Residential Schools

1. Residential Schools

2. The Indian Act, 1876 • The passing of the Indian Act made all First Nations people wards of the state.

3. The Act also spelled out conditions : • A woman who married an Aboriginal man would be considered an Indian would gain Indian status. • However, any Aboriginal woman who married a white, European male was now considered to be a member of Canadian society. She lost her Indian status and every right that came with it. • All "half-breed" Aboriginals, like the Métis, were not entitled to Indian status.

4. 1878 - 1898: Deculturation • The federal government continued a policy of assimilation of Aboriginals. • Potlatch celebrations were banned in 1884 • Canadian residential schools were created during the late 1800s.

5. Residential Schools • Starting in the early 1870s, residential schools for Aboriginal children between the ages of five and 16 were set up by the federal government. • They were eventually found in every province except Newfoundland, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island. • The last official Residential School closed in 1996.

6. Canadian Residential Schools Map Timeline of Residential Schools Residential School Locations MB

7. Children were taken from their homes and communities and placed in residential schools against their or their families' will. • The federal government and various churches ran these schools together. • The schools wanted to train Aboriginal youth to farm and become “productive” members of society like European Christians.

8. Residential schools not only destroyed many Aboriginal children's self-esteem, they damaged their culture, language and traditions. This process is called deculturation.

9. Aboriginal children in class at the Roman Catholic Indian Residential School, Ford George, Quebec, 1939.

10. There were other hazards: tuberculosis was common and many students endured physical or sexual abuse. • Some students died as a result. • Those that survived often grew up to be dependant on the government. • Many returned to their reserves as adults with no sense of belonging, and used alcohol and drugs to fill the void. Others became suicidal, anti-social, or criminal.

11. The Indian Act Revisions, 1951 • The Indian Act was changed so that cultural traditions - including potlatches, pow-wows or other cultural ceremonies - were allowed. • Aboriginals were now allowed alcohol for the first time, but only on reserves. • Aboriginals could now sue the government over land claims. • However, ultimate control over Aboriginal peoples remained (as it does today) with the federal government. • Aboriginals could not vote until 1960

12. Sources Canada in the Making http://www.canadiana.ca/citm/themes/aboriginals/aboriginals14_e.html Where are the Children? www.wherearethechildren.ca