Impacts of Colonization in Canada (Social 30) PDF

Impacts of Colonization in Canada Social 30 The Indian Act (1876) Gives the Canadian Government “responsibility” over Indigenous peoples and the land they inhabited. (Paternalism) Introduced “Indian Agents” to enforce the will of the government Gave the...

Impacts of Colonization in Canada Social 30 The Indian Act (1876) Gives the Canadian Government “responsibility” over Indigenous peoples and the land they inhabited. (Paternalism) Introduced “Indian Agents” to enforce the will of the government Gave the Canadian government “legal” control of Indigenous resources. Allotted very little power to Indigenous Bands. Allowed Canadian Government to “legally” dictate the social institutions of Indigenous peoples. (status, assembly, marriage, education) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_V4d7sXoqU&ab_channel=PeopleExpressNewsTV  Changes Under the Indian Act Band leaders elected, no longer hereditary. Banned Potlatch Ceremony (1884) All traditional ceremonies banned (1895) Canadian Gov. makes it illegal for Indigenous to access lawyers without gov. consent for land claim concerns. (1927) Rigidly defines “Indian” Status: - Those of “full blood” or belonging to a band are considered “status indians”. (Originally excludes Metis and Inuit peoples) - Grants them access to government programs. - “Enfranchisement” eliminates status. (military service, voting, off-reserve land purchases, university education, etc.) - Very misogynistic. Rules regarding marriage were much more strict for women. The Push for Assimilation Assimilation: in anthropology and sociology, the process whereby individuals or groups of differing ethnic heritage are absorbed into the dominant culture of a society. Residential Schools Formed around the principle: “to kill the indian, and save the child” Performed cooperatively by the Canadian Government and the Catholic Church. Separated children from their families, communities, and ways of life. Banned from speaking their own language, wearing their traditional clothes, practicing their spirituality. Text-based learning, very rigid and structured schedule. (elimination of oral tradition) Curriculum focused on Language, Reading, Religion, and Ethics Institutions of psychological, physical, and sexual abuse. More time was spent performing ways of life, than learning about them. Residential Schools “The bell rings at 5 A.M. when the children rise, wash, dress and are made ready for breakfast. At half-past-five they breakfast; after which they all assemble in the large school- room and unite in reading the Scriptures, singing and prayer. From six till nine the boys are employed and taught to work on the farm, and the girls in the house. At nine, they enter their Schools. At twelve, they dine and spend the remaining time till one in recreation. At one, they enter School, where they are taught till half-past three, after which they resume their manual employment till six. At six they sup and again unite in reading the Scriptures, singing and prayer. In the Winter season the boys are engaged in the Evening school, and the girls are taught needlework until 9, when all return to rest. They are never left alone, A group of female students and a nun pose in a classroom at Cross Lake Indian Residential School in Cross Lake, Manitoba in a February 1940 archive photo. REUTERS/Dept. Indian and Northern Affairs/Library and Archives Canada/e011080274/Handout via Reuters  Boys receive haircuts at the Shingwauk Indian Residential School in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada circa 1960s. Run by the government and church groups, most of them Catholic, the schools' stated aim was to assimilate indigenous children. Shingwauk Residential Schools Centre/Handout via REUTERS Children hold letters that spell "Goodbye" at Fort Simpson Indian Residential School, in Fort Simpson, Northwest Territories in 1922. J.F. Moran/Library and Archives Canada/PA-102575/Handout via Reuters Girls pose during a pageant at the Spanish Indian Residential School in Spanish, Ontario, Canada in 1954. Shingwauk Residential Schools Centre/Handout via REUTERS  Boys pray on bunk beds in a dormitory at the Bishop Horden Memorial School, a residential school in the indigenous Cree community of Moose Factory, Ontario, Canada in 1950. Shingwauk Residential Schools Centre/Handout via REUTERSERS Canadian Residential Schools: “We Were Children” As a class we will view the 2012 film, We Were Children. This tells the story of two Indigenous people (Lyna Hart & Glen Anaquod) who were taken to Residential Schools as children. As we watch this film, ask yourself: what were the purpose of these “schools”? (Using your response sheets) What are the legacy of Residential Schools? Why are they so important to our nation's history today? Boys play table hockey at the Shingwauk Indian Residential School in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada circa 1960s. Shingwauk Residential Schools Centre/Handout via REUTERS Sixties Scoop A series of child welfare policies and programs from the mid 50’s to the mid 80’s. Allowed the Canadian government to seize indigenous children from their homes. Placed Indigenous children into foster homes and residential schools. 