Introduction
Discrimination based on race, gender and Aboriginal status continues to be a recurring theme in the lives of Aboriginals that live in Canada. Colonialism has had a negative impact on the lives and lifestyles of Aboriginals throughout Canada. They were forced into reserves that were located in unsuitable land for the European settlers to use. The European settlers would refer to the aboriginals as ‘barbaric’ and ‘uncivilized’ while they categorized themselves as ‘educated’ and ‘cultural’ (Farihah Ali, 2015). This mentality is what emerged the negative stereotypes directed towards Aboriginal people and has also had a negative impact in their way of life. These stereotypes have opened doors for discrimination against Aboriginal people
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Discrimination against First Nations has played a big role in the way they receive medical care, social services and their chance of being employed, specifically towards women.
Background
Colonialism is a practice of domination, which involves the subjugation of one people to another. The Europeans dominated Canadian soil and claimed it while pushing Aboriginals into reserves that were unsuitable for the Europeans to use. Bands have been an important part of the lives of First Nations, as it linked Aboriginals together (Farihah Ali, 2015). In a way, a person’s Band was like there family. European settlers realized that Aboriginal populations were growing so they broke up bands and relocated many members of the Band. Sometimes, they would relocate the whole community just because they wished to gain resources from the land they were inhabiting (Naomi Adelson, 2005). These forced relocations were very inconvenient for the Aboriginal people who already have settled down and created themselves a routine. They were pushed into reserves that they weren't familiar with and struggled
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The life expectancy of aboriginal males is about 9 years lower than non Aboriginal Canadian men, and about 5 years lower for Aboriginal females (UOttawa, 2009). Needed access to health care is difficult to attain as an First Nation citizen due to racism, poverty, and social exclusion from facilities. Aboriginal patients mostly have only negative comments to make towards the health care system, and sometimes its difficult to answer to them whether it is because of their race that they receive such bad treatment or is it because of their history. Physicians, however, believe that they treat different patients the same way regardless of their race or ethnicity (Sannie Y. Tang,
There have been constant disputes over land privileges and the discrimination that Aboriginal people have faced
It is impossible to reconcile and learn about Indigenous identity when stereotypes and discrimination are still present today. In AlterNatives, it is clear that many people, especially white, make assumptions about Indigenous people. For example, Colleen makes many assumptions about Angel: “You automatically expected me to know how to cook a moose. Assumptions Colleen.” (page 132).
The Metis people whole dynamic and attitudes changed and faced such degrading racism every time and everywhere they went. The effects of the past are still a problem and struggle today for the aboriginal people, as stated “Activism for the ages” “will take a long time to change attitudes at all levels of government, throughout society, as well as in our schools such a long time that it will be the children, both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal, who will need to carry on this work. And we have a responsibility for helping them.” (Shaker 3). Attitudes of the hegemonic society need to shift in order to make way for real social change.
3. The gradual development of a new administrative and practical definition of ‘Aboriginality’. This definition was based on community and self-identification, not just a person’s DNA or
From the British name ‘Terra nullis’, the stolen generation and the failure of the government to issue a formal apology for the Aboriginals. (dhhds p.) The healthcare in Australia has a significant issue of institutional racism. Aboriginal healthcare is much more neglected than those of non-indigenous backgrounds and those in remote Aboriginal communities receive less Medicare and pharmaceutical Benefits, in contrast with a wealthy Sydney suburb, where people receive more of those that are non-indigenous (Aboriginal health care, p.). Leaving an unfair and lack of social and national identity for those targeted to this type of racism.
Aboriginal people continue to be victimized and incarcerated at much higher rates than non-Aboriginal people. The overrepresentation of Canadian Aboriginal people in the criminal justice system is a question that has not yet been answered. This research paper will focus on the risk factors experienced by many Aboriginal people, residential school experiences, and institutional racism, and their roles in the overrepresentation of Canadian Aboriginal people in the criminal justice system. The Canadian government system has tried to deal with this issue, but looking at the high rates of overrepresentation, there approach has not been successful.
