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Watch quality Canadian documentary, animation and fiction films online

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their is movie based on residental school is we were children 2012

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Filmmaker and educator Janine Windolph ventures from Saskatchewan to Quebec with her two teens and younger sister, tracing their familial origins to the Cree First Nation of Waswanipi. …

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What occurred there?

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Impacts on health/mental health.

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An Indigenous woman tells her story: residential school, addiction, and learning to heal

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How does this affect your approach to addressing mental health among Indigenous communities?

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It was set up by the canadian Govt. but administered by the church.

The Mohawk Institute in Brantford, Ontario, was the first to open in 1831.

The Gordon Indian Residential School in Saskatchewan, being the last to close in 1996.

Nearly 130 schools were placed throughout Canada and 150,000+ Indigenous children throughout the years of operation.

The main goals of the schools were to remove the children from their homes in order to assimilate them into the Euro-Canadian and Christian ways of living, isolating them from their own culture.

The Slogan " Kill the Indian, Save The Man” or “Kill the Indian in Child”. Indigenous children were not allowed to speak their own language, use their own names, or practice anything of their own religion and culture.

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Conclusion (How does this affect your approch to addressing mental health among Indigenous communities?)

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Conclusion (How does this affect your approch to addressing mental health among Indigenous communities?)

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It is important to address mental health in Indigenous communities with cultural sensitivity and thoroughness, given the legacy of residential schools.

To do this, mental health providers must acknowledge how schools affect Native American communities and include culturally-honoring customs into their treatment.

Involving senior citizens and community leaders and developing community-based initiatives are critical to providing relevant and easily accessible services.

In order to provide holistic care, it is essential to incorporate traditional healing modalities, take social determinants of health into account, create safe spaces, and provide trauma-informed training for medical staff.

In addition to providing resources and enabling Indigenous leadership in mental health efforts, building trust requires persistent engagement and prioritizing Indigenous viewpoints.

Collaborating with Indigenous teams and groups across many fields can provide a great deal of support.

It can also improve cultural competency and disseminate positive experiences to raise consciousness and understanding.

Through the application of these strategies, professionals and policymakers can improve the support they provide to Indigenous communities, promoting their well-being, resilience, and general health.

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A reflection on the impact of residential schools

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Inuit People Are 300 Times More Likely to Get Tuberculosis Than Non-Indigenous Canadians

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A look at how Canada is failing part of its population when it comes to their health.

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VANCOUVER - A new study by The Cedar Project is the first in Canada to show that survivors of sexual abuse and children of residential school survivors are at disproportionately higher risk of sexual assault. The study aimed to identify risk factors for sexual assault among young Aboriginal women who use drugs.

Researchers found that women who had a parent who attended a residential school were 2.35 times more likely to be sexually assaulted. Women were also nearly 10 times more likely to be sexually assaulted later in life if they had a history of childhood sexual abuse.

The Cedar Project is a partnership between Indigenous leaders and health researchers to examine vulnerability to HIV among Indigenous people who use drugs in Prince George and Vancouver. The findings from this study, recently published in the journal Violence Against Women, point to alarming patterns of historical trauma, childhood sexual abuse, and vulnerability to sexual assault among at-risk Aboriginal young women in British Columbia.

Researchers with the University of British Columbia School of Population and Public Health and the Centre for Health Evaluation and Outcome Sciences (CHÉOS) followed a group of 259 young Aboriginal women who use drugs (aged 14-30) in Vancouver and Prince George over a seven-year period.

During the seven-year study period, 28 per cent of participants reported that they were sexually assaulted, and of those, 41 per cent were assaulted more than once.

The study also found that only 20 per cent of those assaulted received any type of counseling.

Kukpi7 (Chief) Wayne Christian (Splatsin Secwepemc Nation) and other Indigenous leaders in British Columbia are calling for an integrated and trauma-informed response to addressing childhood sexual abuse and sexual violence in their communities.

