Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) The Wildly Depressing History of Canadian Residential Schools. Photo from a residential school off of Onion Lake in Ontario.
During the mid 1800’s Canada’s colonization was chugging along with the industrial age, and the thinkers of the day were turning their brainpower towards the pesky task of how to deal with the “Indian Problem.” In 1841, Herman Charles Merivale, the British Secretary of State for the Colonies (who doesn’t look like he would be a bad guy to smoke cigars and sip sherry with), established and executed a concoction of his four policies on the subject: Extermination, slavery, insulation and assimilation. All of these were wrapped tidily up in the Residential School system. Testifying in Fort Albany, a former female student at St. Anne’s put it like this: “I remember the day when we were taken away. This good Christian influence and forced civility upon the ‘Indians’ resulted in nothing but a legacy of sickness. 3000 children were confirmed dead.
Here is some of what he relayed happening at St. Indian Residential Schools. Important The Web site deals with topics that may cause trauma invoked by memories of past abuse.
The Government of Canada recognizes the need for safety measures to minimize the risk associated with triggering. A National Indian Residential School Crisis Line has been set up to provide support for former Residential School students. You can access emotional and crisis referral services. You can also get information on how to get other health supports from the Government of Canada. Please call the Crisis Line at 1-866-925-4419 if you or someone you know is triggered while reading the content on this web site.
Note As per the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, the deadline to apply for the Independent Assessment Process (IAP) and for Common Experience Payment (CEP) under exceptional circumstances was September 19, 2012. A history of residential schools in Canada - Canada. What is a residential school?
In the 19th century, the Canadian government believed it was responsible for educating and caring for aboriginal people in Canada. It thought their best chance for success was to learn English and adopt Christianity and Canadian customs. Ideally, they would pass their adopted lifestyle on to their children, and native traditions would diminish, or be completely abolished in a few generations. The Canadian government developed a policy called "aggressive assimilation" to be taught at church-run, government-funded industrial schools, later called residential schools. Residential-schools-topic. Irsss. Indian Residential Schools in Canada the painful legacy. School aftermath spans generations. The deadline for the residential school settlement is only days away, but we're just getting started on realizing the full impact these schools have had on several generations of First Nations people.
To even start the process of moving forward took years of legal work. It took a painful process of reopening old and unhealed wounds by former students. It will cost billions of dollars in legal fees and settlement costs. And now, finally, we just might be starting the long journey of putting the past behind us. But it's going to take a lot more than just agreeing to the settlement to start moving on. You don't take two generations of children and strip them of their culture, language and dignity and fix it with a big fat cheque.
Nativeamericanabuse. Indian Residential Schools. The Aftermath Charles Brasfield, MD, PhD, FRCPC Reprinted from "Trauma and Victimization" issue of Visions Journal, 2007, 3 (3), pp. 9-10 The last Indian residential school (IRS) closed in 1984.
That ended a period of time in which the government of Canada had attempted to eliminate Aboriginal cultures, languages and social structures. The attempt failed. I am a medical doctor who has been especially interested in Aboriginal mental health. Inherent psychological abuse I noticed that many people’s IRS experiences were similar. Sexual abuse Many children attending an IRS were subjected to sexual abuse. While most of the perpetrators were male homosexual pedophiles, many young girls were also assaulted by male heterosexual pedophiles.