Residential Schools in Canada

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Recommended: the impact of colonization on Indigenous people

Living in Canada, there is a long past with the Indigenous people. The relationship between the white and First Nations community is one that is damaged because of our shameful actions in the 1800’s. Unnecessary measures were taken when the Canadian government planned to assimilate the Aboriginal people. Through the Indian Act and Residential schools the government attempted to take away their culture and “kill the Indian in the child.” The Indian Act allowed the government to take control over the people, the residential schools took away their culture and tore apart their families, and now we are left with not only a broken relationship between the First Nations people but they are trying to put back together their lives while still living with a harsh reality of their past.
The Indian Act is made up from the Gradual Civilization Act of 1857 and the Gradual Enfranchisement Act of 1869. The Gradual Civilization Act encouraged the Indian people to give up their status and become a Canadian citizen. The Gradual Enfranchisement Act gave the government full control over the Indian people. They were able to decide everything from who kept their status, received benefits, and even who were able to keep their children. In 1876, these acts together alongside with other rules and regulations formed the Indian Act. The government thought it was best to be able to control every aspect of the First Nations people’s lives. It was stated in annual report of the Department of the Interior Indian Affairs in 1876:
Our Indian legislation generally rests on the principle, that the aborigines are to be kept in a condition of tutelage and treated as wards or children of the State. …the true interests of the aborigines and of the State alike require...

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...in the slow process of healing.

Work Cited
"A history of residential schools in Canada." n.pag. Web. 27 Nov 2013. .
"About Residential Schools." n.pag. Web. 27 Nov 2013. .
"Background: The Indian Act." n.pag. Web. 27 Nov 2013. .
"Brief History of Residential Schools." n.pag. Web. 27 Nov 2013. .
"The Indian Act: Historical Overview." n.pag. Web. 27 Nov 2013. .
"The Residential School System." n.pag. Web. 27 Nov 2013. .

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