"We honour our Elders who endured the trauma of residential schools, their sacrifices, courage, and determination to cope and survive for those yet unborn," said Kukpi7 Christian, who is also Co-Principal Investigator of The Cedar Project. "However, these statistics are more than just numbers. They are our children, our relations. Some are being hurt this way before they can even speak. I myself am a survivor of multiple forms of trauma. I have walked the pain of these young people and they are calling for change. We need to stop this cycle. We've lived in denial for long enough and it's high time for a response."

Northern BC Chiefs demand integrated response
The study findings support a resolution passed by 54 northern B.C. chiefs last year to begin work to establish an Indigenous-designed and directed Child Advocacy Centre (CAC) in the northern region of B.C.

The centre would bring together a multidisciplinary team of police, child protection, medical, mental health, and victim services in a child-friendly setting for a young victim or witness and his or her family.

Preston Guno (Nisga'a Nation), Executive Director of the Northern First Nations Child and Family Services Council (Northern Council), is collaborating with Sheldon Kennedy, former NHL hockey player, Lead Director of the Sheldon Kennedy Child Advocacy Centre, and Order of Canada Recipient, to lead the development of this centre.

"How many more children will we lose to sex work, the streets, violence, and injection drug use before our Nations come together to address the pain and silence surrounding sexual abuse and begin rebuilding our communities?" asked Guno.

"Sexual abuse may indeed be the greatest threat to the lives of our young people," said Kennedy. "We need to change the question from, 'What's wrong with you?' to 'What's happened to you?' The impacts of sexual abuse are killing our kids."

"The Sheldon Kennedy Centre is a powerful example of strong partnerships, willing hearts, and experts who will ensure abused children and their families receive the coordinated and comprehensive help they require," said Bonnie Johnston, CEO of the Sheldon Kennedy CAC. "With professionals working together in an integrated model of practice we are seeing improved outcomes for children and families and the opportunity to truly understand the impact of this trauma on our children."

"Residential schools violated our belief that the world is a safe place and that people can be trusted. Most health and social programs that address the impact of substance use in our communities fail to acknowledge the historical and ongoing injustices faced by our people," said Mary Teegee (Takla Lake First Nation), Executive Director of Family Services for Carrier Sekani Family Services in Prince George. "A young member of our community once said that he dreamt of one day when he can read about the impacts of residential school and not have to live it."

Cedar Project research has repeatedly demonstrated relationships between historical traumas and negative health outcomes later in life, including HIV and hepatitis C infection," said Dr. Patricia Spittal, Principal Investigator of The Cedar Project and Professor in UBC's School of Population and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine. "We have to support the children who are currently being hurt, and develop trauma-informed addictions care for young people who are still coping with the pain of sexual violence."

Extreme risk for sexual assault among the study participants has highlighted the devastating effects of sexual abuse over the life course. Sexual assault among young women in the study was associated with the following:

Having a parent who attended residential school (2.35 times more likely to be sexually assaulted)

Sleeping on the street (1.9 times more likely)

Involvement in sex work (3.4 times more likely)

Having been offered money to not use condoms while involved in sex work (7.3 times more likely)

Injection drug use (2.2 times more likely)

Frequent cocaine injection (3.8 times more likely); frequent opiate injection (3 times more likely); binge injection drug use (3.2 times more likely); and difficulty accessing clean syringes (2.9 times more likely)

BACKGROUND

Historical Trauma: Between 1874 and 1996, over 150,000 Aboriginal people were removed from their communities and placed into the Indian residential school system. Widespread atrocities were experienced in the schools, including sexual, physical, psychological, and emotional abuses and persistent devaluation of cultural identity and knowledges. Many former students struggled to cope with their experiences after they returned home and unintentionally transferred unaddressed grief and pain onto their families. Indigenous scholars refer to historical or intergenerational trauma as collective emotional and psychological injury over the lifespan and across generations.

Sexual Assault: Sexual assault refers to all incidents of unwanted sexual activity, including sexual attacks and sexual touching. In The Cedar Project study, researchers have found that within a seven-year study period, 28 per cent of the young women had been sexually assaulted, and that on average, 5 per cent were sexually assaulted every 6 months. Comparison with other studies can be problematic because of variations in definitions or terminology and time frames in which events are measured. However, the proportion of women in this study who had experienced at least one sexual assault within the seven-year study period is higher than the lifetime prevalence of rape among American Indian women from six Tribes in the United States (14 per cent), and lifetime prevalence of sexual assault among young American Indian women in a residential substance use treatment program in the United States (20 per cent).

