Preview

Monchalin The Impact Of Assimilation

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
212 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Monchalin The Impact Of Assimilation
Looking at the effects of Canada’s colonial past, the chapter of Monchalin’s textbook The Impact of Assimilation discusses the history of residential schools and the impact that they have had on Canada’s Indigenous community. The purpose of these horrendous and unethical establishments was to eradicate the culture, traditions, and language of Indigenous peoples. This was done by removing Indigenous children from their homes, denying them communication with their families while forcing them to adopt the beliefs of Christianity. Beginning in 1920, it became compulsory that all Indigenous children from the age of seven to fifteen must attend school however; this did not necessarily mean that they were required to attend a residential school. Though

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In order for an arbitrarily-set hierarchy to be successful, fundamental narratives must be ingrained into the education system. Canada’s attempt to push this narrative was the residential schooling system, and its outcome, the demoralising of generations of First…

    • 745 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout Canada’s history as a sovereign nation, relations between the Canadian federal government and the indigenous inhabitants of the lands which encompass Canada have been strained due to the hitherto existence of the Indian Residential School system. Following the passage of the Indian Act in 1876, the first residential schools were established across Canada; with many being placed under the direction of several Christian churches that received funding from the Canadian government’s agency of Indian Affairs. The objective of the residential school system was to assimilate indigenous children into Canadian society through the forced adoption of European customs at the simultaneous expense of their own aboriginal culture and heritage.…

    • 817 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Canada. It was once a place where teachers treated students differently depending upon their gender, and what their background was; in particular, Aboriginals were treated very poorly (Marcuse et al., 1993). Sociologists have many views on the topic of Aboriginal treatment in schools, and throughout this essay, the ideas of gender assumptions, socialization agents, and social inequality will be discussed. Along with these ideas, the conflict theory will be proven to be an approach that explains the topic of Aboriginal treatment in residential schools.…

    • 1058 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    First Nations people have been facing prejudice and have been the victims of cruelties since the first European explorers set foot on Canadian soil. It has been a long-standing problem in Canada and oftentimes Canadian society chooses to ignore this part of its’ history. The book, Victims of Benevolence: The Dark Legacy of the Williams Lake Residential School written by Elizabeth Furniss in 1992, published in Vancouver by Arsenal Pulp Press. The message the book aims to deliver to bring awareness to the mistreatment and cruelties suffered by First Nations while in the clutches of religious administrators in residential schools. Not only the mistreatment, but also to educate readers about the life in residential schools that has been hidden…

    • 921 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    How would you feel if, as a young child, you were taken from your home and driven to an unfamiliar school many kilometers away? What would it be like to live in a strange dorm where you cannot speak your language or follow your religion? Why would these peculiar people drag you here and abuse you? 150,000 Indigenous people have experienced that torture and shame, which has then continued into many other issues for many of those people; such as depression, alcoholism, drug addiction, lower socioeconomic status on average, and suicide. Residential schools powerfully damaged Aboriginal people in a way we cannot ignore.…

    • 480 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    During the 1800's, children were taken away from their families and friends from orders of the federal government. The government was working upon a system that isolated children from their families, traditions, language and culture. The purpose of residential schools was to take Indigenous children and "to kill the Indian in the child" (Erin Hanson), meaning to rip the Aboriginal identity out from the children. The government wanted all Indigenous children to be taught a culture that they thought was most suitable to a Canadian lifestyle: to become Christian and put into a Euro-Canadian way of living was the main idea and purpose for this schooling system. Children were forced to be taught a new culture, and to forget their already-existing culture. The residential schools system disrupted children on their ways of living in the 1800's, and still continuing on to this day. The federal government and their…

    • 518 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    There is an issue that is uncommon but should be told to everyone. It is about the residential schools which were introduced throughout Canada in the 1830s. Residential schools were religious schools sponsored by the government and administered by churches. Residential schools were introduced because. The objective of the system was to remove and isolate the Aboriginal…

    • 191 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Most Canadians today have the misconception of residentials school existing a long time ago and is considered history when in fact, the last residential school closed 20 years ago. The main purpose of the residential schools was to force indigenous children into the Canadian society by educating them through the church's teachings. The residential schools existed for 165 years, the first school opening in 1831 that resulted in victimizing about 150,000 children. The system took children away from their homes only to return as teenagers that lead to them not being exposed to their culture. The students were dubbed as the stolen generation. The legacy of residential schools impacted the future generations of aboriginals…

