Residential Schools in Canada: A History of Oppression and Abuse, Essays (university) of Sociology

Download Residential Schools in Canada: A History of Oppression and Abuse and more Essays (university) Sociology in PDF only on Docsity! Residential Schools Department of Sociology, Toronto Metropolitan University SOC 104-011 Dr.Kelly Train April 10,2023 501159931 Dr. Kelly Train SOC 104 011 April 10, 2023 Residential Schools Imagine being taken away from family and friends to live in a school, isolated away from the rest of the world, and forced to learn a new culture. Unfortunately, this was not an imaginary situation for Indigenous children, who were forced away from their loved ones and sent to residential schools. Until they closed in 1997, about 150,000 Indigenous children were forced to attend residential schools all across Canada (Neeganagwedgin, 2023). The government had worked with the Catholic Church to run these schools (Beninger, 2012). Their goal was to Christianize Indigenous children, through forcefully instilling European cultural and social values. The government and the church believed that residential schools would make the children more civilized, and thus decrease the level of crimes they might commit in the future (Bush, 2015). The reason why residential schools were also normalized in Canadian society was because of the lack of empathy and understanding for Indigenous cultures. This paper argues that settler colonial assimilationist policies reproduce the oppression and abuse of Indigenous children through residential schooling. Before 2015, very few Canadians knew about the history of residential schools. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada issued a report that highlighted the experiences of residential school survivors (Gualtieri, 2016). Also, in the 1920s, the Canadian government created The Scott Report. The Scott Report was a government report on the state of Indigenous education in Canada, released in 1920. It was named after Samuel Scott, who was a government McDonald. Sir John A McDonald also wanted Indigenous peoples to assimilate into Canadian culture. He stated: “The great aim of our legislation has been to do away with the tribal system and assimilate the Indian people in all respects with the other inhabitants of the Dominion as speedily as they are fit to change” (Osborne, 2000). Duncan Campbell Scott, a Canadian writer also took part in the formation of oppression that Indigenous children faced through residential schooling. Scott spent 52 years in the Department of Indian Affairs, in which supported residential schools and soon became deputy minister (Paquette, 2020). During his career, he made many amendments to the Indian Act. The Indian Act of 1876 made the education of Indigenous people into the responsibility of the federal governments (McKenzie, 2016). The Indian Act faced a lot of controversy when it first came out and still impacts Indigenous peoples today, including poverty and violence. The Indian Act defined who was an Indian under the law and what Indians could and could not do. Duncan was also known as a huge assimilationist. An assimilationist is a person who supports assimilating a certain cultural group into another. Duncan did not believe that residential schools were enough for civilization Indigenous peoples. He stated that he wanted to get rid of the Indians and won’t stop until everyone has European beliefs. He was mainly known for his phrase “Kill the Indian, save the man.” This slogan was mainly used in the 19th and 20th centuries. Scott was blamed for many of the many deaths and instances of neglect that Indigenous children faced in residential schools (Riopelle, 2017). The British North American Act also reproduced the oppression of Indigenous children through residential schooling. The British North American Act allowed the establishment of the residential school system in Canada. It allowed the federal government to take over the lands which were for Indigenous peoples. It also allowed the government to run residential schools. In 1876, The British North America Act united three British colonies into four provinces of the Dominion of Canada, which allowed Canada with its own government. By doing this they had created 2 legislations: the Gradual Civilization Act of 1857 and the Gradual Enfranchisement act of 1869 (Buckner, 2017). Both these legislations had aimed people to give up their heritage and take a place in Canadian education. This legislation still exists today, however there have been some changes. The Department of Indian Affairs took over Indigenous communities, schools, culture, etc. They took over education by taking part in residential schools. In the 1800’s, the department had created an assimilationist policy that wanted to “Kill the Indian in the Child” (Riopelle, 2017). Sometimes, the department also had inspectors who visited the school to make sure