Residential Schools: The Aboriginal Cultural Genocide

Nicholas Flood Davin was a remarkable and brilliant man, who’s legacy will live on. He was distinguished by his erratic behavior through his newspaper, Regina Leader, and his years as a member of the House of Commons.1 After the years of Confederation, he was drawn to the brilliant and merciless life in the Western prairies, where he changed the way of life forever.2 Nicholas Flood Davin’s work to create the Regina Leader, and his research about Residential schools helped to change the future of education, and lives of the citizens of Regina. Born in Ireland in 1839, Davin moved to Toronto when he was 33 years old on an assignment from the Pall Mall Gazette of London, but ended up becoming a freelance writer for the Globe in Toronto.3 In 1882,

The residential schools had been built so that Indians (First Nations) could be educated and fit into Euro-Canadian

The establishment of residential schools marks a dark chapter in Canadian history. The residential school system was a nationwide network of boarding schools with the purpose of destroying the Indigenous identity and assimilating children into the dominant European-Canadian culture. The schools were known for their harsh environments, abuse, and mistreatment, which led to generational trauma and long-lasting effects. Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese, narrates the life story of Saul Indian Horse, a young Ojibwe boy whose identity is stripped away and who is taken from his family to attend one of these schools. The book examines Saul’s journey, from his traumatic school experiences to his love for hockey.

These schools gave traumatic experiences to the Aboriginal youths and haunted them for the rest of their life. the government pursued the schooling to first nations to make them “economically self-sufficient” with its underlying scheme(Miller) the government secretly lied to them and planned on lessening Aboriginal dependency on the public purse (funds raised by the government) Eve Cardinal, a former student of a residential school, still has traumatic memories that even 45 years later, Eva still cries about (Boguski) “Students were punished for just about everything,” -Eve Cardinal (Boguski) getting out of bed at night, wetting the bed, speaking their native language, etc. some students were forced to hold down their peers on a table as the nun beats her (the peer being held down) with a strap “I want to get rid of the Indian problem. I do not think as a matter of fact, that the country ought to continuously protect a class of people who are able to stand alone…

The effects of residential schools on Indigenous children and communities are blatantly shown by Maisie's story. She suffers from the violence she endured physically and emotionally in the residential school, as well as 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 eventually end her life. Her experience is like a reminder of the tragic impact that Canada's residential schools had on Indigenous peoples, as well as the continued need for peace and healing. Sociological imagination helps us understand Maisie’s experiences at the micro level.

Some Aboriginals stated that they valued the knowledge they learned in residential schools, such as how to act as a European. I think it is interesting to know that some Aboriginals actually wanted to live life the European lifestyle because it was a developing nation and living as a European was perceived as more luxurious. It does seem rationale in my mind for a minority of people to actually appreciate residential schools because it was the federal government’s plan afterall. Nonetheless, this still does not make the concept of residential schools

Introduction The little community of Attawapiskat, Ontario, Canada has been and is currently facing an immense loss due to a high amount of youth suicides. The community has been under a state of emergency since April 2016 after many of the community’s youth have tried to or succeed at committing suicide. These suicides have been the product of colonialism and intergenerational trauma from the generations that came before them. The devastation in the community can teach Child and Youth Care practitioners how to put into action programs that build youth’s strengths and resilience as well as overcome any negative factor that have been created during this epidemic.

Inequity between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people is highlighted throughout the book, where Talaga describes the discrimination that happened to the youth before and after death as well as the historical mistreatment of Indigenous people in Canada. The deaths of the youth spawned an inquest and led to numerous recommendations to ensure the safety of Indigenous students in the future, but many problems still exist and Talaga draws parallels in the book

Although there were some significant differences between the two countries’ systems regarding their control, enrollment, structure and the later government apologies reflecting on them, American and Canadian boarding schools shared numerous similarities with each other concerning their aims and treatment of Native children. By examining the differences and similarities between the two systems, the thesis is going to focus how these institutions worked in order to assimilate Native children to the dominant

Imagine being ripped apart from family members, culture, tradition, and labelled a savage that needs to be educated. Imagine constantly facing punishment at school for being one’s self. Unfortunately, these events were faced head on for many First Nations people living in Canada in the late 20th century. These First Nations people were the victims of an extensive school system set up by the government to eradicate Aboriginal culture across Canada and to assimilate them into what was considered a mainstream society.

The chapter vividly portrays the silencing of Indigenous voices, leaving these students feeling alone and without agency. The separation from their culture and identity further intensified the sense of dislocation and isolation experienced by Indigenous children in residential schools. Therefore, through this chapter, Downie highlights the need for awareness and understanding of the trauma experienced by Indigenous children, which has long-lasting effects, ultimately leading to the importance of reconciliation with

Over the past few decades, there has been many distinct perspectives and conflicts surrounding the historical context between the Indigenous peoples in Canada and the Canadian Government. In source one, the author P.J Anderson is trying to convey that the absolute goal of the Indian Residential School system in Canada has been to assimilate the Indian nation and provide them with guidance to “ forget their Indian habits”, and become educated of the “ arts of civilized life”, in order to help them integrate into society and “become one” with their “White brethren”. It is clearly evident throughout the source that the author is supportive of the Indian residential school system and strongly believes that the Indian residential School System

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).

Not only were Native students separated from their family members and communities living on the reservations, but also from those relatives or friends who attended the boarding schools along with them. Both in the American and Canadian institutions, children were divided into different groups based on their age and sex (Haig-Brown 73). The schools did not allow much social interaction between the different groups, therefore, siblings, cousins and friends rarely met each other. The separation of family members and friends inside the school made children feel even more lonely, powerless and vulnerable (71).