Overall Summary “Locating The Aboriginal Gender Gap: The Political Attitudes and Participation of Aboriginal Women in Canada” by Allison Harrell and Dimitrios Panagos is an article in search of locating gender gaps among Aboriginals with regards to their political participation and attitudes. If discovered that there is a gender gap present, this article looks to find where it would be located and what would cause such gaps. With the help of previous literature, they look at two possible explanations. Inequality could be one possible determinant of gender gaps and colonialism could be another. Harell and Dimitrios look at both possible explanations as well as three surveys, and with the assistance of these they come to discover that there
Indigenous peoples of Canada have been considered inferior to all other citizens, and have been abused and neglected through European history, and can be seen as a form of genocide. In Canadian residential schools, children were removed from the home, sexually assaulted, beaten, deprived of basic human necessities, and over 3 500 women and girls were sterilized, and this went on well into the 1980 's (Nicoll 2015). The dehumanization of Indigenous peoples over the generations has left a significant impact on society today; the generational trauma has left many Indigenous peoples heavily dependent of drugs and alcohol, and the vulnerability of Indigenous women has led to extremely high rates of violent crime towards these women. A report that
According to Anzovino and Boutilier (2014), “the legislative definition of Aboriginal peoples includes all persons of “Indian” blood who were known to belong to a specific band, living on specific land, with their descendants [and] all persons intermarried with any such “Indians” who resided among them” as well as all children and persons adopted in infancy (p. 90). These persons are immensely proud of their good character, race, beliefs, values and morals. However, they are receiving abuse and a lack of promised assistance from the government. How can Canada act so neglectful and inattentive to those that live north of the suburban area? Are we not all equal and deserve the same rights, especially basic living conditions in order to survive?
Indigenous people are incarcerated at much higher rates than non-Indigenous in Canada and are incarcerated for longer periods of time (Cook & Roesh, 2012, p.222). Canadians have put Indigenous communities through much heartache and pain. With the colonization of Indigenous people to residential schools, Canadians continue to stigmatize and treat Indigenous people poorly. Indigenous people are more likely to suffer from drug abuse using needles because of the intergenerational trauma suffered through their parents attending residential schools in Canada (Bombay, Matheson, & Anisman, 2014, p. 327). This puts them at a higher criminal risk than others because of what they have been subjected to.
Canada is known for its amazing healthcare and it is considered one of the best in the world. In Canada, healthcare is ‘universal’ to its citizens under the Heath Care Act. However, not everyone has equal access to healthcare, Aboriginals being some of them. Aboriginals have trouble getting the access they need because of socio-economic status, geography, lack of infrastructure and staff, language or cultural barriers an more. Aboriginals on reserve face many barriers when it comes to access to healthcare, they include cost, language, distance, climate, education and more.
Children were reared by the “mother clan” it took the whole family to raise a child from husbands, brothers, and extended family leaving little room for family violence (Martin-Hill, 2012, p. 110). Canada’s Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples referred to the voices of Aboriginal women pre-colonization: Women played a prominent part in the political and cultural life of many traditional Aboriginal societies. First and foremost, they were honoured as the givers of life. Their ability to bear, raise and nurture the new generation was seen as a special gift from the Creator, a source of awesome power and equal
Indigenous people are restricted to small lands without the establishment of a plan, infrastructure, or economy. The destruction of the traditional way of life, combined with the lack of organization, the establishment of reserves lead to poor people to prepare. Many indigenous people died due to the lack of housing, food, health care, and money. In order to make the problem worse, the Canadian government put forward strict restrictions on the relief efforts of the reserve, resulting in a higher level of
The problem appears to become evident right from birth with aboriginal woman twice as likely as non-indigenous woman to have a stillborn baby and twice as likely to give birth to an underweight baby (ed. Healey 2000, p.4). During the period between 1991 and 1996, life expectancy for indigenous people was around 20 years than that of their non-indigenous counterparts. The lives of indigenous people are affected by many other health factors, one of most concern is alcohol related problems that impact on their well-being, family structure, and even aboriginal traditional life because they tend to drink more haphazardly. Some of the health risks to which indigenous people are exposed can be attributed the differences between the health of indigenous and non-indigenous people.
The documentary series, 8th fire, by Dando and Ingles (2012) supports this claim. The Indigenous peoples ' have long felt betrayed by the government that they had signed a treaty with, so why would an Indigenous person seek health services from this establishment? The mistrust between the Indigenous peoples and the Government of Canada is the result of colonization, specifically the Indian Act, and it undoubtedly impacts Indigenous peoples and their faith in, and ability to get proper care from, the healthcare system. The Indian Act, first introduced in 1876, was primarily a way for Canada to exercise complete control over the Indigenous population, limiting their rights and dissolving their identity.