...term for Aboriginal peoples is defined as: “a collective name for the original peoples of North America and their descendants. The Canadian constitution recognizes three groups of Aboriginal people: Indians (commonly referred to as First Nations), Métis and Inuit. These are three distinct peoples with unique histories, languages, cultural practices and spiritual beliefs. More than one million people in Canada identify themselves as an Aboriginal person, according to the 2006 Census.” (Indigenous Nationhood) Although many Aboriginal peoples in Canada identify as being Aboriginal, many Aboriginal peoples struggle to maintain or gain a sense of cultural identity due to the Canadian Governments assimilation policies. Throughout this paper I will discuss how the Indian Act, the Canadian Residential School System, and the Sixties Scoop assimilated Aboriginal peoples into a European way of life, by attempting to integrate them into society by abolishing their Aboriginal identities. This assimilation process impacted Aboriginal peoples in negative ways throughout the generations socially, culturally, and economically. The negative impacts within child welfare system, educational institutions, and the socio-economic status of Aboriginal peoples today, prove assimilation and the total integration of Aboriginal peoples within mainstream society is unacceptable. Decolonization techniques should be applied within those areas in order combat the long lasting effects of assimilation by colonization...
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...The continuing effect of dispossession on Aboriginal Spiritualties Impact of dispossession is enormous and overwhelmingly detrimental The impact of dispossession for Aboriginal people has been enormous and overwhelmingly detrimental. Broadly speaking, the history of dispossession can be divided into three key stages. Firstly, the colonial period of non-recognition, which were marked by the introduction of terminal European diseases, shootings, massacres and poisonings. This was then secondly followed by the Paternalistic policy of protection, which began in the mid 1880s. This was followed by the equally detrimental Policy of assimilation, which began in the mid-twentieth century. As a part of and spanning across the official Government policies of Protection and Assimilation, are the dark episodes of the Stolen Generation. The term Stolen Generation refers to the mass removal of Australian Aboriginal children from their families by Government agencies and church missions between 1900 and 1972. Impact of dispossession on Aboriginal spirituality Two centuries of dispossession have had a devastatingly destructive effect upon Aboriginal Spirituality. Most significantly, the separation from land as a result of dispossession is tantamount to a loss of identity, since the Dreaming, which is central to Aboriginal spirituality, is inextricably connected to the land. The loss of land as a result of dispossession leads to the ever-present burden of not being able to fulfil ritual responsibilities...
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...been a number of prominent genres that have emerged in correlation with eras, events and people that show how Australia . The first prominent genre that emerged was the Aboriginal narrative during the 1950’s where the Australian public began to question the division between the two cultural and began to appreciate the native and traditional ways of the original custodians of the land. One of the films that bought awareness to the public was Charles Chauvels 1955, Jedda, a film that saw a young aboriginal taken into the care of a white family while she figures out her origins and roots. Throughout Australian history, migrants and the influx of other cultures into society have played a...
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...argued to criminalize certain groups within society. Specifically, Aboriginal women as offenders in corrections have faced many difficulties. They often are sentenced younger, more often and for longer sentences than non-Aboriginal offenders. The over incarceration, over representation and criminalization of Aboriginal women within the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) is attributable to a legacy of colonialism and sexism which placed them at a vulnerable place within society. Canada’s public policy post WWII regarding, social welfare, education and the labour market, exhibit how colonialism and sexism have created unfavorable cultural and socio-economic conditions for Aboriginal women, which make them more susceptible to be victims/survivors of violence, poverty and behaviours or circumstances in conflict with the law. As a result of these conditions, Aboriginal women are more likely to meet deplorable conditions while in prison, and the laws do not seem to accommodate Aboriginal methods of rehabilitation, restitution and justice. In order to understand the plight of Aboriginal women within the CJS, the issue will be approached from a feminist perspective. Further, the evidence will be sourced from secondary sources, mainly text and government reports. First a landscape of Canada’s colonial past’s impact on Aboriginal women; starting post WWII will be advanced. This will demonstrate the links between Aboriginal women’s experience with poverty, violence in all forms, and the...
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...Discuss how Charles Chauvel’s ‘Jedda’ is a product of, and placed within, the Australian film industry at the time of its production. (What was this period like and what influence did this period have on the selected film?) How might Aborigines find truer representation in Australian film and other popular cultural mediums? By Danielle Gold Charles Chauvel’s ‘Jedda,’ (1955) is a film firmly placed within the dominant ideology of its time, limited by the otherness of its chosen subject matter. As a medium of cultural production, film has a necessary relationship with the hegemony of its own culture; sometimes progressive and other times simply perpetuating. As a representation of the debate over the ethics and feasibility of assimilation, ‘Jedda’ reflects the failed premise of its time, the hierarchical approach to culture and civilization perpetuated by white Europeans. Despite this hamartia it has been applauded with “the only dignified Aboriginal male lead that has been allowed to exist in a film made by white directors in Australia,” (Johnson, 1987:48) what is certainly a progressive allowance (though the word is problematic). It has become evident that true representation of the Aborigine in Australian popular culture is dependent on undoing the dualistic understanding that establishes their otherness. Culture is a discourse of common iconography. Signifiers of language, appearance, values, history, cuisine, beliefs… are inscribed, developed and perpetuated...
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...ABORIGINAL ISSUES IN CANADA Teacher Name: Bob Gregory Student Name: Juan Carlos Bernal Student Number: 057638082 Date: Monday October 15th, 2012 References: Canada (1891). Indian treaties and surrenders, from 1680 to 1890 Volume I. Ottawa: Brown Chamberlin (Queen's Printer). URL: http://www.canadiana.org/ECO/ItemRecord/91942 Centre for Social Justice URL:http://www.socialjustice.org/index.php?page=aboriginal-issues Canadian Council on Social Development URL: http://www.ccsd.ca/cpsd/ccsd/c_ab.htm Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada URL: http://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/ Assembly of First Nations URL: http://www.afn.ca/index.php/en The Indian Residential School Settlement URL:https://my.senecacollege.ca/bbcswebdav/courses/CAN275BA.GENH.20123/summary%20of%20court%20settlement.pdf Aboriginal Issues in Canada Many problems exists in aboriginal communities which include their living conditions, crime rates, suicide rates, lack of education and skill training, unemployment and other issues. The living conditions or quality of life for Aboriginals rank 63rd, or amongst Third World conditions. Health Canada states that as of May 2003, 12% of Aboriginal communities had to boil their drinking water and approximately 1/4 of water treatment systems on-reserve pose a high risk to human health. Almost 25% of Aboriginal water infrastructure are a high risk of contamination. House density is twice that of the general population. Nearly 1 in 4...
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...Bolt’s article argues what it means to be Aboriginal and have indigenous an identity this is a perfect example of the stereotypes and beliefs of many in the broader Australian community. The first sentence “ Yet another white who chooses to be black” is an example of the belief in the importance of darker skin colour in being Aboriginal, the sentence also plays on the idea/fear people call on the “race card” in order to undeservingly benefit themselves. The article continues with a description of the winner of the National Aboriginal and Torre Strait islander Art award, Danie Mellor who is pictured and is of European appearance. The artist Danie Mellor and his winning piece were commented on by Bolt. “The work is a dramatic departure from recent winners, which have had a style more readily identifiable as Aboriginal art. It’s not just the art but the artist that isn’t ‘readily identifiable as Aboriginal’.” The paragraph brings in the notion that in order to be Aboriginal you have to fit the mould of not Just appearance, you also must fit in with traditional cultural practice, such as art styles that “look” indigenous. The idea of someone who not only looks white and is in many aspects western, but identifies as indigenous seems unfathomable to many in the Australian population. The article then shows us the previous winner and runners up to the award all of which are black skinned Aboriginals, this again brings into...
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...The Residential school system in Canada was a system devoted to providing a disciplined based ideal that promoted the rejection of the aboriginal culture in favor of the then dominant white European population. The teaching strategies that were encouraged ranged from pulling children as young as six away from their parents to mental, physical and sexual abuse. The Residential schools were run by a variety of participating church organizations, which received funding from the Canadian government. The funding was based on a per aboriginal basis therefore it was in the best interests of the churches to enroll as many aboriginal students as possible. The schools were run in almost every province in Canada from 1860-1884 and claimed to be promoting religious and cultural assimilation. However, the cruelty that was experienced by many young aboriginals in the residential schools emphasizes the differences between the aboriginal societies and the European dominant society making complete assimilation impossible. The imposition of residential schools on First Nations children has led to significant loss of indigenous languages, and this language loss has led to further cultural losses for traditional First Nations cultures in Canada. The earliest known date opening of a Residential school was in 1840, located in Manitowaning, Ontario. The school was the Wikemikong Indian Residential School, it closed in 1879. The last Residential school to close was La Tuque Indian...
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...For many young Australians, little knowledge is known about Aboriginal issues. The Stolen Generations is a historical series of events well known to many young Australians. It was important as many Australian Government bodies, alongside with other establishments, were removing children from Aboriginal families and putting them into foster homes. It was expected to cause a disconnection of the culture and structure of Aboriginal clans. From tutorials and lectures, I think that Indigenous issues are often misunderstood. I understood lecture material as providing insight into surviving problems due to the Stolen Generations. This was seen with a disconnection from land and country, and a loss of identity for Indigenous Australian. This had led...
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...The Stolen Generations The term “Stolen Generations” is used for the Children of Australian aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, most of the children were under 5 years old, who were taken from their parents by the Australian government and Church. They were separated from their parents and lived in dormitories or with foster parents. It is referred to “stolen generations” because it happened for many decades and several generations were affected. It is believed that these forcibly removals happened from around 1900s until 1970s. Approximately 100.000 children were stolen during that time. They had less contact with their parents or even didn’t know whether their parents were still alive or not. Nowadays, many of them are still searching for their families. There were many reasons to justify the Australian government actions includes to give them better living conditions because their aboriginal parents would only neglect them, to convert their beliefs into Christian by moving them from the cultural influence of indigenous people and to give them better education. However, the truth is, there was an assimilation policy that aboriginal people would die out if they have children with white Australians for generations and a fear of miscegenation by full-blooded aboriginal people. The term “Stolen Generations” is used for the Children of Australian aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, most of the children were under 5 years old, who were taken from their parents by the Australian...
