Today, indigenous and non-indigenous peoples are grappling with the structures and effects of settler colonialism. One way they are doing this is through a process of truth and reconciliation following the dismantling of Canada’s residential school system.
First established in the 1870s, the residential school system lasted until 1996 – the year the last school closed its doors. It was set up as a government policy that aimed to “kill the Indian in the child”. From 1913 to 1932, Duncan Campbell Scott directed the federal government's Indian residential school program. His objective of using the program to assimilate indigenous peoples was clear. In his own words:
“I want to get rid of the Indian problem. I do not think as a matter of fact, that this country ought to continuously protect a class of people who are able to stand alone ... Our object is to continue until there is not a single Indian in Canada that has not been absorbed into the body politic, and there is no Indian question, and no Indian Department” (Mackenzie, p.91).
In 2008, Prime Minister Stephen Harper gave his official apology for these traumatic government policies. On June 1 that same year, former students of these schools – known as “survivors” due to the abusive conditions they endured – won a court settlement against the government. As an outcome of this settlement, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada was set up. The Commission began to conduct a formal inquiry on the history and ongoing effects of residential schools. It does this by collecting stories from survivors and others affiliated with the schools. Its goal is to contribute to a process of truth, healing and reconciliation.
In this topic, we explore this important work. By studying the history and ongoing effects of residential schools, we learn about examples of indigenous activism, organization and resistance, as well as the multi-generational impacts of colonial policies and practices. This kind of framework will be useful when we start to consider how similar conditions have shaped technology development in First Nations communities.
First established in the 1870s, the residential school system lasted until 1996 – the year the last school closed its doors. It was set up as a government policy that aimed to “kill the Indian in the child”. From 1913 to 1932, Duncan Campbell Scott directed the federal government's Indian residential school program. His objective of using the program to assimilate indigenous peoples was clear. In his own words:
“I want to get rid of the Indian problem. I do not think as a matter of fact, that this country ought to continuously protect a class of people who are able to stand alone ... Our object is to continue until there is not a single Indian in Canada that has not been absorbed into the body politic, and there is no Indian question, and no Indian Department” (Mackenzie, p.91).
In 2008, Prime Minister Stephen Harper gave his official apology for these traumatic government policies. On June 1 that same year, former students of these schools – known as “survivors” due to the abusive conditions they endured – won a court settlement against the government. As an outcome of this settlement, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada was set up. The Commission began to conduct a formal inquiry on the history and ongoing effects of residential schools. It does this by collecting stories from survivors and others affiliated with the schools. Its goal is to contribute to a process of truth, healing and reconciliation.
In this topic, we explore this important work. By studying the history and ongoing effects of residential schools, we learn about examples of indigenous activism, organization and resistance, as well as the multi-generational impacts of colonial policies and practices. This kind of framework will be useful when we start to consider how similar conditions have shaped technology development in First Nations communities.
Last modified: Friday, 17 January 2014, 03:37 PM