First Nations in Victorian Times Reservations Assimilation Indian Act Residential Schools

Impact of Immigration Some times by force Aboriginals were pushed out of their territories to make room for immigrant settlers Some times by force Some thought they were allies with the British Many died due to contact with European Disease

Demand for land The government Demand for good, fertile land to sell to Europeans-Greedy! The government tried to revoke land treaties and steal Aboriginal territory Persuade Bands to rent out farmland and then sell the land to settlers illegally

Reservations Aboriginals in Canada were forced on to reservation land Land set aside by the government for the use of Aboriginals/First Nations a fraction of the old territory Usually cheap unwanted land

Assimilation To join another culture. This process forces a person or group to give up their language and traditions Assimilation of First Nations was the goal for Canada’s government The government tried to force Aboriginals to live like Europeans

1857 Gradual Civilization Act Legislation that attempted to assimilate Aboriginals by making them British citizens (Enfranchisement) But if they become citizens the government could ignore all previous treaties!

The Indian Act 1876: The legislated Discrimination of Canadian Aboriginals The Indian Act is federal legislation that outlines the basic legal status and entitlements of Canada’s Aboriginal peoples. This act formulized the assimilation of First Nations and consolidated previous laws concerning the First Nations

The government made decisions on behalf of Aboriginal peoples First Nations became wards of the government Most decisions were influenced either by prejudice or misunderstanding Paternalistic Legislation: the attitude based around a family hierarchy- Father Knows Best

What Does the Indian Act Deal With? The Act deals with : the legal definition of who may claim Indian status in Canada the rights and duties which accompany that status the structure of Canada’s reserve system the nature of Aboriginal self-government

Under the Indian Act First Nations required to register with the government to gain legal status If they failed to register, they would lose their rights and be declared “Non-Status”

The Indian Act, Status, and Treaties Have to be considered a status Indian in order to receive certain benefits outlined within treaties No status=no benefits=no need for government to make or honour treaties

The Métis were not entitled to Indian status. Not considered First Nations as they were “half” Considered “white” yet not treated equally What about the Métis?

Métis Sir John A. Macdonald 1885 said, "If they are half-breed, they are [considered by the government to be] white." September, 2003, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the Métis were entitles to the same rights as Aboriginal peoples.

Why did the Government create the Indian Act? Gave the government control over reserves and treaty rights Indian Agents now in control of reservations and who lived on them Why did the Government create the Indian Act?

First Nations under the control of Federal Indian Agents First Nations were required to have special passes to leave the reserves Indian Agents enforce who can leave the reservation and what First Nations can do on their own lands First Nations under the control of Federal Indian Agents

The Provisional Government would never be allowed again! Traditional ways of Self- Governance denied No choosing leaders No independent laws The Provisional Government would never be allowed again!

Potlatch Ceremonies Banned! Traditional ceremonies Banned Part of the assimilation process- destroy culture Potlatch Ceremonies Banned!

Women Faced Gender Discrimination Under the Indian Act Aboriginal women lost their status by marriage to non- Aboriginal men- not visa versa - Includes children No Status = Could not live on reserves, visit family, or be buried with family on reserves No rights or benefits under Treaties Women Faced Gender Discrimination Under the Indian Act

Amendment Bill C-31 1985 1985 Bill C-31 An amendment to removed the sub-section which caused Indian women & their children to lose their status when they married non-Indian men.

No status for Grandchildren Problems with Bill C-31 No status for Grandchildren Families of Women who married out are still discriminated against. women have to prove that the father of their child is registered as an Indian.

Disturbing Reality

Residential Schools “Kill the Indian in the Child” Residential schools were government- sponsored religious schools established to assimilate Aboriginal children into Euro-Canadian culture. Residential Schools “Kill the Indian in the Child”

Kamloops Residential School

Assimilation

Forced Residential School – Part of the Indian Act 1876 As of 1894: children were forcibly removed from their homes and put in residential schools for 10 months of the year age of 5 or 6 until they were 16. Forced Residential School – Part of the Indian Act 1876

Students transported like cattle Children were forcibly taken from their homes Transported by cattle truck over long distances Many children were not told where they were going, for how long, or why Students transported like cattle

Tactics used to strip children of their identity Forbidding children to speak their native tongue Forbidding students to speak with siblings and parents Telling children that they were “dirty, ugly Indians” Cutting of their hair Providing each student with a number that they were addressed by for the next decade Torture and humiliation

Failed Schools System 60-80% of Aboriginal children in federal residential schools failed to advance past Grade 3 This largely due to the fact that so much time was spent on religious indoctrination and using the children as labourers

Students used as Slave Labour Aboriginal children in residential schools were sent to work on farms and in domestic situations as seasonal free labour. Offset the cost of running the school Hard work forced children into submission Students used as Slave Labour

Residential School Teachers Both governments and churches realized that qualified teachers were expensive Federal government provided minimal funding for residential schools qualified teachers were unaffordable

Residential School Teachers Saved costs by hiring incapable teachers who would not be able to gain employment else ware All teachers members of the clergy- imposed Christian beliefs upon children

Abuse and Violence Many clerical teachers were pedophiles and/or physically abusive 1000s of children sexually assaulted by teachers and administration Many children died from abuses suffered by teachers

Healing Scars Wednesday June 11, 2008, the Prime Minister Stephen Harper, made a Statement of Apology to former students of Indian Residential Schools, on behalf of the Government of Canada Kamloops Residential School made into a museum to teach generations Communities coming together to talk about the experience

Truth and Reconciliation Committee The TRC is a component of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement. Its mandate is to inform all Canadians about what happened in Indian Residential Schools (IRS). The Commission will document the truth of survivors, families, communities and anyone personally affected by the IRS experience.