Cultural Genocide: The Hidden Chapter of Canadian History
A long history of Indian residential schools along with the buildings “which are still standing remain comfortably invisible to Canadians” (Regan, 6). The schools were primarily active following the Indian Act. This Act allowed the federal government of Canada to control most aspects of Indigenous life such as Indian status, land, resources, and education. Thus, the government partnered with the Anglican churches to open residential schools for the Indigenous children. The first school was open in Brantford, Ontario in 1828. Afterwards, Egerton Ryerson, Methodist minister produces a study of native education at the request of the Indian affairs assistant superintendent. His findings suggested that domestic education with religious instruction is the best model for the Indian population. Hence, his findings became the model for residential schools (CBC). The schools were built “outside the gaze of public scrutiny, isolated from both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal communities” (Milloy, 45) and are surrounded by trees and a chain link fence. It was difficult for the students to escape, scream for help, and make contacts with anyone from outside community. So, for many children “this was a tremendous shock as their individual freedom was curtailed” (Grant, 112). This broke their self-confidence, trust, and family relations while they lived in these residential schools. The buildings of the schools were bigger than the church and the city Hall that was built with red bricks with rows of narrow windows and a porch on the second floor (MacDougall, 4). Even though big buildings were built to educate Indigenous children, they could not provide the comfort and care that children require. From the beginning, these schools were built with the motive of separating Indigenous children from their families for as long as possible. Also, the children were kept in schools “until they lost all trace of their cultures and languages. It was assumed that when they graduate, they would adopt a Christian, farming lifestyle based on the European model and would no longer be Indians” (Grant, 68). Therefore, Aboriginal cultures were cruelly suppressed and students who made references to their own cultures were punished.
Therefore, it is important for the “Canadian public to understand the destructive impacts of colonial history” (Regan, 30) on Indigenous people. Unfortunately, very few have any substantive knowledge about the goals of assimilation through the education system. According to a survey, “one-third of Canadians (32%) feel they are not familiar with Aboriginal issues while just under two in ten (17%) are not at all familiar” (Regan, 42). About one-third of the population is familiar with the issue of native people and residential schools. Thus, it is important to familiarize everyone with these issues because “without understanding the subject as symptomatic of a colonial relationship that must be dismantled” (Regan, 42). It is important and becomes a responsibility of every citizen to know and understand the history of residential schools not only for healing and reconciliation purposes but also so it never happens again in any other nation in the world. Besides, understanding the gaps between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people will lead to a strong cultural relationship. So it becomes essential and a responsibility to acknowledge survivors’ trauma experiences for which they “seek not just legal but political and moral accountability” (Regan, 210).
Times of History Taking Place
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1763 : a religious order from France established the first residential school near Quebec city.
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1820 : Chief Shingwauk advocated for an education of Aboriginal children, but an education that combined both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal teachings. Shingwauk implemented an education program in collaboration with the government and the Anglican Church.
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1831 : The Mohawk Indian Residential School, also known as the “Mushhole” to the Survivors due to the poor food served there, was established in Brantford, Ontario. It is the oldest residential school considered by the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement (IRSSA).
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1857 : Gradual Civilization Act- required that all Indian males over the age of 21 who can speak, read, and write English or French will be “enfranchised,” meaning that they must renounce their Indian status and become a British subject.
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1867 : Indian Act- The Indian Act is enacted and gives government exclusive right to create legislation regarding Indians and Indian lands. This act identifies who is an Indian and establishes related legal rights.
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The Davin Report recommends the creation of a system of industrial schools where children are intentionally separated from their parents.
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1880 : By this year, eleven schools were operating in the Dominion of Canada.
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1896 : Forty-five residential/industrial schools are operating in Canada.
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1900 : 73 schools in operation. Despite an aggressive campaign to increase the number of students, the government was determined to keep the operating costs of the schools at a minimum. The lack of sufficient funds resulted in poorly constructed buildings, insufficient food and clothing for the students, and inadequate programming.
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1920 : Duncan Campbell Scott, Deputy Superintendent of Indian Affairs, makes residential school attendance compulsory for Indian children between the ages of 7 and 15. The focus was to Christianize Indian school.
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1958 : Indian Affairs regional inspectors recommend an abolition of residential schools.
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The "60s Scoop" - During the 1960s and 1970s, parents and Aboriginal groups continued to speak out against the residential school system. However, as the church-run schools closed, the provincial and federal child welfare programs expanded. Yet many of these programs only divided Aboriginal communities even further. One such program, for example, known as the “60’s scoop,” attempted to address the lack of Aboriginal parental skills by forcibly removing thousands of Aboriginal children from their parents, instead of helping the parents learn better parenting skills. Instead, the children were made wards of a poorly monitored child welfare system, and most of them were placed into non-Aboriginal foster homes.
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1969 : The partnership between the government and churches ends, and the federal government takes over the Residential School System. Transfer of control of the schools to Indian bands begins.
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1982 : The Constitution Act is amended and now recognizes and affirms the rights of “Indian, Inuit, and Métis peoples of Canada.”
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1996 : The last federally-run residential school, the Gordon Indian Residential School in Punnichy, Saskatchewan, closes.
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1998 : Aboriginal Healing Foundation established.
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2008 : Truth and Reconciliation Commission; Canadian Federal official apology made by former prime minister Stephen Harper
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2009 : Catholic Chruch apology.
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2016 : Justin Trueadu making an impact! Trudeau lays out plan for new relationship with indigenous people.
"It is time for a renewed, nation-to-nation relationship with First Nations peoples, one that understands that the constitutionally guaranteed rights of First Nations in Canada are not an inconvenience but rather a sacred obligation,"
-Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, 2015
Works Cited:
I would like to acknowledge and thank the Indian Residential Schools Commemoration Project for supporting me with this part of the research. The project briefly describes the history of residential schools by providing dates and other historical facts.
Indian Residential Schools Commemoration Project. Anishinabek Nation, 2013. Web. 4 April 2016.
Milloy, John S. A National Crime: The Canadian Government and the Residential School System, 1879 to 1986. Winnipeg:
University of Manitoba Press, 1999. Print.
Regan, Paulette, and Alfred Taiaiake. Unsettling the Settler within: Indian Residential Schools, Truth Telling, and Reconciliation in Canada. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2010. Print.