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...colonisation of Australia, many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are wary of white institutions and social welfare’ (Chenoweth & McAuliffe 2012, p.274). Identify and discuss one or two of the historical events that have impacted on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and how the effects can be seen today. This paper aims to discuss how the assimilation policy and forced separation of Indigenous children from their families and culture has affected the mental health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. A significant undertone of the assimilation policy is racial discrimination (Haebich 2001), which is an additional theme explored in this discussion. Racial discrimination is built on a belief of superiority that one race is better than the other (Khalafzai 2009, p.10), which is relevant to the actions of the assimilation policy; the Aboriginal culture was devalued and considered barbaric and inappropriate to the modern colonist nation (Haebich 2001). Victims of the forced separation suffered severe psychological consequences (Petchkovsky et al. 2004), which to this day, haunt and affect the lives of many Indigenous Australians (Koolmatrie & Williams 2000). Furthermore, remnants of the past are still seen present time, through the discriminating treatment of Indigenous Australians, adversely impacting on their health, mentally and physically (Khalafzai 2009, pp.10-11). The forced removal of Aboriginal children from their families...
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...Assimilation of native canadians Submission to the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: the role of languages and culture in the promotion and protection of the rights and identity of Indigenous peoples. The State of Indigenous Peoples’ Languages and Cultures in Canada Submission by Kontinónhstats - The Mohawk Language Custodians Submitted by: Kontinónhstats – The Mohawk Language Custodians 14A Sóse Onahsakenrat (Joseph Swan Road) Kanehsatà:ke, Quebec Canada J0N 1E0 Phone: 450-479-1651 Email: Ellen Gabriel kontinonhstats2@hotmail.com Hilda Nicholas kononkwe@inbox.com Table of Contents Page Executive Summary ………………………………………………………. 3 - 6 Introduction ……………………………………………………………….. 6 – 7 Current Situation ………………………………………………………..... 7 – 9 Conclusion …………………………………………………………………. 9 - 11 Recommendations ……………………………………………………….... 12 End Notes …………………………………………………………………...13 - 14 Annex 1………………………………………………………………………15 -16 Annex 2………………………………………………………………………17 Suggested Questions ………………………………………………………..18 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This submission on Indigenous languages, culture and identity demonstrates the manner in which Canada continues to practice institutionalized racial discrimination and assimilation against Indigenous peoples’ human rights and fundamental freedoms through the imposition of their policies...
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...rubbish dumps and sometimes earning money as fruit pickers. State laws didn’t give them any benefits, told where they were allowed to live, stole their children and also had control over who could they marry. Contact between the inhabitants of these worlds was little, the non-indigenous didn’t care or know about the sufferings of the minority. However, in the late 1950s, aboriginal disadvantages became aware in the eyes of some of the majority and what they could do to address it. They recognised the potential to form a grassroots reform movement to bring the rights and protection of Australian citizenship to the dispossessed aboriginal population. From the late 1950s, aboriginal and non-aboriginal activist came together to campaign for equal rights for indigenous Australians and to bring about the dismantle of laws which deprived the indigenous Australians of civil rights. The Australian civil rights movement held series of events before and after, which contributed to the indigenous and Torres Strait islanders achieving their rights. This includes the conditions before the movement, including protection, assimilation, segregation policies and the stolen generation. The inspiration of the us civil rights movement was also a huge encouragement in the process. Before the civil rights movement...
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...The Aboriginal people of Canada hold significant importance to Canadian history and our country today, yet as a whole, the Aboriginal people of Canada differ from non-aboriginals in access to health care and overall health outcomes. Although the overall health of Aboriginals has been improving over the past 20 years (Health Canada, 2013), as a group, Aboriginal people still have the shortest life expectancies and poorest health (HCC, 2012). Literature and antidotal research as cited several factors they negatively affect health outcomes. An important barrier that this paper will discuss the concept of cultural safety as a barrier to access health care by Canadian Aboriginals. It will then define cultural safety and discuss the evolution of...
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...reveals that many communities from different parts of world migrated and settled in Canada, this communities brought their culture and values along with them. As the time elapsed new trends were introduced for the progress of the nation but Canadian government thought that this aboriginal communities cannot accept the changes taking place in the society because of their cultural values, language and traditions. As a result of which “Canadian government developed a policy called aggressive assimilation” (http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/a-history-of-residential-schools-in-canada-1.702280). This policy was mainly introduced to assimilate the aboriginal communities to Canadian culture by killing their culture, language and traditions. This policy directly affected the role of women in the society. As a result of this policy even today the aboriginal communities are suffering from poverty, addiction, alcoholism, violence activities and many other social issues which is becoming a barrier in the progress of nation in correct means. The first reason that led to all other issues was that the role of women was affected in the society because of the residential schools, born because of the “aggressive assimilation” policy implemented by the government. On June 11, 2008 Beverley Jacobs the president of Native Women’s Association of Canada relating the present situation and the situation before residential schools says that “Prior to the residential schools and prior to colonization women...
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