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Introduction
Colonization had significant effects on numerous indigenous communities worldwide, which is still evident in their lifestyles, culture, mental and physical wellness, and spirituality. One colonial policy that greatly affected the indigenous population was the introduction of residential schools in Canada. The policy involved assimilating indigenous students into Canadian society by sending them to residential schools, which fostered a modern culture, beliefs, and the acquisition of foreign languages. The policy was meant to eradicate the indigenous culture, spirituality, beliefs, and language from the children to facilitate an easy transition into modern Canadian society.
Although the policy aimed at uplifting the indigenous populations way of living and transitioning to modernity, the system was deemed inappropriate and a corruption of culture. Removing children from their social background resulted in psychological and physical challenges. Consequently, the high intake of students led to overpopulation and limited resources, which led to numerous negative issues, such as health problems. This essay explores the historical impacts of residential schools on the indigenous population, such as health issues, loss of culture and language, parental separation, and poverty, by drawing significant data from primary and secondary sources.
Residential Schools
Residential schools refer to educational institutions which offer accommodation to attendees within the school environment. The school is similar to boarding schools, where students stay within school quarters during the learning period. In Canada, residential schools were a government and church-run educational system where indigenous students were taken to assimilate into Canadian culture (Milloy, 2019). The schools were designed to offer foreign languages such as English, Germany, and French to foster Euro-Canadian culture for an effective transition to modern society.
The schools emerged as a result of civilization, Christianity, and Missionary activities from European nations. The foreigners believed their way of life and spirituality was more appropriate than the indigenous culture, language, and traditional and uncivilized nature. Thus, the church-based schools aimed to instill education that would eradicate ignorance and uncivilized practices among the indigenous peoples. The residential schools operated throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, with more than 150 000 children from Inuit, First Nation, Metis, and Winnipeg attending the schools (Fontaine & Craft, 2021). The schools were by 1996 after much attention on its adverse effects on indigenous communities. Nonetheless, the schools had caused adverse effects, which continue to be felt by indigenous communities and survivors of the system.
The Impact of Residential Schools on Indigenous Communities
Health Issues
Residential schools had psychological damage to attendees, which has affected them and indigenous people to date. Children underwent various forms of physical and psychological abuse, resulting in mental issues such as substance abuse and suicidal thoughts. Former attendees of residential schools have given encounters of experiencing physical, psychological, emotional, and sexual abuse, which had detrimental effects on their health. Statistics show that over 6000 out of the 150000 students who attended residential schools died (Gone et al., 2019). The deaths were caused by physical abuse, psychological problems, sexual molestation, lack of proper nutrition, and substance abuse.
Those who survived still suffer from post-traumatic stress, which has led to acquiring mental disorders such as depression, substance abuse, anger management issues, anxiety, and other psychological pressure such as stigmatization. Averagely, survivors of the residential school system experience more suicidal thoughts than other individuals with psychological issues due to historical trauma and other influential factors like poverty. Studies reveal that people from indigenous populations die from suicide attempts at a higher rate than non-indigenous individuals at a ratio of 3:1 (Niezen, 2017).
The trend has affected generations associated with residential school attendees due to societal stigmatization leading to risk factors such as suicide attempts among the indigenous population. McQuaid et al. (2017) research shows that one out of five teenagers whose kin attended residential school have suicidal tendencies due to psychological issues. Conversely, high suicidal rates reduce the indigenous population, threatening the loss of culture, traditions, and language.
Consequently, children in residential schools suffered health issues due to underfunding the institutions. Residential schools received minimal funds from the government and donors leading to inadequate financial resources to cater to nutritional resources and other necessities (Fontaine & Craft, 2021). Aside from food, the students faced difficult conditions due to underfunding, including overcrowding, poor sanitation, and inadequate medical care resulting in poor health. Overcrowded spaces influenced the spread of contagious and chronic diseases, which affected residential students and their generations. Notably, the high prevalence of Tuberculosis and HIV AIDS among the indigenous population is attributed to overcrowding and sexual harassment in the residential schools (Gone et al., 2019).
According to Millo (2019), the first set of students to join residential schools suffered and died from tuberculosis due to poor sanitation and overcrowding. Although the government was aware of the underfunding and overcrowding in schools, which resulted in the spread of life-threatening illnesses, they did not act, which affected the students mentally and psychologically. Many children died, and survivors were traumatized with lasting impacts on todays indigenous generation.
Lastly, residential schools are connected to a high risk of obesity and diabetes among the attendees and the other members of the indigenous population. McQuaid et al. (2017) study show that individual who attended residential schools from Metis had a higher risk of diabetes and obesity among young adults. Similarly, in First Nation, 17% of the indigenous population is affected by diabetes due to residential schools (Gone et al., 2019). The health disorders are associated with poor diet and lifestyle in residential schools, which was adopted among the indigenous population leading to continued health effects. The schools diet consisted of many carbs, which are the primary causes of obesity and diabetes. Thus, the attendees passed the poor dietary habits to the community, which has become an intergeneration trend leading to a high risk of Type 2 diabetes and obesity.
