place today in Canada’s schools. Before European contact, “Indigenous peoples in North America had a highly developed education system” (Neegan, 2005, p. 4). Their education was based on experiential and immersion learning in the community and in nature. The whole community was responsible for teaching the younger people through the sharing of knowledge and resources (Neegan, 2004). Respect for the environment and the land was intricately woven into all forms of learning, as the land is the center of their livelihood

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

The Cree constitute the largest indigenous group in Canada, with over 200,000 members living in Canada alone . Scientists believe that the Cree descended from the people who crossed the Bering Strait during the last Ice age. Evidence suggests

“Where are they taking me, mom?! Help!” These were the screams of an Aboriginal child when he was dragged to a car that drove him away from his family. Aboriginal kids were forcefully abducted and placed at poorly built and equipped residential schools. Residential schools are a network of boarding schools for Indigenous peoples. Like a disease, these schools spread so fast on Canadian land. They were every Indigenous child’s nightmare. Kids who attended were traumatized due to the mental, physical, and sexual abuse they suffered. Canadians felt superior to Aboriginals which lead them to use their power excessively to civilize these communities. This issue is considered to be one of the darkest chapters in Canadian history. It has a significant impact on Aboriginal communities. Indians suffered a loss of culture and identity. This issue violates various human rights such as; Freedom of language, freedom of culture and religion, freedom of choice, and the freedom of safety and health. The two groups in this controversy are the aggressors; Canadian government, and it’s churches, and the victims; the aboriginals. The question is, is the Canadian government doing enough to make it up to those who suffered the ill effects of residential schools?

The sociological effects that Aboriginal peoples in Canada face are vast. Residential schools, stripped people of their identity, enforced a cultural genocide, abused (both sexually and physically) children and created an unjust line of intergenerational trauma. Kinship ties, for the majority were lost during the residential school period, sometimes leaving entire communities displaced. The Canadian Government fails to recognize the treatment of Aboriginal peoples during the residential school period and there hasn’t been much done to help those who are affected.

To reconcile the relationship between Canada and the Aboriginal community means to effectively restore peace and instil positive relations amongst the two parties. In the interest of reconciliation, the Canadian government must undo its actions against the aboriginal community and furthermore acknowledge responsibility on its part. In 1949, the Special Joint Committee of the Senate and House of Commons considered and delegated the content of the Indian Act. By 1949, the Indian act was modified to allow first nations students to be educated in public schools. The Canadian government recognized the inexcusable conditions Aboriginal youth were exposed to through residential schooling and yet failed to formally accept guilt and liability. Furthermore, bill C-31 was introduced in 1985 as an act which aimed to amend the horrific laws enforced through the Indian Act and gave. This gave the Aboriginal community hope for equality amongst non-Aboriginals within Canada. The bill aimed to reinstate Indian status to all individuals whom were forcibly stripped of their status because of the Indian act. However, the result of the bill proved it to be extremely unproductive as large numbers of women and children were still not reinstated with Aboriginal status for over thirteen years, thus failing the Aboriginal community.

Aboriginal-Canadians have an excessive history of mistreatment and discrimination in Canada. Europeans considered Canada’s First Nations as savages, eventually residential schools were created which in extreme cases were comparable to Prisoner of War camps. According to Evelyn Kallen, “Substandard housing breeding disease and death, closed schools due to lack of teachers, heat, and/or running water are only two examples of continuing, dehumanizing life conditions on many reserves” (198). Although, extensive improvements have been made to reservations and Aboriginal rights, more improvement remains necessary. Allan Blakeney stated, “An important starting point of course, is that Aboriginal people in Canada do not, as a group, occupy high

While the initial objective was for the schools to help integrate First Nations children into the mainstream society they lived in, this integration clearly became an attempt at conversion. The children were removed from their families for extended durations, attempting to ensure Canadian-Christian upbringing. The residential schools original goal drastically changed, with their disgraceful policy regarding forbidding Aboriginal children from any kind of acknowledgement and recognition of their native language and culture. There are numerous reports of physical, psychological and sexual abuse experienced by Indigenous children in residential schools and painful consequences that in most cases last a lifetime (Hanson, E.).

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.

Residential schools in Canada were present for over 100 years and were created by the government to eliminate the Indigenous culture. These schools successfully separated families while creating huge cultural barriers between children and their Native culture (COHA, 2011). These children were forcibly removed from their families and taken to residential schools because Canadians saw Indigenous peoples as “backwards” or “savage” (COHA, 2011). They also believed that they were inferior to Natives and that these schools would help “civilize” aboriginals by replacing their Native traits with Western values (COHA, 2011).

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.

     The word Metis is a French word that means: “mixed race”. Today it is often used for anyone who has European – Indian

The Truth and Reconciliation Report has outlined 94 Calls to Action to work towards reconciliation between Canada and Indigenous people. Action 63 calls for education institutions to improve the curriculum on Indigenous people’s history and to integrate Indigenous knowledge. Currently, research has indicated that there is a lack of Indigenous content in the K to 12 education system and, if taught, it is through a Eurocentric lens. Due to this, non-Indigenous students in university have misguided and preconceived notions of Indigenous people. And as a result, stereotypes are reinforced which leads to microaggressions for Indigenous students in higher education. This is why it is important for post-secondary institution develop Indigenous educational programming that works and that research in this area is

Who are the Aboriginal Peoples of Canada?- The Aboriginal Peoples are the first people to live in Canada