Aboriginal people are the very first people to inhabit the Canadian land. Many years ago, English and French men came and forcibly took over the land that the Natives owned. They introduced alcohol and many deadly diseases that made the First Nations very vulnerable. For many years they have been systemically oppressed. Oppression is “a set of policies, practices, traditions, norms, definitions, and explanations which function to systematically exploit one social group to the benefit of another social group” (Sensoy, O., DiAngelo, R.). In this case, the Aboriginals are being oppressed to benefit the “White” society. The elements of oppression – Historical, Ideological, Institutional, and Cultural have been clearly proven throughout the years and these elements continue to prove the oppression of First Nations in Canada until present day. …show more content…
The oppression of Aboriginal people continues until today. In the 19th century, the government introduced things like the Residential Schools that applied only to First Nations. The Residential Schools were the government’s way of assimilating aboriginal kids. They wanted to make sure that the Aboriginal culture doesn’t get carried on from generation to generation. Moreover, getting their rightful land stripped away wasn’t enough, so they were sent to the parts of Canada that have very few resources. The government introduced the “Indian Act” in 1867. This allowed the Aboriginals to have reserved land for them, but it also took away their right to vote or be on jury duty (Indigenous