1977: about 15,500 Indigenous children were in the care of child welfare authorities Indigenous youth represented over 20% of the child welfare population, although they only represented less than 5% of the total youth population in Canada. Impacts?: “The effects of residential schools and the Sixties Scoop on Indigenous people resulted in generational trauma that harmfully affected family structures, social values, and economic conditions. This trauma has resulted in high rates of suicide, violence, depression, substance abuse, and alcoholism within certain Indigenous communities.” Sixties Scoop Ipperwash Crisis Canadian government claims Stoney Point as a military camp in 1942. (Ipperwash Provincial Park) Claim that the seizure will only be short & temporary under the War Measures Act. Re-locate community members to Kettle Point nearby, compensate with $. The Canadian gov. ends up keeping it as a training site until the 1990’s. In 1993, Indigenous protestors occupy Stoney Point. Wanting to negotiate with government and reclaim stolen land. Misleading media ramps up tensions and fear between police and protestors. Leads to the death of Anthony “Dudley” George by police in 1995. After long negotiations, Stoney Point is returned with settlement payments in 2015. Oka Crisis 1990, in the community of Kanesatake, near Oka, Quebec. A long history of disputed territory (since 1761) Proposed expansion of golf course onto indigenous burial ground. Mohawk protestors occupy “The Pines” golf course before construction begins. Set up barricades, make it clear they are going to stay. Gunfire breaks out in July, Corporal Marcel Lemay is shot and killed. Mohawk Warriors continue to create barricades, and it prompts the government to call in a massive military operation of 4000 troops. After long negotiations, the resistance is lifted, and the Mohawk lift their barricades. In the end, the Canadian gov. purchases “The Pines” and vows to halt the expansion. Some of the land is returned, but never officially deemed a reserve. Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples Created in 1996 in response to the Oka Crisis. Made up of both indigenous and non-indigenous people. Focused mainly on Indigenous self-governance and compensation on behalf of the Canadian government. Inquires with many different indigenous people about: governance, land & economy, social & cultural issues, and the North. Inquired with 4 categories: 1. Historical 2. Urban 3. Women 4. Children R.C.A.P: Recommendations To completely restructure relations between settlers and indigenous people. An Indigenous right to self-determination. Independent court to settle land claims. Increasing funds for health care, housing, education, employment Creation of Aboriginal university $2 billion increase in spending on Indigenous communities as compensation. “After some 500 years of a relationship that has swung from partnership to domination, from mutual respect and co- operation to paternalism and attempted assimilation, Canada must now work out fair and lasting terms of coexistence with Aboriginal people.” - Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (1996) Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) The work of the TRC was established in 2008 out of the 1998 Statement of Reconciliation. The goals of the Commission shall be to: Acknowledge Residential School experiences, impacts and consequences; Provide a holistic, culturally appropriate and safe setting for former students, their families and communities as they come forward to the Commission. Witness,’ support, promote and facilitate truth and reconciliation events at both the national and community levels; Promote awareness and public education of Canadians about the IRS system and its impacts; Identify sources and create as complete an historical record as possible of the IRS system and legacy. The record shall be preserved and made accessible to the public for future study and use; Produce and submit to the Parties of the Agreement a report including recommendations to the Government of Canada concerning the IRS system and experience including: the history, purpose, operation and supervision of the IRS system, the effect and consequences of IRS (including systemic harms, intergenerational consequences and the impact on human dignity) and the ongoing legacy of the residential schools; Support commemoration of former Indian Residential School students and their families in accordance with the Commemoration Policy Directive. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission Truth and Reconciliation (TRC)