Residential Schools A Brief History Ethnocide Definition
Ethnocide refers to the deliberate attempt to eradicate the culture
or way of life of a people Ethnocide depends on the use of
political power to force relatively powerless people to give up
their culture and is therefore characteristic of colonial or other
situations where coercion can be applied The term is sometimes used
to refer to any process or policy that results in the disappearance
of a peoples culture. The Dictionary of Anthropology (1997). Edited
by Thomas Barfield. Blackwell Publishers Ltd. Genocide Definition
Article II of the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention
and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide states: Any of the
following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in
part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:
killing members of the group; causing serious bodily or mental harm
to members of the group; deliberately inflicting on the group
conditions of life, calculated to bring about its physical
destruction in whole or in part; imposing measures intended to
prevent births within the group; [and] forcibly transferring
children of the group to another group. Where Are The Children
Exhibition
Justice for Aboriginal Peoples: Its Time In the 1870s, the
Government of Canada partnered with Anglican, Catholic, United, and
Presbyterians churches to create boarding and residential schools
for Aboriginal (First Nations, Inuit, and Mtis) children. The
intent of the Residential School System was to educate, assimilate,
and integrate Aboriginal people into Canadian society. In the words
of one government official, it was a system designed to kill the
Indian in the child. In 1920, Duncan Campbell Scott, head of the
Department of Indian Affairs stated before the House of Commons, I
want to get rid of the Indian problemOur objective is to continue
until there is not a single Indian in Canada that has not been
absorbed into the body politic and there is no Indian question, and
no Indian Department, that this is the whole object of this Bill
[to establish the residential school system]. Attendance at
residential schools was mandatory for Aboriginal children across
Canada
Failure to send children to residential school often resulted in
the punishment of parents, including imprisonment. The federal
government and churches operated over 130 residential schools
across Canada.
By 1931 there were 80 active residential schools. The last
federally-administered residential school closed in 1996. The
federal government currently recognizes that 132
federally-supported residential schools existed across Canada. This
number does not include residential schools that were administered
by provincial/territorial governments and churches. Manitoba
Residential Schools:
Assiniboia (Winnipeg), Winnipeg, Manitoba Birtle, Birtle, Manitoba
Brandon, Brandon, Manitoba Churchill Vocational Centre, Churchill,
Manitoba Cross Lake (St. Joseph's, Jack River Annex - predecessor
to NotreDame Hostel), Cross Lake, Manitoba Dauphin (McKay), The Pas
/ Dauphin, Manitoba Elkhorn (Washakada), Elkhorn, Manitoba Fort
Alexander (Pine Falls), Fort Alexander, Manitoba Guy Hill
(Clearwater, The Pas, formerly Sturgeon Landing, SK), The
Pas,Manitoba Norway House United Church, Norway House, Manitoba
Notre Dame Hostel, Norway House, Manitoba Pine Creek (Camperville),
Camperville, Manitoba Portage la Prairie, Portage la Prairie,
Manitoba Sandy Bay, Marius, Manitoba Over 150,000 children attended
federally-administered residential schools.
Some children were as young as 4 years old. It is estimated that
there are approximately 80,000 Residential School Survivors alive
today. Residential School Experience
Many Aboriginal children were taken from their homes, often
forcibly removed and separated from their families by long
distances. Others who attended residential schools near their
communities were often prohibited from seeing their families
outside of occasional visits. Students were forbidden to speak
their language or practice their culture, and were often punished
for doing so. Many students were forced to do manual labour, and
were fed poor quality food. There are many accounts of students
being provided moldy, maggot-infested and rotten foods. In the
1940s and 50s, the government ran scientific nutrition experiments
on some residential school children without their parents knowledge
or permission Other experiences reported from Survivors of
residential schools include
sexual and mental abuse, beatings and severe punishments,
overcrowding, illness, children forced to sleep outside in the
winter, the forced wearing of soiled underwear on the head or wet
bed sheets on the body, use of students in medical experiments,
disease and in some cases death. Many students received a
sub-standard education.
As late as 1950, according to a study by the Department of Indian
Affairs, over 40 per cent of the teaching staff had no professional
training. 1955 Residential School propaganda Some students have
spoken of the positive experiences of residential schools, and of
receiving an adequate education. However, overall it was a negative
experience as indicated by various statements of apology issued by
the churches and federal government. 2008 Apology 2008 Apology
(Youtube) Residential School Impacts
In many cases, the abuses, and even the common experiences of
having attended residential school have caused impacts such as
post-traumatic stress syndrome These impacts have made it difficult
for Survivors to engage in family, social, and professional
circumstances. Survivors were often away from their parents for
long periods of time and this prevented the discovering and
learning of valuable parenting skills. The removal of children from
their homes also prevented the transmission of language and
culture. As a result, many Aboriginal people no longer speak their
language or are unaware of the traditional cultural practices.
Adaptation of abusive behaviors learned from residential schools
has also occurred and caused intergenerational trauma, the cycle of
abuse and trauma from one generation to the next. Many Aboriginal
communities are still in need of healing with high rates of
substance abuse, violence, crime, child apprehension, disease, and
suicide. Lost Priority: All That We Are Healing and
Reconciliation
In the early 1990s, as a result of escalating social problems in
Aboriginal communities throughout Canada, the federal government
created the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP). RCAP
confirmed a link between social crisis in Aboriginal communities,
residential schools and the legacy of intergenerational trauma.
This led to the creation of the Aboriginal Healing Foundation (AHF)
in 1998.
The AHF funds community based healing that address the legacy of
physical and sexual abuse in the Residential School System,
including intergenerational impacts. In 2007, the Government of
Canada implemented the Indian Residential School Settlement
Agreement.
The settlement agreement included: Common Experience Payment to all
former students of federal administered residential schools; A
process to address compensation for physical and sexual abuse;
Establishment of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission; Healing
initiatives; Fund for commemoration projects. The churches and
government have offered various statements of regret, condolence,
sorrow and/or apology for their roles in administering residential
schools including: - United Church of Canada (1986) - Oblate
Missionaries of Mary Immaculate (Roman Catholic) (1991) - Anglican
Church (1993) - Presbyterian Church (1994) - Government of Canada
(2008) - Roman Catholic Church (2009) Truth and Reconciliation
Commission
The Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission
(TRC) was established in 2008 Its mandate is to inform all
Canadians about what happened in residential schools. The TRC will
document the truth of Survivors, their families, communities and
anyone personally affected by the residential school experience. In
response to the loss of language, there is a growing movement to
revive and preserve unique Aboriginal cultural beliefs, social
structures, and spiritual values. Today Canadians are learning this
history and understanding the impact that it has had and continues
to have on their communities. Thinking CriticallyWhat is your view
on Residential Schools? Talk about what you would have missed if
you were taken from your home as a child and placed in institutions
like a residential school? What would be some of the effects? How
would you heal? Offer your perspectives on reconciliation What does
reconciliation mean to you? How do we reconcile with our past?With
each other?With other communities? Are there other examples of
reconciliation that would be helpful when thinking about the
Canadian Residential situation? Is an apology from the Canadian
Government an important part of healing and reconciliation? What
can be done to increase public understanding of the effects of
residential schools? What can be done to increase public
sensitivity for Canadian Aboriginal People, their families and
their communities?
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