Poverty
Poverty is a rampant phenomenon among the indigenous population in Canada. As of 2020, poverty rates in regions with significant populations of indigenous peoples ranged between 14% to 25% (Wilk et al., 2017). The high poverty levels among indigenous societies are attributed to residential schools for fostering inadequate skills that match the labor market demand. According to (Milloy, 2019), education in residential schools focused on promoting civilization by eradicating indigenous culture instead of educating the children on suitable skills and competencies that facilitate transition into the labor market. Education entailed learning new cultures and Christian values and beliefs, which provided insufficient knowledge of skilled labor.
Although the schools offered skillful subjects, the areas covered included basic agricultural practices, sewing, woodworking, and domestic work. Thus, the generation that attended residential schools lacked adequate transferable skills to the job market, which led to a lack of income and financial resources for personal and community development. Wilk et al. (2017) state that 10% of Canadas indigenous population was unemployed in 2021 compared to the modern society at 6%, which indicate the level of literacy and unskilled labor among indigenous populations.
The high unemployment rate translates to high poverty levels, adversely affecting childrens education, nutrition, and general well-being. The populations lack of sufficient resources to educate their children has led to generational poverty that continues to affect the indigenous population. Without effective measures to curb the poverty-stricken situation, the indigenous population will have a continuous cycle of generational poverty, affecting the community and the nation.
Loss of Indigenous Culture and Language
Residential schools significantly impacted indigenous peoples culture, language, spirituality, and traditions. The system led to the major destruction of the peoples language due to forcing children into civilization and separating them from their social backgrounds. The institutions aim at eradicating the childrens indigenous culture was severe, and students were punished for speaking their languages (Fontaine & Craft, 2021).
The primary languages taught included French and English, which made the children forget their indigenous language. Since the schools were far from home and catered for living accommodations, the children hardly interacted with the indigenous communities leading to foreign social life and language. The long-term eradication of indigenous languages had significant effects which interrupted language transmissions to residential attendees and their generation. Nowadays, indigenous peoples language is threatened to diminish because only a few people can speak the language fluently. Although various initiatives have come forward to promote language preservation, the impact of residential schools possess great challenges in redeeming the valuable language.
Apart from language, residential schools impacted indigenous peoples cultural, spiritual, and traditional practices. The education policy undermined the indigenous peoples cultures from Inuit and First Nations, which led to the severing ties that facilitated the preservation and passing of their culture to future generations. Children were taught to forfeit their spirituality and observe Christian ways and beliefs, which disintegrated their spiritual practices (Niezen, 2017).
The student culture and traditions were viewed as uncivilized and had to be eradicated, leading to the loss of their heritage. Apart from cultural loss through civilization, children were forcefully separated from their families and grew up without their parents care and nurturing, which contributed significantly to the loss of culture and indigenous language. The institutions took children from three years old without consideration for their families and well-being growing up away from their kin (Fontaine & Craft, 2021). Lack of parental nurturing gave the students minimal options for acquiring and understanding their cultural practices and passing them on to their children. Thus, it led to risking a loss of heritage which has become a threatening factor in Canada today.
Conclusion
Residential schools had far-reaching impacts on indigenous people, which continue to plague them today. The devastating effects have been known and documented in various health, educational and cultural journals to raise awareness of the effects and possible mitigating measures. Indigenous children sent to the schools went through many predicaments and cultural changes, which affected their lives and generations psychological, emotional, cultural, and physical aspects.
Today, indigenous peoples culture, traditions, language, and spirituality face the threat of extinction due to residential schools. At the same time, the emotional, psychological, and physical effects of attending the schools have resulted in historical trauma that affects indigenous communities well-being and lifestyle. Therefore, identifying the impacts of residential schools on the indigenous community can help the government and concerned sectors to find mitigation measures such as healthy options for historical trauma and approaches to preserving indigenous language and culture.
References
Gone, J. P., Hartmann, W. E., Pomerville, A., Wendt, D. C., Klem, S. H., & Burrage, R. L. (2019). The impact of historical trauma on health outcomes for indigenous populations in the USA and Canada: A systematic review. American Psychologist, 74(1), 2035. Web.
Fontaine, P., & Craft, A. (2021). A knock on the door: The essential history of residential schools. University of Manitoba Press.
McQuaid, R. J., Bombay, A., McInnis, O. A., Humeny, C., Matheson, K., & Anisman, H. (2017). Suicide ideation and attempts among First Nations peoples living on-reserve in Canada: The intergenerational and cumulative effects of Indian residential schools. The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 62(6), 422430. Web.
Milloy, Johns. (2019). National crime: The Canadian Government and the Residential School System. University of Manitoba Press.
Niezen, R. (2017). Truth and indignation: Canadas Truth and Reconciliation Commission on Indian Residential Schools. University of Toronto Press.
Wilk, P., Maltby, A., & Cooke, M. (2017). Residential schools and the effects on indigenous health and well-being in Canada A scoping review. Public Health Reviews, 38(1). Web.
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