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Negative Effects Of Residential Schools On Canadian Identity

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Today, the Canadian identity is known as multicultural, however the residential schools breaks and impacts this identity in a negative way. Residential schools were government authorized school set up to educate Aboriginal children in Canadian culture. Its main purpose was to remove children from the influence of their homes, families, traditions and cultures, and to assimilate them into the dominant culture. In 1920 the government passed a law requiring every Native child, including First Nations, Métis, and Inuit, to attend residential school. Therefore, children were forcibly removed from their homes and sent away to the schools. When aboriginal children went to residential school, they forgot their traditions and language, which eventually
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I was told to embrace my culture and traditions and share them with my peers. However, this was not the case for Indigenous children who went through the residential school system. The Indigenous children were told that their “languages, their cultures weren’t relevant, [and] they were told that their people and their ancestors were heathens and pagans and uncivilized” (National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation [NCTR], 2019, 0:46). The

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In the short documentary film “Canada’s shame: Residential schools, unmarked graves, and the search for justice- people and power” I learned a lot about what Canada did to the indigenous people regarding residential schools and the trauma we left on their community. The lives of the indigenous communities are forever altered because of the way these schools were designed to assimilate and strip the children of their identity. Carl Sam was just one of the Saint Mary’s residential school survivors and he says, “His experience at the residential school has stripped him of his whole life”. He goes on to say one day he was put on a boat and all the children were crying around him because they were taken out of their homes and they didn’t know what was going on,

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“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

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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

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As a result of children being punished for their culture, it ultimately gets lost during their stays at these schools. Culture is a large part of self-identity, and when this is lost it often leads to a lack of self-belonging. Another issue caused by residential schools is intergenerational trauma which is largely caused by the abuse, both emotional and physical, that the children were subjected to. Intergenerational trauma largely affects future

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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.

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Daniel Birch Mrs. Agostini ENG 2D1 Friday, May 2024 Cultural genocide, Trauma and addiction in indigenous communities What exactly have indigenous people gone through? Indigenous kids, families, and communities went through many forms of abuse within residential schools, all at the hands of the school staff in Canada. The novel Indian horse illustrates the impact that the residential school system had on Indigenous communities in Canada by focusing on the experiences of Saul Indian horse and how he decides to persevere despite all of the things he has faced within residential schools. Indigenous communities in Canada were impacted by the residential school system as the survivors experienced cultural genocide, trauma and addiction to alcohol.

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As argued by Whitley (2014), “many families may continue to fear an agenda of assimilation for their children and view educational institutions as perpetuating colonization, making the development of collaborative relationships with teachers and administrators even more challenging” (p.156). Over the course of my education to be an early childhood educator I’ve learned that a key factor of success in the classroom both academically and socially is family involvement. Therefore, if the families are apprehensive about the school system it is less likely that will get involved. Whitley, Rawana and Brownlee (2014) point out “Given the intergenerational effects of the residential school system in Canada, many families may view collaboration with school staff and a focus on success in mainstream, off-reserve schools with suspicion or as a low priority” (p.37). Residential schools although now closed are continuing to provide challenges for Aboriginal

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Government Control in Canadian Residential Schools and Fahrenheit 451 Government control is often seen in real world circumstances, as well as in fiction novels. Indian residential schools were government-funded religious schools whose goal was to assimilate Aboriginal children into Euro-Canadian society. (Miller) About 150, 000 Aboriginal children attended these schools that operated from 1831 to 1996, when the last residential school closed down. (Miller)

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The purpose of the schools was to “westernize” them to the point where there wouldn’t be anymore indigenous people, and in my opinion the people who agree with that are sick. To conclude, residential schools have a lasting effect on everyone who

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For example, in 1867, the Indian Act was passed and that act was made to eliminate First Nations peoples’ cultures and they had their rights and land taken away without any warning. This was the beginning of how Canada began their process of assimilation with the Indian Act. Along with the Indian Act, the major expansion of residential schools was a major factor in Canada’s history with Aboriginal peoples and how they treated them. The intention of residential schools were to assimilate the children into Euro-Canadian cultures without any influence from the parents. Kids age 7 to 15 were removed from their homes and were forced to live far away.

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In 1996, the last of a number of schools in Canada created for the purposes of assimilating indigenous youth into Canadian society was shut down. The residential school phenomenon can be traced back to the late 1800’s, when the government authorized the taking of indigenous children from their families to be placed in church-run schools. While the schools did provide some education, many students suffered physical, mental, and sexual abuse while being stripped of their language and culture in favour or European language, culture, and values (Legacy of Hope Foundation, n.d.). Here, I will look at the residential school phenomenon through a picture of a young indigenous boy getting his hair cut in a classroom of a residential school, approached

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589 Words | 3 Pages

No one wants to be the “bad guy,” so an environment free of judgement is important for recording experiences as accurately as possible. It is through this that we can create a more detailed account of what happened. Residential Schools are necessary to Canadian history. The indigenous people were Canadians long before it was colonized by European powers. Canada as we know it would not exist if not for its indigenous peoples, and the consequences of creating this Canada come at the expense of those same indigenous people.

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240 Words | 1 Pages

Hi suja, I agree with you that being away from family during childhood can be very distressing. Lots of people are unaware of the existence of the residential school which can be overcome by adding it in nursing curriculum as you mentioned. I was reading one article from Ottawa citizen published on October 25, with a title 'High hopes' for Trudeau to act on residential schools report ‘’ in which Liberal spokesman Daniel Lauzon reiterated that pledge last Thursday, saying, “We believe it is time to act, without delay, to renew Canada’s relationship with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples based on rights, respect, and co-operation to ensure we create a fair and prosperous shared future. ‎” this article developed some hope in the survivors

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1330 Words | 6 Pages

Due to the schools being set up in the communities of the Indigenous people they could return home, unlike Residential schools. The schools were not well funded and were not set up in a way that enhanced the lives of Indigenous people. They were forced to learn English and not allowed to speak their own language in the schools. The hope to assimilate the Indigenous people into Canadian society first presented itself in these schools and the education they would be exposed to. Day schools were mainly set up by the missionaries, especially in the early years when they were established.

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