Lack Of Support From Canadian Government Leads To Cultural Genocide

Lack Of Support From Canadian Government Leads To Cultural Genocide

By Aaron Goodison

Being tied to a culture can be detrimental to a person due to politics, especially when it’s

Canada’s first nation citizens dealing with the Canadian government. The prime minister, Stephen Harper, even denies colonization. Because of the Canadian government, the first nations population dwindled across Canada, for it slipped to a total of only 2.8% the total population at its lowest. This steady drop in first nations citizens in Canada is the result of things being done today, as well as in the past. Such as how treaties were dealt with, residential schools, and the perspective we have.

Treaties between the Canadian government and first nations were made by the government, but the chief of first nations tribes were forced to sign them out of fear for the government and what it could do to them. Also, the government did not follow the guidelines stated on the treaties that were set by themselves! Major treaty topics violated by the Canadian government include things such as supports, taxes, rights to land, as well as respective rights. After treaties were signed tribes were relocated and put on reserves throughout Canada, and often times the government would tend to leave out details about their surroundings such as the weather, the animals, and water sources. The details that were left out by the government made the new reserves extremely hard to survive on. Because of that, wrongly treated first nations citizens of Canada would freeze or starve to death. This is why treaties between the government and first nations played a large factor in this “Cultural Genocide” (according to the film, Colonization Road).

Residential schools were another way the government’s actions lead to only a sliver of the first nations population remaining at one time, with the last school closing in 1996. Children all across Canada were taken from their family and their tribe, and were forced into boarding schools where they stripped children of culture and religion,

from their youth. Many children died or were severely injured by either the punishments given or from running away.

These residential schools were the Canadian government’s attempt to change the demographic and culture of young first nations children in Canada. The government’s end goal was to eventually fade the proud culture and past of first nations in Canada, and unfortunately many lives were lost in the process of these schools.

Meili, D. (2004). Residential School[Photograph]. Yukon.

The perspective that people like you and I have on this issue is very important. For it is how we, as Canadians, can prevent such a thing from occurring once again. In my opinion, not being blind to the issue of Colonization is important in fixing what we can, for when our politicians, such as Stephen Harper, denies colonization it creates larger problems especially with his connection to the Canadian government. And with being the prime minister he should at the least be aware of Canada’s history, don’t you agree?

In Conclusion I think that even in Canada, being tied to a culture can definitely be detrimental to a person. Being tied to a culture can affect how they are treated by their government. This is proven by how the government has treated first nations citizens in the past.