that they followed government policies and regulations. Sometimes the inspectors even saw the abuse that took place, but they didn’t do anything about it. The Gradual Civilization Act of 1857 and the Gradual Enfranchisement Act were 2 pieces of legislation which were approved by the government in the mid 19th century. The Gradual Civilization Act was enacted in 1857 and also wanted to assimilate Indigenous peoples into Canadian society (Francis, 1998). It made Indigenous children and people to abandon their traditions and take part in an agricultural lifestyle to receive benefits and privileges. For example: the right to own land. This act also produced residential schools.The Gradual Civilization Act of 1857 provided the legal framework for the establishment of residential schools in Canada. The connection between the Gradual Enfranchisement Act and residential schools was that in some cases, Indigenous peoples were required to attend residential schools in order to get citizenship and get the right to vote (Francis, 1998) Agriculture was one of the skills that was taught in residential schools. Agriculture was taught because the government wanted the children to farm and develop skills that would help them to integrate them into Canadian society. However, the quality of agriculture programs in residential schools was lacking. In some schools, children were told to work on school run farms or gardens where they would grow crops and raise animals. If the children refused, they were punished (Schissel, 2002). They were also taught theoretical agricultural concepts. Theoretical agricultural concepts taught in residential schools were often oppressive because they were not created by Indigenous knowledge or their practices. These concepts were based on European farming practices and techniques. Overall, the agricultural concepts that were taught in residential schools reproduced the oppressive colonial system that wanted to erase indigenous peoples culture. Agricultural education was linked with forced labor on farms which was meant to teach indigenous children hard work. This showed that Indigenous people were only valuable for their work. In residential schools, they were taught western style academics. Western-style academics generally refer to the traditional academic systems and methodologies employed in Western countries, such as the United States, Canada, and countries in Europe. Also, Western style academics focus on mathematics, writing, etc. The Western-style academics taught in residential schools were ineffective for Indigenous children, as they did not focus on Indigenous knowledge.For example, reading and writing in residential schools did not focus on the oral traditions and storytelling that was essential to Indigenous cultures. Standardized testing and the grading system also did not follow Indigenous culture either as indigenous values focus on collaboration and community rather than individual achievement (Schissel, 2002). Finally, teaching methods in residential schools were based on punishment , rather than encouragement and positive reinforcement. Children who struggled with the Western academics were faced with Johnson, V. M. (2019). I'm sorry now we were so very severe": 1930s Colonizing Care Relations between White Anglican Women Staff and Inuvialuit, Inuinnait, and Iñupiat People in an "Eskimo Residential School. Feminist Studies, 45(2), 335-371,584. Neeganagwedgin, E. (2014). " They can't take our ancestors out of us. A brief historical account of Canada's residential school system, incarceration, institutional policies and legislations against indigenous peoples. Canadian Issues, 31-36. http://ezproxy.lib.torontomu.ca/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/they- cant-take-our-ancestors-out-us-brief/docview/1665530527/se-2 Paquette, E. (2020). Reconciliation and Cultural Genocide: A Critique of Liberal Multicultural Strategies of Innocence. Hypatia, 35(1), 143-160. https://doi.org/10.1017/hyp.2019.15 Riopelle, C. (2017). Education Work: Canadian Schools and the Emergence of Indigenous Social Movements (Order No. 10832096). Available from Sociology Database. (2034018197). http://ezproxy.lib.torontomu.ca/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/ education-work-canadian-schools-emergence/docview/2034018197/se-2 Schissel, B., Wotherspoon, T., & Friesen, J. W. (2002). The legacy of school for Aboriginal people: education, oppression, and emancipation. Canadian Ethnic Studies, 34(2), 129-131. http://ezproxy.lib.torontomu.ca/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly- journals/legacy-school-aboriginal-people-education/docview/215637679/se-2 Woods, E. T. (2013). A Cultural Approach to a Canadian Tragedy: The Indian Residential Schools as a Sacred Enterprise. International Journal of Politics, Culture, and Society, 26(2), 173-187. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10767-013-9132-0