As Long as the Rivers Flow: Novel Analysis

The poem is directed those, perhaps politicians, who perpetrate the erasure of First Nations voices and stories. Residential schools, unequal treatment and educational funding are only some examples of how the Canadian government actively subjugated First Nations and their culture. Some aboriginals are victims of sexual assault, murder, and theft, as specifically noted in Simpson’s poem. The purpose of this poem is to inspire others to fight for equal rights; it also serves as a reminders of solidarity to other First Nations who have experiences oppression. Simpson calls on her generation, “the singing remnants,” to remember the mistakes of the past and speak out about past and present inequalities. Leanne Simpson’s work as an activist is evident in this

The impact of colonization on First Nations peoples in Canada is unsurpassable, regarding every aspect of Aboriginal life and well-being. Throughout Canadian history, the government has been aiming to assimilate and annihilate Aboriginal people by way of racist policies, ethnocentric institutions, discriminatory laws and destructive capitalist behaviours. Because of this, Aboriginal people have suffered many losses, both physically and culturally. One of the main perpetrators of enacting this loss is the education system. The education system in Canada has and continues to threaten the relationship First Nations peoples have with the land. The connection First Nations peoples have with the land is crucial to their cultures, traditions, ceremonies and beliefs. Colonization and colonialism jeopardize this relationship and that is what this essay will address.

Thousands of First Nations children were kidnapped and imprisoned in residential schools during the 1960s. These children were then forced to renounce anything in relation to their traditional lives, such as their native tongue. These objectives were often achieved in a barbaric and inhumane manner. Richard Wagamese’s “Indian Horse” recounts the fictional story of Saul Indian Horse’s struggle through residential school along with the residual effects on his adult life. Within the novel, Wagamese highlights how one’s traumatic past can have tremendous physical and mental effects, especially in the absence of support.

Scott’s poem, “The Onondaga Madonna”, is such an example of a racist piece of literature that rejects the acceptance of a multicultural and cultural diversity within society. It emphasizes the differences between the Euro-centric society within Canada and the savage society of the Onondagas and promoted Scott’s belief that the death and eradication of Indigenous culture were “beneficial to individual Indians” (Weis 28). He believed that the government could educate and mould Aboriginals into “a fully enfranchised and Westernized member of English-Canadian society” (Weis 30), and he pushed forth his beliefs to his readers through “The Onondaga Madonna.”

Protection, civilization, assimilation: An outline history of Canada’s Indian policy by John L. Tobias, 1991.

In the essay “Cree Poetic Discourse”, the author Neal McLeod addresses an intellectual problem that the western academic writing approach harms the indigenous Cree narratives. According to McLeod, the Cree narrative process, which involves poetic thinking, embraces new possibilities and keeps changing (9). This evolution process not only depends on various occasions of speaking but also depends on different storytellers and audiences who absorb stories, thus allowing Cree poetic discourse to possess dynamic feature (McLeod 9). Such dynamic narrative approach compresses space, like Neal McLeod, said, “Like the colors and shapes in the sky, like the folds and contours of water and lakes. (14) ” In order to fully

“Even after these traumatic experiences at the residential schools, the effects of the schools have continued to influence Native populations for up to four generations” (Barnes & Cole. 2006, p. 29). Experiencing the traumatic events that took place while attending Residential School changed the children and this carries on to their extended families. Charlie Angus in Children of the Broken Treaty retells the stories of the children who had to live through the horrific trauma of attending Residential School which resulted in not only loss of their culture, but their own identity and native languages as well. The abuse and trauma these children faced should never have been put upon a

In Canadian histories classes, the birth of Canada as a country is taught as a glorious experience for Europeans. What is not taught, however, is the mistreatment of Aboriginal peoples who retreated here for many years prior to the Europeans. This mistreatment was especially hurtful to women of aboriginal cultures. This essay will discuss the horrific treatment of Aboriginal women by removing their statuses and rights as Aboriginal peoples. It will discuss ways in which colonists took away their rights, followed by the impacts this mistreatment had both immediately and even now. This essay will then mention the restitution Aboriginal women have been given, followed by implications for my role as a social worker.

Michael Asch, an anthropologist, has written a couple of books on First Nations Canadians and their location in the social and political hierarchy of Canada. Throughout his book, On Being Here to Stay, he makes many arguments and utilizes many cases and examples of the First Nations Canadians political and civil rights and examines the way the Canadian government has handled the task of placing the First Nations and aboriginal people into a western democracy and wester thought. Michael Asch explores the long road to amends with the sovereignty of Canada compared to the First Nations rights and the changes that occur.

The creation of Canada would be considered a feat in a general consensus, yet the public fails to recognize the dark and inhumane acts that built the country. The inclusion of exploitation and abuse of indigenous people are generally excluded or they are limited. In the First World War, indigenous people are heavily involved in the battlefront, supplying the Canadian army with more soldiers. The incredible achievements of these soldiers are often shadowed by the racial discrimination of white soldiers. In this paper, I will examine the moments in which achievements deemed as being “heroic” are described as “acts of savagery”. Joseph Boyden’s Three Day Road illustrates the hidden truth behind the reality of what is generally perceived: the acts of indigenous heroism were known by the soldiers, but they are never formally recognized with fame. This can relate to the events that occurred in the creation of Canada; indigenous people whom volunteered themselves to become soldiers in the First World War are exploited and used many times without gaining anything in return. Colonialism stripped the indigenous people of their identity and replaces them with an “ideal” way of thinking and living. The ignorance of Xavier’s heroic acts in the war and Niska’s identity at home questions the normal conventional notions of heroism that is generally perceived in society.

The history of Canada’s Aboriginal people is one of extreme complexity and not something that can be simplified into a single paper. However, the purpose of this essay is to better grasp and understand just one component of the many that make up the history of these people which is the period that residential schools were in place. Residential schools had an immense impact on the Aboriginal people of Canada and the effects are still being felt by many of them to this day. To understand the impacts of these institutions, one must first be aware of the history behind them. The introduction of Canadian Residential Schools, their successfulness, and their lasting outcomes on individuals will be analyzed throughout this essay.

The remaining memory of residential schools is not yet forgotten. The abuse had caused trauma that lasted a lifetime. When children returned home they would have forgotten their traditions and language. This tragedy had led First Nations to experience depression, Drugs, Alcohol abuse and low education, Not only that, but low self-esteem and crime.

“Victoria’s “Red Children” The “Great White Queen Mother” and Native-Newcomer Relations in Canada” by J.R. Miller.

Aboriginal people’s culture and traditions have been under attack through colonial and prejudicial attitudes, having negative consequences for Aboriginal families as a whole. Residential Schools, The Indian Act, and The sixties scoop, inspired by the Canadian governments’ political strive for nation building, has had severe repercussions on Aboriginal family life, exposing how interlocking dimensions of race, class, gender, and citizenship impact the Aboriginal family. I argue that racialized political implications imposed by the Canadian government such as compulsory residential schooling, the Indian Act, and

In today’s modern era, Canadian identities is thought of as being one of the world's leaders in protection and promotion of human rights and freedom. Aboriginal people are now able to contribute as equal individuals. However, this was not always the case. Before the arrival of the Europeans with diverse interactions, expanding trades and intense conflicts and rivalry for land and resources. Aboriginals have been trying to redefine their place in society and were demanding justice. Canada’s identity is the negative treatment of the First Nations. (INSERT THESIS)