Preview

Minority Groups In Canada

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
814 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Minority Groups In Canada
The source communicates that the government need to transition back to having a partnership with their citizens. The source states that we need to move back into a “people to people, culture to culture, nation to nation” relationship. This source explains the direction the government needs to take to begin in to start the healing process between themselves and minority groups in canada. The statement shows that there is different cultures within our nation and that one can not be more powerful than another. It is argued that if partnerships are not created between groups within a nation, especially the government, it allows for minority cultures to be marginalized and assimilated. Many people would have the same view as the author, who …show more content…
Abused power leads to feelings of helplessness for minority groups. An example of an government abusing their power is residential schools in Canada. They operated from the 1830’s to 1996. In these schools young aboriginal children were taken away from their families and placed in schools that they then lived in. These schools were run by catholic churches. In these schools using their native language was punished. Physical, sexual, and psychological abuse was widespread in these schools. Students also died at these schools from malnutrition. Once they left the schools, many young adults that survived turned to alcohol to cope with their abuse. Many committed suicide because of their experiences. Residential schools destroyed cultures in attempts to assimilate first nations into the modern world. These schools are a direct example of globalization and eurocentrism. The aspect of globalization emphasized is missionary. Because the young First Nations were forced to adopt a new religion. A whole generation of Canadian First Nations quality of life was lowered. Government funded residential schools left First Nations people feeling helpless and unimportant to their country. Residential schools left mental impacts on First Nations and made them unable to participate in their …show more content…
The main reason for the signing of the treaties varies between the two groups. First Nations believed that the purpose was to share their land and resources, they did not believe that anyone solely owned the land, including themselves. They also believed that the treaties were beneficial for all parties. But, the Canadian government felt that they negotiated for the rights to own land and forced first nations onto reserves. Translators were used to orally explain to first nations the terms of the treaties but many promises did not end up being written on the physical contracts. The Canadian government took prime, fertile, and arable land to themselves and left reserves on second rate land. First nations also felt cheated by the government when rather than access to schooling was provided to the youth, residential schools were built which forced harsh assimilation on young first nations. As time went on other breaches of treaties occurred. Such as the Indian Act. The Indian Act which was created after the treaties and could replace agreements made in treaties, It controlled how reservations were operated, and who was or was not considered a status indian, which could deny someone their treaty rights. The Indian Act also controlled religious ceremonies of First Nations and stripped them of many traditional ways of life. Treaties between First Nations and the canadian

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Teaching an entire generation that their way of life was an abomination, as Ed Metatawabin was taught in the Canadian residential school system, allowed indigenous peoples to be marginalized by the rest of Canadian society; thus creating a clear imbalance of power between cultures so that First Nations lacked the support they needed to progress as a community.…

    • 976 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Peter Russel’s work he identifies that a majority of First Nations Canadians “identify with Canada and have an allegiance to it, but they also identify with a historic nation (Russell 232)”. Then there are causes being presented that conflict with the loyalty and dedication to their historic nations and culture, should a banner of Canadian nationalism present itself, it is likely the former will prevail (Russell 232). During the conferences and documented by the video “Dancing Around the Table” there were two quotes that spoke true and emphasized the frustrations of the First Nations people, “the exercise now is not about frank and open discussion, or understanding and appreciation of other peoples’ concerns on the basis of respect and dignity, it has become all of a sudden the question of power and who exercises it (Bulbulian “Dancing Around the Table”).” Just a day after Premiere Rene Levesque confirms that this is a problem, however that it needs to be the First Nations people who are responsible in acquiring power to appropriately negotiate as equals, because it is ultimately the political process (Bulbulian “Dancing Around the Table”). Considering these words were said by one of Quebec’s premiers spoke volumes, because the two groups that possess a dual sense of national identity is both the Quebec and First Nations people (Russell 232). The concerns mentioned by the First Nations representative which is only later confirmed by Rene Levesque demonstrates that what was now occurring, was a dance around the table. There was no genuine or real desire to meet the demands and concerns of the First Nations people, rather than an attempt to humouring them and integrating them into Trudeau’s vision for Canada. This feeling is later confirmed a representative stating that,…

    • 685 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Looking at the effects of Canada’s colonial past, the chapter of Monchalin’s textbook The Impact of Assimilation discusses the history of residential schools and the impact that they have had on Canada’s Indigenous community. The purpose of these horrendous and unethical establishments was to eradicate the culture, traditions, and language of Indigenous peoples. This was done by removing Indigenous children from their homes, denying them communication with their families while forcing them to adopt the beliefs of Christianity. Beginning in 1920, it became compulsory that all Indigenous children from the age of seven to fifteen must attend school however; this did not necessarily mean that they were required to attend a residential school. Though…

