Facts

• Residential schools were established in all provinces and territories across Canada except for Newfoundland, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.
• There were approximately 130 residential schools in territories and provinces across Canada (CBC).
• Canada’s Indian residential school system began officially in 1892. Most residential schools ceased operation by the mid-1970s, although the government was no longer officially involved after 1969 (Where are the Children? Healing and Legacy of Residential Schools).
• Not all residential schools closed in the 1970s. Akaitcho Hall in Yellowknife, the last residential school in Canada, closed in 1996 (CBC).
• Approximately 150,000 Aboriginal students were forced to attend the 80 Residential schools that were established through the country (CBC).
• It is estimated that there are 80,000 people alive today who attended residential school; these people are known as the residential school survivors.

Experiences

• Some residential school survivors speak about the positive experiences in these schools, while many others describe their time in the schools as an abusive experience.
• Many survivors became self-destructive as a result of the physical, sexual, mental, spiritual and emotional abuse that was inflicted upon them. This abuse took place at the hands of those who were entrusted to educate, care for and protect the children.
• Most students did not have contact with their families during the time they were at a residential school because the schools were located far away from their communities. The schools were deliberately located far away so that parents could not have easy access to their children.
• One common objective defined in this period was “the aggressive assimilation” of Aboriginal children (CBC).
• These government-run institutions were established to “civilize” the savage Indians. In 1920, Duncan Campbell Scott, the Deputy Superintendent General of Indian Affairs, had a mission to fix the “Indian problem” through assimilation. He clearly stated his mission: “I want to get rid of the Indian problem. Our object is to continue until there is not a single Indian in Canada that has not been absorbed.” According to Scott and government policy, it was their mission to “kill the Indian in the child” and turn them into respectable Canadian citizens (Residential Schools).
• In short, these schools were totalitarian institutions that aimed to educate and civilize children against their wills.
• The residential school system stripped away the identity, language and culture of Aboriginal people; these are the main things that make people who they are.
• Many Aboriginal children completely lost their Aboriginal languages after attending residential schools where they were forced to speak English or French. Upon their return home, many found that they were no longer able to communicate with their parents in their mother tongue.

Consequences

• Court cases began in the 1990s. The cases were filed against the Federal government, the Anglican Church, the Roman Catholic Church and the United Church. In 1998, the government made a Statement of Reconciliation and established the Aboriginal Healing Foundation. The foundation’s purpose was to fund community-based healing programs that focus on addressing the legacy of Indian residential schools. Its initial budget was $350 million, and in 2005 the government gave an additional $40 million after recognizing that there was still much support needed.
• In 2006, a settlement package was reached: the Canadian government and the complainants settled on a $1.9 billion compensation package to benefit tens of thousands of survivors of abuse at residential schools. As well, any person who attended a federally-run Indian residential school is entitled to a Common Experience Payment. The amount of compensation is based on the number of years attended by a particular former student of residential schools: $10,000 for the first year attended plus $3,000 for every year attended thereafter.
• The legacy of residential schools continues to affect the children and grandchildren of the residential school survivors.
• The effects that Aboriginal children and youth experience today are referred to as “intergenerational impacts” of the residential school experience.
• The physical, sexual and emotional abuse, as well as substance abuse, that exist in Aboriginal communities today is a direct result of the abuse suffered in the Aboriginal residential school system.
• The abuse was ignored and denied for so long by the government that the relationship between the government and Aboriginal people is very strained.

Key elements in relation to the Indian Residential Schools

1820s-1840s: Early church schools run by Protestants, Catholics, Anglicans and Methodists were established.

1867: With the enactment of the British North America Act, Indian education became a federal responsibility.

1876: The first ‘Indian Act’ gave authority to the Minister of the Department of Indian Affairs to control Indian education.

1920: An amendment to the Indian Act made attendance mandatory for all children aged seven to fifteen.

1969: The Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development (DIAND) assumed management of residential schools.

1969-1970: Increased consultation with Aboriginal people was recommended. Aboriginal leaders believed that there needed to be a higher level of participation “in matters affecting their present and future situation,” including education.

1970: Blue Quills Residential School was the first of the residential schools to come under the control of First Nations. The National Indian Brotherhood called for the end of federal control over Aboriginal schooling.

1973: Control of the Aboriginal education program was given to Band Councils and Aboriginal education committees. The department trained Aboriginal people to administer schools. Consent of Aboriginal people became required before any shift from the federal to the provincial educational system is made.

1975: In October, a provincial Task Force on the Educational Needs of Native Peoples heard many recommendations from Aboriginal representatives who reiterated the goals of training for Native teachers, increased language and cultural programs, and improved funding for Native control of education.

1979: Only 15 Indian residential schools were still operating.

1989: Allegations of sexual abuse of non-Aboriginal orphans at Mount Cashel Orphanage in Newfoundland were made public and paved the way for litigation on behalf of residential school victims.

1991: In the early 1990s, public awareness grew about the abuse that occurred in residential schools.

1994: The RCMP Native Indian Residential Schools Task Force was created to investigate complaints of historic physical and sexual abuse at residential schools.

1996: The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP) issued its final report in November. The 4,000 page report covered a vast range of issues: its 440 recommendations called for sweeping changes to the relationship between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people and governments in Canada. There is an entire chapter dealing with residential schools. The last residential school closed this year as well.

1998: The Honourable Jane Stewart made a “Statement of Reconciliation: Learning from the Past,” in which the Government of Canada recognized and apologized to those who experienced physical and sexual abuse at Indian residential schools and acknowledged its role in the development and administration of these schools. The Aboriginal Healing Foundation was established, which consists of a Healing Fund of $350 million for survivors of residential schools; however, this money did not go directly to survivors of residential schools. The United Church’s General Council Executive offered a second apology to the First Nations people of Canada for the abuse incurred at residential schools.

2001: The Government of Canada offered 70% of the agreed-upon compensation to claimants with validated claims.

2006: The Settlement Agreement was approved by the Government of Canada. An advance payment program for elderly claimants began accepting applications. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission was also created as independent source to assist in working towards a healthy future for Aboriginal people.

2008: On June 11 2008, Prime Minister Stephen Harper apologized on behalf of the federal government for its participation in the federally funded Residential Schools.

Links

Aboriginal Healing Foundation
Indian Residential Schools Resolution Canada
CBC: Indian Residential Schools
Where are the Children? Healing and Legacy of Residential Schools
Legacy of Hope Foundation