First Nations People

Since the beginning of contact with the European people, First Nations people have suffered from disease, famine and assimilation policies put forth by the government. Contact with the Europeans has resulted in the fur trade, treaties and reservations. These European concepts had created illness, death, famine and poor well-being for many First Nations people. During the fur trade, European people brought diseases that First Nations people had never been exposed to which resulted in many deaths among First Nations communities. The fur trade also brought violence and famine to many First Nations regions. The treaties were created as a means for the government to take control of First Nations land and in return give them the help they believed
Many people depended on the trade system to survive; however the trade system created many issues for the First Nations people. Some of these issues included illness, death, starvation and hostility. Small pox was a major issue and killed many First Nations people. First Nations people had never been exposed to such diseases and had no immunity to the disease. “The smallpox epidemic of the early 1780s unleashed a series of events that fundamentally and permanently changed ethnic composition of Western Canada. The death toll from the epidemic was unprecedented” . These diseases were spread due to contact with European people. European people had built immunity over history, however they brought the disease to the First Nations people and it spread quickly. “Morbidity and mortality were extremely high, but there is no satisfactory numerator and no denominator to calculate the rates of morbidity or mortality. Many or most Indians, whom the authors classed as 'alive' when first mentioned, between December 4, 1780 and March 23, 1781 (often because they had not yet been exposed) soon became
Smallpox was spread in other ways including the trading of furs. The disease was able to cling to inanimate objects and transfer easily. Furs that were traded between First Nations people and the Europeans that were contaminated could infect regions of First Nations people. “Smallpox, the deadliest of the epidemics to strike, was highly contagious, and it clung to everything it touched. This quality enabled it to survive on various inanimate objects, the most famous of which was blankets. Smallpox struck and spread rapidly, and despite their best efforts, Indigenous people and their traditional healers had no immunity to it and could find no cure” . Smallpox was not the only disease to impact First Nations people during the fur trade. Other diseases such as tuberculosis, measles and whooping cough took over many First Nations people during the fur trade. Studies have now been done on the impacts of tuberculosis during the fur trade era. “Now, a study led by Stanford scientists has provided new insights into the behavior of tuberculosis by tracing the travels of a particular strain of the