    • 212 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    According to Robert Bone, The term treaty generally included cash gratuities, and presents during the signing. Treaties between the two groups promised education, agricultural assistance, Rights to hunt and fish on crown land until such land was required for other purposes and land reserves to be held by the crown and entrusted to the Indian (Bone, 2011).Conflicts between the two signing parties of the treaties has arose during Canada in the 20th century as each group had different perceptions of the treaty agreements . This issue has caused a divide and has contributed tot the fault line between the two groups. The Crowns understanding of the treaties were that they would diminish aboriginal rights and their title to lands in hopes of having available land for agricultural advancements. As for the aboriginals, they understood it as an agreement to share the land and resources. With the two different perceptions of the treaties between the groups, conflict was bound to happen. An example of where conflict would occur was when government would sell crown land to corporations for extraction resources with out compensating the aboriginals. Many aboriginals lived on Crown land and the large corporations would destroy their natural way of life as they would interfere with hunting, trapping, fishing, and any many other resources needed to…

    • 1300 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In the article “Why Multiculturalism Can’t End Racism,” Marlene Nourbese Philip discusses how multiculturalism promotes discrimination opposed to stopping it. Philip explains that there is inequality between different cultures and races in Canada; the Canadian government only recognizes the French and English in the constitution. Examples of genocidal practices against natives, past treatment of Chinese and Indian immigrants, and the preference of white European immigrants are used to explain unfairness amongst cultures in Canada and white supremacy. Philip believes Canadians can one day achieve equality among races but only if a strong, united effort is made.…

    • 582 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Best Essays

    Métis Residential Schools

    • 2013 Words
    • 9 Pages

    The history of the Métis and Residential Schools is not new. For a century, the mutual lives of the Métis children were controlled by the missionaries and the Catholic Church, and became wrapped up in Federal Government policies. The Metis Residential School experience was similar to the Aboriginal one; that of social exclusion and mental and physical abuse. The procedures that were created for the Métis in Residential Schools harshly exposed how bureaucrats felt about the social order of the Métis’ station in the New Canada. The Residential Schools took part in creating a lower class structure for the Métis, which separated them even further from their First…

    • 2013 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the 1970s, the Federal Government undertook an official policy on multiculturalism that was based on the understanding that, “…there cannot be one cultural policy for Canadians of British and French origin, another for the original peoples and yet a third for all others. For although there are two official languages, there is no official culture, nor does any ethnic group take precedence over any other.” (Trudeau 1971) If Canada were to establish policies on official cultures, cultures that people must integrate into, the effect would be to increase feeling of alienation in minority communities by creating barriers to entrance. By actively promoting these different cultures, so long as there is a collective will for the…

    • 348 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In Canada there are a variety of different races that exist. The different types of ethnic groups that are included are Africans, Caucasians, Latinos, Asians, and Indians (Peterson, Krivo 2010). Historically, and in our present society the problem of racial segregation has been a very critical issue. The more enhanced diversity gets, the greater the likelihood that conflicts may arise. A major reasoning behind this is because of socio-economic issues (Peterson, Krivo 2010). According to Peterson and Krivo, there is a difference between Africans, Blacks, Latino’s, Aboriginals and Whites in terms of social and economic…

    • 2507 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Every country has its own culture and identity. Nowadays, the migration of students, workers is seen in majority among foreign countries for education and employment. In some countries, people from another region are not accepted with culture of their native land, the nationalism is given as the priority rather than multiculturalism. The term multiculturalism is that people from different parts of the country live together in society with their own cultural backgrounds. The following paragraphs will depict that multiculturalism is working in Canada and details about the comparison among other overseas countries.…

    • 728 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The purpose of the schooling system was to remove all aspects of the Indigenous race and culture. Unfortunately, students had their hair cut, dressed in uniforms, given new names, and were not able to speak their native language. If any rule was broken, students were harmed physically and sexually. For example, a needle would be shoved into a Native Canadian student’s mouth if they spoke their own language. Students were also beaten and strapped, even tied down to beds, being abused sexually and physically for not obeying a leader's orders. Carole Dawson, an Indigenous Residential school student, states that the worst part was, “[p]robably the abuse. It's not only my own abuse. I saw the abuse of others” (109). Young children witnessed abnormal treatment of others, and they also experienced inhumane behaviour. In addition, escaping was common in Residential schools however, the punishment was severe. Many Indigenous students that attempted to escape Residential schools and succeeded, ended up dying from starvation, frostbite, or hypothermia. In fact, over nine-thousand Indigenous Canadians died from their futile efforts of leaving Residential schools. Celia Haig-Brown quoted a female residential school survivor as saying, “[t]hey said they were going to give me a real short haircut for my punishment” (qtd. In Quinlan et al. 68). Furthermore, Indigenous children were not able to see their own families again, the isolation affects the students emotionally, even to this day. Ingrid Annault states “[t]he worst part, besides the second thing of being there was not having your family, not having anybody to hug you and tell you they loved you” (107). A child's innocence is torn and damaged once they are separated from their family. The closest element Native children had from seeing their family was “a mere wave in a dining room” (Erin Hanson) however,…