    • 1011 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Davison, J. (2010). A history of residential schools in Canada. Retrieved September 25, 2012 from http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2008/05/16/f-faqs-residential-schools.html…

    • 1011 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Natives were a minority, giving Europeans the power needed to reinforce chauvinistic ideas. New-coming Europeans took everything from the natives, their land, resources, and children. Aboriginals had let the children go, assuming they would be kept in civil conditions and get the care needed (Treble, O’Hara). Aboriginal communities were unaware of the system’s disastrous goal of assimilation by stripping children of language and culture. They assumed the Europeans could not possibly take anything more from them, but they were wrong. At the institutes children would be subject to vigorous labor without much learning due to how underfunded the system was (“Moving Beyond-Impacts of Residential Schools”), unable to communicate in own tongues or practice traditions. “Survivors recall being beaten and strapped, some students were shackled to their beds; some had needles shoved in their tongues for speaking their native languages” (Miller). “Some schools did attempt to use positive reinforcement to encourage assimilation, but often children who did not conform were punished” (Rheault). No positive experiences were gained from such events. Therefore, the system was…

    • 999 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Residential Schools

    • 1443 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The term Residential schools refer to a variety of institutions that include industrial schools, boarding schools and student residents. European settlers in Canada brought with them the assumption that their own civilization was the greatest of human achievement and all should live like them. They believed that the Aboriginal people, Canada’s first inhabitants, were ignorant, savage and in need of guidance. Beginning in the 1800s, the Canadian federal government partnered with Roman Catholic, Anglican, Methodist, United, and Presbyterian churches to create and operate the residential school system.1 The schools were set up across the country in an effort to assimilate First Nations people into mainstream society. The assimilation policy started because the Canadian government, stated by the Indian Act, was responsible for providing educational services to Aboriginal children. The schools were funded by the government and operated by the churches. By 1931, the churches were operating 80 residential schools across the country, as well as day schools on some reserves.2 It was believed that the best way to achieve assimilation success was for the children (aged 4 to 18) to learn English and adopt Christianity and Canadian customs as they were easier to mould than the adults. There were a total of about 130 schools in every territory and province except Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick from the earliest in the 19th century to the last, which closed in 1996.3 The idea was that the children would grow up and pass their adopted lifestyle on to their children and native traditions would fizzle away.…

    • 1443 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Canadian government wanted to assimilate natives in by putting native children in residential schools. The Canadian government contacted churches to set up residential schools and provided them with funding, land and equipment. In 1884, the government passed the Indian Act, which made it mandatory for all native children under the age of 16 to attend residential schools. During the time between 1890 to 1970's, when residential schools were ended, between 100,000 and 150,000 people in Canada have attended them.…

    • 571 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The school system forced every single Aboriginal child to attend which involved taking them away with force from their homes and families to the residential school where they also lived on site. The children were not allowed to speak of their Aboriginal culture or language and were punished if they broke any of the numerous strict rules that were enforced. The children were sexually, mentally, spiritually and physically abused at the hands of the residential schools. Former residential school survivors recall being beaten, strapped and even electrocuted; some were shackled to their beds, while others had needles shoved in their tongues as punishment for speaking their native language. (Haig-Brown, 1998.)…

    • 1494 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Native Canadians were not often accepted by others, leaving them to fend to themselves and to help each other to the best of their ability. Native Canadians were devastated when the children living on the reserves were unapologetically taken from them, and sent to residential schools. These children were forced to discard anything learned or inhabited while living on the reserve. They were not called by their name, but instead a number they were given on their first day. Their native language was forbidden, a residential school survivor once stated “ I thought I was sinning if I talk, if I smile.”, another suggested “everytime we spoke we got hit.” (Cruel Lessons). These evidential statements present the disturbing truth about discrimination and inequality involving Native…

    • 547 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Residential schools

    • 1482 Words
    • 6 Pages

    This research explores how the residential schools established in the 19th century affected the Native population and the Canadian government. This has been done by examining primary sources such as digital archives, books, statistics and reports. Upon examination of these events, it becomes clear that residential schools had a long term negative impact on the Aboriginal communities and created a negative image to the Canadian government. Despite the government’s goals of assimilating the Native population, that nation was able to survive and will keep passing on their beliefs to the future generations.…

    • 1482 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays