“Indian School Road” by Chris Benjamin sheds light on the horrific experiences of Indigenous children and families at residential schools. It is a non-fiction book that explores the impact of the residential school system in Canada on Indigenous Communities. The author focuses specifically on the Shubenacadie Residential School in Nova Scotia, where Indigenous children were taken and forced to attend the school from 1930-1967. The Canadian government established these schools intending to indoctrinate Indigenous children into Christian ways, with churches as the main locations and priests and nuns as educators. The book uncovers the history of the Shubenacadie Residential School, exposing the responsible individuals, the government's passive …show more content…
It provides the perspective of intergenerational trauma and allows the reader to connect with the survivors. Benjamin shares his knowledge of oppression. He is a witness to the stories of abuse, and through this novel, he exposes what he has learnt to contribute to the battle against injustice. The author brings to life the experiences of those who attended the school, offering a rare and moving insight into their lives. Specifically, Wayne Nicholas' survivor testimony is deeply engaging as he shares his experiences at the residential schools and charts his journey of growth and acceptance. Nicholas is now a member of the Topique Band Council and plays a role in supporting survivors as they process their experiences. His journey is a deeply emotional one, characterized by the detailed description of the hardships he faced. The account showcases his personal growth, as he transforms his experiences of abuse into an integral part of himself and makes it his life’s purpose to assist others who went through similar experiences. These personal and insightful narratives are what give this book its true significance. Chris Benjamin draws upon his knowledge and weaves these thoughts and memories into a written work, bringing the world's attention to the tragedy of the residential …show more content…
However, what is presented is even more dark and appalling. This book differs from typical non-fiction works on residential schools in its unflinching revelation of the ugly truths. Benjamin does something remarkable by shifting the focus from the victims to the perpetrators. While most people are familiar with the survivor stories of Indigenous children, with emphasis on the abuse they endured and loss of their cultural identity; few works delve into the actions of the oppressors. Benjamin's approach is not intended to diminish the survivor's experiences, but rather to shine a light on the abuse of power by the priests, nuns, and government, which has gone unchecked for too long. Without documentation, the assaults and abuse committed by Father Mackey, the initial administrator of Shubenacadie Residential School, would have gone unnoticed and unacknowledged. It was only through the recording and documenting of his actions that the truth was revealed. By uncovering his actions and motivations, Benjamin's novel sheds new light on the residential school system and offers a fresh perspective on a long-standing issue. His writing raises important questions about accountability and the need for systemic change. The eye-opening accounts presented in this novel serve as a powerful reminder of the atrocities committed against Indigenous children and the ongoing impact
Indigenous people across Canada have been suppressed by the government, system, and settlers still to this day. The residential school system was a system of boarding schools that were established by the Canadian government and administered by various churches to assimilate Indigenous children into Euro-Canadian culture. Many of these children suffered physical, sexual, and emotional abuse from school staff. Even though residential schools have been abolished they can still affect indigenous people today. The book “Indian Horse” clearly represents the intergenerational trauma of Indigenous communities in Canada.
In the story, a character named Stazz talks about his experience being taken to a residential school, “One spring morning with the arrival of a bus that was soon filled with sobbing bodies of children'' (Wagamese 322). He along with many other children were taken in broad daylight and forced into residential schools. This was a common method of stealing Indigenous children from their families, where they were then taken miles away from home and forced to attend one of these schools. These schools were designed as a tool to alienate Indigenous children, leaving them traumatized due to the horrific situations they experienced. Children were beaten and locked away from others for things such as speaking their language and practicing their own religious traditions such as prayers.
Summary of the Book “Out of depths” represents the heart wrenching real story of the experience of the Isabela Knockwood in the Indian Residential School in Shubenacadie in Nova Scotia. Additionally, it involves her horrifying accounts of whatever she faced in the institutions. Isabela incorporates different accounts from other former individuals in the institution. The abuse that the kids faced is unfathomable. Worst still after going through the story, it is quite hard to understand the reason a group of individuals could have treated kids in such a horrifying and abusive way.
Novel/Paper Assignment Shirika Hariram 20952694 Professor Joelle Mcneil PLAN 233: People and Plans Section 1: Five Little Indians and The Sociological Imagination (518) Maisie's story blatantly shows the effects of residential schools on Indigenous children and communities. She suffers from the violence she endured physically and emotionally in the residential school and the trauma of being unwillingly torn away from her family and culture. We can see that she deals with the trauma she's endured in unhealthy ways, like self-harm and drugs, to end her life eventually.
Ebrahim Radwan NBE3U Ms. Abunassar March 29, 2023 Stripping Identities: Trauma in "Indian Horse" Imagine a world where the innocent and vulnerable children are subjected to abuse, mistreatment, and even death, all because of who they are. This is the heartbreaking reality of Canadian Residential Schools. From 1831 to 1996, Indigenous children were forcibly taken from their homes and communities, and placed in these government-run schools, where they were stripped of their culture, language, and identity. The destruction these schools caused to Indigenous peoples is immeasurable. These schools are the cause of 6000 deaths out of 150000 victims, all of which are vulnerable children.
