The Canadian government began the process of doling out over $1.9 billion in the country’s largest- ever class-action settlement last Wednesday. The beneficiaries of this money are over 80,000 First Nations people who suffered abuse while studying at residential schools across the country.
The historical importance of this settlement cannot be overstated. Over a period of 150 years, more than 150,000 aboriginals were forced to attend residential schools, which were designed to deal with Canada’s “native problem” in two generations by destroying indigenous culture and assimilating First Nations youth. Physical and sexual abuse were rampant at the schools, most of which were run by the church.
Since the earliest days of Canada’s existence, the prosperity of the majority has come at the expense of aboriginal communities. The government is using taxpayer money—collected from the general population—to compensate some of the people who suffered most acutely in the course of Canada’s progress, in a symbolic attempt to tip the scales of history towards some kind of balance.
Former residential school students who lined up to fill out claim applications at government offices across the country last week can expect to receive an average of $28,000. For any who think that such amounts are over-generous, consider the major report on the schools, which found that mortality rates in some institutions averaged between 40 and 70 per cent. Many of those who filled out claims last week can count themselves lucky to be alive.
Phil Fontaine, National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations, called the settlement a “turning point” in Canadian history. While the Canadian government’s unprecedented acceptance of blame in this scandal should be praised, it is what happens next that will truly determine the nature of this so-called turning point.
The driving force of the residential school program was vile racism that sought to relegate First Nations people to a subclass of humanity. It is too soon to believe that such racism is dead in this country, as news of the government settlement was marred by editorials and news stories expressing concern that aboriginals would blow the settlements on drugs and alcohol.
Sentiments like this are grounded in a distorted image of Canada’s indigenous peoples. They paint First Nations people as essentially irresponsible and childlike, a characterization that spawned the brutal assimilative policies of the residential schools in the first place.
Many of Canada’s Aboriginal Peoples are forced to live in abhorrent conditions, impoverished and largely cut off from important government services. Although these conditions are not solely the fault of the national government, we disgrace this country by allowing them to persist. General attitudes towards indigenous peoples, which often carry this undertone of racism, have kept the state of First Nations communities from becoming an important part of the national agenda.
This settlement is a landmark decision, but let us hope that it is one of many on the road towards an equal standard of living for Canadian First Nations.
