Residential Schools Research Paper

“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.

The history of Residential Schools is impossible, in the sense that it is incomplete and only recently recorded. Many of the 150 000 Inuit, Metis, and First Nations who were forced into these assimilatory schools have already died, meaning their experiences are lost. Only a fraction of the former students’ stories will be

The last Residential School closed in the 1990s. This leaves a gap of 25 years or more for details to be forgotten. As more time goes on, people will be less likely to come forward to admit their past involvement. We need to foster an environment of accountability, in a manner that allows people to speak honestly and openly. There is plenty of blame to go around, but blame is counterproductive to the accuracy of history. No one wants to be the “bad guy,” so an environment free of judgement is important for recording experiences as accurately as possible. It is through this that we can create a more detailed account of what happened.

Residential Schools are necessary to Canadian history. The indigenous people were Canadians long before it was colonized by European powers. Canada as we know it would not exist if not for its indigenous peoples, and the consequences of creating this Canada come at the expense of those same indigenous people. The history of Residential Schools must be taught because it is important we acknowledge the centuries of suffering we inflicted upon Canada’s indigenous