In and of itself, residential schools have damaged Indigenous culture and ways of life; they forcibly altered Indigenous lifestyles and have long-lasting adverse effects on Indigenous communities and individuals alike. Cultural genocide originates
"One of the most damaging consequences of residential schools has been that so many Survivors, their families, and whole communities have lost the connection to their own cultures, languages, and laws. on page forty-six, the author mentions, "The opportunity to learn, understand, and practise the laws of their ancestors as part of their heritage and birthright was taken away." The law significantly impacted Indigenous people, making it more difficult for them to accept reconciliation. The laws protected people from their wrongdoing and stripped away Indigenous laws. As the author stated on page forty-eight, "Decisions not to charge or prosecute abusers allowed people to escape the harmful consequences of their actions.
Hi, I’m Leah, and I will be discussing the News Magazine Education Week Video on Residential schools from 1955. This video, which claims to accurately inform the viewer on the subject of Aboriginal Residential schools, is nothing more than a propaganda video aimed at an audience of white, suburban Canadians to validate their racism. The video claims that residential schools have a positive impact on the aboriginal children who attend them.
Within the novel, as Lisa gets older, she begins to understand the struggles of her family that all connect and come back to the leading cause, which is the residential school system. Monkey Beach shows how “Historical trauma coupled with ongoing present-day traumas such as anti-Indigenous racism and a lack of clean drinking water [has] a massive negative impact on Indigenous communities, resulting in (and combining with) issues such as addiction, limited education, incarceration, violence, abuse, suicidality, homelessness and poverty. These symptoms are what many social agencies and service providers focus on addressing. But without considering root causes, one of which is intergenerational trauma, conventional solutions and treatments simply won’t work” (Seto). The residential school system aimed to assimilate indigenous peoples into Western society and strip them of their culture.
The short stories “Apology Day” by Isabelle Knockwood and “To Own Ourselves” by Niigonwedom James Sinclair share multiple connections when it comes to the residential school system. They have connections when it comes to the government failing to keep children safe, intergenerational trauma, and how the communities reacted to the government's apology. Over 15,000 indigenous children were sent to residential schools; over a third did not make it out alive. The residential school system was first initiated in the 1930s and later closed in 1996. The official apology made by the government was released in 2008 by Stephen Harper who was the prime minister at the time.
We Were Children, the documentary on residential schools, is a re-enactment of two aboriginal children and their first hand experiences in the residential school system. The kinds of problems this documentary presented include mistreatment faced by the children who attended these schools, corruption and scandal inside the administration of the schools, and the false perception about these schools that resonated amongst Canadian society. These two children talk about the bullying they had to endure from the nuns which show that the children were not seen as equal to a child of non-Aboriginal decent. Furthermore, the types of abuse administration would put these kids through was immensely disturbing considering this was a state run institution.
It recalls Mary’s long, hard days at Mission School in Fort St. James, a residential school and the joys and struggles of bearing 12 children. Mary John joined the Homemakers Club, which tried to “make life better for [the reserve] families and … village” through knitting, quilting, and crocheting, but as injustices rose within the reserve, they felt that they “could no longer … leave Native politics to others.” The club took a political standpoint and fought for Aboriginal rights and justice involving the deaths of Aboriginal peoples on Mary John’s reserve and the overall living conditions. Mary’s story is a personal account of the discrimination, poor health conditions, living conditions and laws that Aboriginal peoples
The accounts of the people who were taken from their families, frequently without warning or explanation, demonstrate the harm caused by the Sixties Scoop. A lot of Indigenous children ended up in homes where their culture was lost and they were abused and neglected. As a result, many Indigenous peoples face difficulties like trauma across generations, loss of language and culture, and feeling cut off from their families and communities. Indigenous peoples continue to push for compensation and recognition for the harm done to them as a result of the Sixties Scoop. This shows the damage that was done to them.
The TRC’s “The History” author appeals to logos through the use quantitative findings. The use of logical evidence from the collection of testimonials made by former residential school students is an effective way to aid the persuasion of a reader. Throughout “The History”, the author describes the memories of known First Nations peoples Frederic Ernest Koe, Marlene Kayseas, Lily Bruce and many others. In addition, the author quotes Vitaline Elsie Jenner’s use of ‘kaya nakasin’ (TRC, 2015, p.38) in describing her experience with residential school. The author’s example that contains the use native language reaffirms his credibility and detailed knowledge of the
Critical Summary #3: First Nations Perspectives In Chapter eight of Byron Williston’s Environmental Ethics for Canadians First Nation’s perspectives are explored. The case study titled “Language, Land and the Residential Schools” begins by speaking of a public apology from former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. He apologizes for the treatment of “Indians” in “Indian Residential Schools”. He highlights the initial agenda of these schools as he says that the “school system [was] to remove and isolate [Aboriginal] children from the influence of their homes, families, traditions and cultures, and to assimilate them[…]” (Williston 244).