The climate of emotional, psychological, and physical violence that permeated these residential schools
left the survivors traumatized on many levels.
They were subjected to barbaric suffering because they were Native American, which had a profound
impact on both their lives and their brains.
Several Indigenous families suffered severe anguish for the rest of their life as a result of having to
endure the tragedy of losing their lone child.
This traumatic event in history has left its mark on the descendants of those who attended by creating
“enduring links between familial Indian Residential School attendance and a range of health and social
outcomes among the descendants of those who attended.”.
These negative effects include worse financial and educational outcomes as well as higher rates of
hopelessness, suicidal thoughts, drug addiction, and food insecurity.
These findings show that the effects of residential schools are still being felt today.
Using the idea of the "sociological imagination" as your framework, how does the history of
residential schools continue to impact Indigenous peoples and their communities?
The deliberate eradication of Indigenous, First Nations, Métis, and Inuit cultures as well as the
dissolution of families over many generations were brought on by Canada's residential school system.
In addition to contributing to the general loss of language and culture, this has the effect of
disconnecting the connections through which Indigenous culture is taught and preserved.
With the intention of pushing Indigenous students to adopt Euro-Canadian cultural norms and cultural
integrating them, a bigger educational system was constructed in Canada that included residential
schools.
Charlie is a horrifying reality that will continue to shock the system and bring to light the horrors that
were perpetrated in Canada's residential schools.
He is only a microcosm that represents the most problematic facets of a problem that is of critical
importance.
There is no way around the fact that Charlie is a symbol of the repressive practices of colonialism.
What is one thing you could do/change to support reconciliation in Canada?
You may aid in the process of reconciliation in a number of ways, including the ones listed below:
Learn about the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis populations in your area by doing research to understand
their history and the contributions they have made to civilization. See Native American films and read
Native American-authored literature. Learn more about Indigenous artists and the artwork they
produce. Since it tackles basic issues of how we relate with one another as fellow humans and the kind
of relationships and communities that we wish to foster in the future, the process of reconciliation is
crucial for all Canadians
