Canada’s residential school system was an effort to assimilate Indigenous children into Euro-Canadian culture from the mid-19th century until the last residential school closed in 1996. More than 150,000 First Nations, Métis, and Inuit children were forcibly taken from their families and placed in these schools, which were run by churches and funded by the Canadian government.
The system was supposed to provide education to Indigenous children, but it quickly became apparent that the real goal was to erase Indigenous culture, language, and identity. Children were forced to cut their hair, wear Western-style clothing, and speak English or French. They were punished if they spoke their own language or practiced their own traditions.
It is estimated that at least 6,000 Indigenous children died while attending residential schools, and many more suffered physical, emotional, and sexual abuse at the hands of the staff. The trauma and cultural genocide caused by the residential school system has had a devastating impact on Indigenous communities in Canada.
In recent years, the residential school system has come under renewed scrutiny. In 2008, the Canadian government established the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to investigate the residential school system and its impact on Indigenous peoples. The TRC heard testimony from thousands of survivors, and in 2015 it released a report with 94 recommendations for reconciliation.
One of the recommendations was to establish a National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, which is now observed on September 30th every year. The day is meant to acknowledge and honor the survivors of residential schools and their families, and to educate Canadians about the history and ongoing legacy of the system.
Another recommendation was to create a national residential schools monument and to preserve the residential school buildings that still exist. This is an important step towards acknowledging the impact of the residential school system and ensuring that future generations remember this dark period of Canadian history.
The TRC also called on the Canadian government to take action to redress the harm done to Indigenous peoples as a result of the residential school system. This includes providing compensation to survivors, funding language and cultural revitalization programs, and addressing the ongoing inequalities experienced by Indigenous peoples in Canada today.
However, progress towards reconciliation has been slow. The Canadian government has implemented some of the TRC’s recommendations, but many others have been ignored or delayed. In addition, there has been resistance from some Canadians who do not want to acknowledge the harm done by the residential school system or who deny that it was a form of cultural genocide.
The residential school system is a dark and painful chapter in Canadian history, and it is important that we continue to acknowledge its impact on Indigenous peoples and work towards reconciliation. This means recognizing the ongoing trauma that Indigenous peoples continue to experience as a result of colonization and taking concrete steps to address the legacy of the residential school system. Only then can we begin to truly heal as a nation.