    • 1368 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Residential schools were started in 19th century by the Canadian government to educate and assimilate the Aboriginal people. Aboriginals were taught how to speak English and the aim was for them to adopt Christianity and Canadian customs. The curriculum was designed to civilize the Native peoples to make sure they also adopted the new lifestyle on to their children and diminish Native traditions. The government wanted to remove and isolate these children from their traditions and culture and so assimilate them into the dominant culture. The Canadian government believed that the Aboriginal culture and religion were inferior, thus left…

    • 1200 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    During this time, the relationship of indigenous and French people was informal. There was no evidence regarding how the French were going to use the native land or the resources that they found there. In 1756 the New France and British were at war. The British won. As part of their peace treaty new France was transferred to British. They named it Quebec. When British took over they made a more formal relationship with the indigenous people with regards to the use of their land. In 1763 they signed the first treaty with the indigenous and it was known as royal proclamation of 1763. There are numerous of treaties created by the British government; however these treaties can be misinterpreted. The British and Canadian government had a misinterpretation of the treaty. The British thought that the native lands would be transferred over to them while the indigenous government did not believe in the concept of land ownership, for the treaties were an agreement to share their land to the British government. Another political impact was the 1969 white paper. The white paper is a law or act of parliament takes years to develop. Plenty of people in government must work for many years to get all their ideas together. During this time of information gathering a document of ideas emerges. The idea of white paper came from the Liberal Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. He believes in a just society and democracy, where all of Canada’s citizens could participate equally. The aim or goal of the white paper was “to enable the aboriginal people to be free to develop Indian culture in an environment of legal, social and economic equality with other Canadians.” Although the indigenous saw this to assimilate them and that if this happens they will lose their right for the land. Harold Cardinal was a native leader that wrote the book unjust society to contradict Pierre Trudeau’s white paper. Another political impact is the Indian act. When…

    • 2296 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In conclusion, it has been shown above that multiculturalism as an official policy for races and ethnicity in Canada provides a large number of advantages for both the visible minority population and native-born Canadians. Despite of some drawbacks…

    • 185 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Social Diversity In Canada

    • 1178 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live on the beautiful island of Newfoundland and Labrador? This breathtaking province is located on the eastern edge of North America and is the youngest province to join Confederation in 1949 (Summers, 2010) to become a part of Canada. There are many attributes that make up this province. Physical, economical and human diversity play a large role in the makeup of this province. These various characteristics differentiate Newfoundland and Labrador from the other Canadian provinces and have shaped it into the magnificent province that it is today.…

    • 1178 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ethnic Diversity In Canada

    • 1333 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The largest areas of culturally diverse societies consist within the 5 major metropolitan cites of Canada which are, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Edmonton, and Calgary (Mercer, 1995, 174). Most crimes occur in these large metropolitan cities, where many cultures are mixed within the large communities. As a result of many of the large Canadian cities being home to a majority group of people from a distinct array of ethnic identities, patterns of crime are often quite similar. For example, statistics have shown a large population of at risk black youth in the City of Toronto often indicted for street crimes. Or, the City of Vancouver, where the Asian youth gang phenomenon is at large (Mercer, 1995, 181). It is very important that the police forces in these communities represent or to the least have knowledge and sensitivity of these ethnic groups. Many of these at risk youth are either immigrants or first generation Canadians; therefore the police must be able to service them with the sensitivity of their background. Although, there have been efforts to diversify Canadian police there is still much work to be done. According to Geoffrey Li, the Law Commission of Canada has noticed through census statistics that: “in spite of concerted efforts to increase diversity in police services in Canada, women, members of visible and ethnic minority groups, as well as Aboriginal peoples, remain significantly underrepresented, compared to their representation in the communities being policed"(Li, 2008, 6). The enforcement and motivation for a more diverse police force is extremely important as the face of Canadian society is becoming less predominantly white males and more women, ethnic minorities, and Aboriginal, fueling the…

    • 1333 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics