Friday, February 15, 2013
Assimilation of First Nations
The moment British colonists set foot in the young Americas, the process of assimilation began. To assimilate something means that you are making it a part of yourself. Therefore the church built residential schools to annihilate First Nation traditions, to make them "civilized." The government also helped by taking the land of the Aboriginals away and making them live in government-controlled reserves. The children in these reserves are bound to go to residential schools. Their parents sent them away due to the promise of sustenance and care provided by the church, but sometimes they were dragged from their homes. The three main characters in the story: Niska, Elijah, and Xavier all went through the process of residential schooling. Even though they managed to escape, they have experienced what many First Nations deemed unjust. How did the efforts of assimilation affected the First Nations at that time? How did it impact their traditions and beliefs? How did it contribute to the character developments of Niska, Elijah, and Xavier?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
History just continues to repeat itself. Minorities are always treated with little decency and are always expected to fit into society's "accepted values." If western societies value freedom of speech and religion so much, then why are minorities being forced to become something they don't want to become? How is it fair that some people don't get the respect they deserve just based on their skin color? In addition, even today, racial discrimination plays a huge part in society. Why do people still don't realize that everyone is a part of the same race? What makes anyone more human than anyone else? Shouldn't everyone be treated the same way regardless of skin color or physical traits? It's shocking how corrupted today's society is.
ReplyDelete