Jennifer Provencher- Blog 3

Learning about the history of the Canadian Education system was very interesting. I never knew how our current education system was shaped. I found the content on residential schools shocking. Over the past couple weeks; I have gained a wealth of knowledge about residential schools that I did not know before. I feel ashamed and guilty of my culture for treating not only Aboriginal people, but the other minority races the way we did. I was extremely shocked when I read “children were purposely being exposed to tuberculosis and being left to die by staff” (73). This to me is completely unacceptable. Why would anymore purposely exposure children to such a deadly disease?  I was also shocked that “Attendance at residential schools became mandatory”(74). I was further shocked with the consequences that would result in not sending your child to school.  I just think that forcing children to attend school far away from their family is extremely insensitive. I would never want to send my child away for more than 8 hours. Also, the fact that students never got to go home and were forced to play, eat and sleep with the same people day in and day out with no family contact was unreasonable. Especially when we know how important attachment is in young children.  I do not blame the residential school survivors for suffering “long-term psychological damage” (73). I think that it is so unfortunate that our indigenous people of Canada have been treated so unfairly. I think it is our job to do everything we can to make it up to them. No one, under any circumstance should ever have to face what the residential school survivors did.

Discussion Question: Do you think that the Indian Residential School settlement agreement is enough?