Cultural Assimilation In Residential Schools

There has long been significant historiographical and popular controversy about the conditions experienced by students in the residential schools. While day schools for First Nations, Metis and Inuit children always far outnumbered residential schools, a new consensus emerged in the early 21st century that the latter schools did significant harm to Aboriginal children who attended them by removing them from their families, depriving them of their ancestral languages, through sterilization, and by exposing many of them to physicalleading to sexual abuse by staff members, and other students, andenfranchising them forcibly.

In the late nineteenth century, the railroad industry was booming. But it’s growth was followed by labor arguments, including the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. This strike was the first major rail strike, and it was disputed with enough violence to bring in various state militias. The Strike began when northern railroads cut salaries and wages because they still felt the impact of the Panic of 1873. The cuts were met with strikes and violence, but the railroads fought back with even more pay cuts, like the Pennsylvania Railroad lowering all wages by ten percent. A few months later, the same rail line decided it would double the length of all eastbound trains but kept the same amount of workers. The employees

The history of Native Americans was full of violent, cheats and sadness. From Spanish conquerors, English settlers to U. S Government, Native Americans lost their battles against these parties with greater power. As a result, their home lands, people and culture were consistently threatened by different societies. By the middle of the 19th century, most Native Americans were forced to live in the Indian Reservations, where harsh life continually facing challenges. In 1879, President Rutherford insisted a more aggressive posture in acculturates Indians into Mainstream of American society. The government was given a more sincere role to change Native Americans lifestyle, and obligated to educate and

Native Americans were greatly affected by the expansion of the United States during the 1800s. As the U.S. moved west, they stole large amounts of Native American land by settling the land and killing the Natives who once lived there. Also during this time, their culture was being taken from them due to assimilation. While United States citizens were expanding into the west, many Native American lives were lost. They were also responsible for destroying a major food and supply source for Native Americans.

Indian Boarding schools were created in the 1800s to “Kill the Indian, Save the Man.” They achieved this by transforming the natives looks, culture, language, and teaching them a certain way so they would be able to function in a “european society”. Indian boarding schools taught students both academic and “real world” skills, but they did so while ripping the indians from their culture.

Residential Schools was an enormous lengthening event in our history. Residential schools were to assimilate and integrate white people’s viewpoints and values to First Nations children. The schools were ran by white nuns and white priests to get rid of the “inner Indian” in the children. In residential schools, the children suffered immensely from physical, emotional, sexual and spiritual abuse. Although the many tragedies, language was a huge loss by the First Nations children. One of the worst punishments in residential schools was for speaking their own language. The use of residential schools on First Nations has led to substantial loss of the indigenous languages, therefore, causing further cultural losses to First Nations people.

The American government of the late 1800’s adopted the policy of assimilation because they were influenced by the desire to expand westward into territories occupied by these Native American tribes. All Native American tribes, lived to the west of the Mississippi River. These American Indians, some from the Northwestern and Southeastern territories, were confined to Indian Territory.

“And yet where in your history books is the tale/ Of the genocide basic to this country 's birth/ Of the preachers who lied, how the Bill of Rights failed/ How a nation of patriots returned to their earth.” This quote succinctly describes the suffering Aboriginal peoples have endured since European settlers arrived in North America and the lack of education about Residential Schools in Canada. The history of Residential Schools is important to the future of Canada and to understand Canada’s past.

Mohawks filed a complaint but were declined due to lack of evidence for “specific legal requirements” (Conflict over)

The goal of the United States was to use educations to erase Native American culture and assimilate indigenous students into European-American society (Boarding School). “Kill the Indian, save the man” stated Richard Henry Pratt—key figure in developing the Native American Boarding schools (Carlisle Indian School). The white folk saw the indigenous people as a problem. Therefore, they attempted to solve the problem through assimilation. Many indigenous people were forced to—at times—to attend the boarding schools (Boarding School). During the boarding schools, the children were stripped of their indigenous culture. Their hair was cut short, and they were forced to dress “proper.” The students were forbidden to speak their native tongue (Carlisle Indian School). Students could only speak English. It did not matter if the children were from the same tribe or opposing tribe. All students were expected to follow the strict military style disciplinary

Over the past few decades, there has been many distinct perspectives and conflicts surrounding the historical context between the Indigenous peoples in Canada and the Canadian Government. In source one, the author P.J Anderson is trying to convey that the absolute goal of the Indian Residential School system in Canada has been to assimilate the Indian nation and provide them with guidance to “ forget their Indian habits”, and become educated of the “ arts of civilized life”, in order to help them integrate into society and “become one” with their “White brethren”. It is clearly evident throughout the source that the author is supportive of the Indian residential school system and strongly believes that the Indian residential School System

government on the Native society was boarding schools that began in the late 19th century. Native children, as young as five years old, were taken from their families off the reservations thousands of miles away to boarding schools. One of those boarding schools was the Carlisle Industrial School, which opened in 1880, founded by Captain Richard Harry Pratt. The sole purpose of these schools was to assimilate the next generation of Native’s into the Anglo society. The boys were taught mechanical and agriculture skills, while the girls were taught domestic lessons such as sewing and cleaning. They were all taught to devalue their own people and traditions. The conditions were brutal as the children were beaten if they spoke their own language. They were not fed well, as many Native children died from malnutrition as well as disease and abuse (Hudson, Lecture 18). “Once I lost a dear classmate. I remember well how she used to mope along at my side, until one morning she could not raise her head from her pillow. At her deathbed I stood weeping, as a paleface woman sat near her moistening the dry lips (Calloway, 430).” Zitkala-Sa describes the death of one her classmates at the Carlisle boarding school in 1921 while still very young (Calloway, 428). The boarding schools started a chain reaction of the Native children not learning their own language or traditions, cutting hair, and the gender roles reflecting the Anglo-Americans. These

In Chapter eight of Byron Williston’s Environmental Ethics for Canadians First Nation’s perspectives are explored. The case study titled “Language, Land and the Residential Schools” begins by speaking of a public apology from former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. He apologizes for the treatment of “Indians” in “Indian Residential Schools”. He highlights the initial agenda of these schools as he says that the “school system [was] to remove and isolate [Aboriginal] children from the influence of their homes, families, traditions and cultures, and to assimilate them[…]” (Williston 244). By doing this, colonial Canadians assumed that aboriginal cultural and spiritual beliefs were invalid in relation to European beliefs (244). The problem with ridding the First Nations Peoples of their languages, as Williston points out is to “deprive them of the sense of place that has defined them for thousands of years” (245). The private schooling system was an attack on First Nations identities, and their identity is rooted in “a respect for nature and its processes” (245).

Imagine being ripped apart from family members, culture, tradition, and labelled a savage that needs to be educated. Imagine constantly facing punishment at school for being one’s self. Unfortunately, these events were faced head on for many First Nations people living in Canada in the late 20th century. These First Nations people were the victims of an extensive school system set up by the government to eradicate Aboriginal culture across Canada and to assimilate them into what was considered a mainstream society.

The European drawings of the Native Americans gave the visual that life along the Eastern Woodland was very tough. Although it seemed that way, it also seems as if they were adapted to a tough lifestyle making it seem easy and peaceful. Anything that was desired they worked hard for it. Along with working hard they also took the time out to have fun, according to their ceremonial dances. The Natives Americans seems as if they were built to live this kind of lifestyle.