Residential schools have caused irreparable damages throughout the generations of First Nations people and families. Today, the children and grandchildren of residential school survivors suffer the consequences of what their past generations went through. Its effects have manifested in self-abuse, resulting in high rates of substance abuse, alcoholism, and suicide. Among First Nations people aged 10 to 45, suicide and self-injury is the top cause of death, responsible for 40 percent of mortalities. Residential schools have arguably been the most damaging of the many components of the Canadian government’s colonization of First Nations land, as their consequences still affect the lives of Aboriginal people today.
Initially, residential schools …show more content…
Those in authority were fully aware of these conditions. Waves of epidemics of infection and disease, specifically tuberculosis, killed thousands of children. Parents of the children who suffered from sickness and death were often uninformed. Medical and healthcare services were minimal, and if more money was invested by the Canadian government towards them, the death and disease rate would be significantly lower. Students at the residential schools were also subject to verbal, physical, and sexual abuse. Ventilation, sanitation, clothing, and healthcare was extremely poor and ultimately, the consequence of inadequate government funding. According to a report, a inspector found a girl at the Sarcee school in Calgary in 1920 in a “pitiable” state, “curled up in a bed that is filthy, in a room that was untidy, dirty and dilapidated, in the north-west corner of the building with no provision of balcony, sunshine or fresh air. Both sides of her neck and chest were swollen and five foul ulcers were discovered when we lifted the bandages. Also, recently published historical research says hungry aboriginal children and adults were once used as unwitting subjects in nutritional experiments by the Canadian government. The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, also known as the RCAP, issued a final report in November of 1996. The 4,000-page document made over 400 recommendations for changes to be made with the relationship between non-aboriginals, aboriginals and the government of Canada. The last institution, the Gordon Residential Schools in Saskatchewan, closes in 1996. First nations people today bear both physical and emotional scars from the abuses they suffered at residential
Initially, residential schools …show more content…
Those in authority were fully aware of these conditions. Waves of epidemics of infection and disease, specifically tuberculosis, killed thousands of children. Parents of the children who suffered from sickness and death were often uninformed. Medical and healthcare services were minimal, and if more money was invested by the Canadian government towards them, the death and disease rate would be significantly lower. Students at the residential schools were also subject to verbal, physical, and sexual abuse. Ventilation, sanitation, clothing, and healthcare was extremely poor and ultimately, the consequence of inadequate government funding. According to a report, a inspector found a girl at the Sarcee school in Calgary in 1920 in a “pitiable” state, “curled up in a bed that is filthy, in a room that was untidy, dirty and dilapidated, in the north-west corner of the building with no provision of balcony, sunshine or fresh air. Both sides of her neck and chest were swollen and five foul ulcers were discovered when we lifted the bandages. Also, recently published historical research says hungry aboriginal children and adults were once used as unwitting subjects in nutritional experiments by the Canadian government. The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, also known as the RCAP, issued a final report in November of 1996. The 4,000-page document made over 400 recommendations for changes to be made with the relationship between non-aboriginals, aboriginals and the government of Canada. The last institution, the Gordon Residential Schools in Saskatchewan, closes in 1996. First nations people today bear both physical and emotional scars from the abuses they suffered at residential