Sexual Abuse: Childhood sexual abuse is a deeply injurious experience that has severe emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual impacts on an individual's health over their life course. In the aftermath of the residential school system, it is now believed that Indigenous children are disproportionately impacted by sexual abuse. Almost half (48 per cent) of Cedar Project participants, of whom 69 per cent were young women, reported being forced to have sex or molested prior to enrolment in the study. The average age of first non-consensual sex was six years old. For those who reported a history of sexual abuse, 70 participants (27 per cent) had never told anyone about the experience prior to the baseline interview and 167 (65 per cent) had never received counselling that involved dealing with the abuse. Further, 121 (48 per cent) reported that since their first experience of sexual abuse, they have again experienced sexual abuse by other people.

Trauma-informed: Trauma-informed addictions and mental health services aim to neither exacerbate nor avoid addressing trauma. These services support survivors of trauma through trust-based collaboration between service providers and clients. Emphasis is placed on supporting the control and choice of the person who is seeking help, enhancing their strengths and resilience, minimizing the possibilities of retraumatization, and ensuring cultural safety.

The Northern First Nations Child and Family Services Council: The Northern First Nations Child and Family Services Council (Northern Council) was established at the direction of the fifty-four Northern Chiefs in October 2012. The mandate of the Northern Council is to develop an effective governance structure specifically for the advancement of First Nations child and family services issues in Northern British Columbia. The Northern Council has mobilized the fifty-four Northern Chiefs to support the establishment of a First Nations Child Advocacy Centre to better support the child/youth victims of abuse. At the Northern Chiefs Caucus meeting on April 23, 2014, the Northern Chiefs, by resolution, passed a motion directing the Northern Council to begin work to establish the First Nations Child Advocacy Centre in Prince George, B.C.

The Sheldon Kennedy Child Advocacy Centre: The Sheldon Kennedy Child Advocacy Centre in Calgary, Alberta, Canada leads the way to offer hope, help, and healing to children, youth, and families impacted by abuse. This groundbreaking not-for-profit Centre brings together more than 100 professionals from six partner organizations to wrap services around children, youth, and families:

Calgary Police Service

Alberta Human Services - Child and Family Services

Alberta Health

Alberta Justice - Crown Prosecutor's Office

RCMP

Alberta Education

It blends investigation, treatment, prevention, education, and research with expertise to help young victims and their families through an exceptionally difficult time - providing integrated services at one place so healing can begin and lives can move forward. The Centre is currently working with Ministries within the Government of Alberta to develop a provincial integrated model of practice to ensure all children and youth impacted by child abuse have access to equitable and consistent specialized services. This includes our work with First Nations and the RCMP who serve rural communities.

The Cedar Project: The Cedar Project is an ongoing, two-city cohort study addressing HIV and HCV-related vulnerabilities among young Indigenous people who use non-injection and/or injection drugs. The study began in 2003 in Prince George, a forestry and mining town in the northern interior of B.C., and Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. Since the study's inception, Indigenous collaborators and investigators, collectively known as The Cedar Project Partnership, have governed the entire research process. Knowledge translation and community engagement is a hallmark of The Cedar Project Partnership. The Cedar Project is funded by an operating grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).

The Centre for Health Evaluation and Outcome Sciences: A centre of the Providence Health Care Research Institute (PHCRI) and the University of British Columbia, the Centre for Health Evaluation and Outcome Sciences (CHÉOS) is a multidisciplinary research collective founded to pursue excellence through the evaluation, interpretation, and dissemination of health outcomes information. CHÉOS works across all of PHCRI's health disciplines, including aging, cardiopulmonary health, urban health, HIV/AIDS, mental health, and kidney health.

To read the paper, please visit: http://vaw.sagepub.com/content/21/3/313.abstract (academic networks only) or contact for a copy.

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Children of residential school survivors and victims of childhood sexual abuse are at increased risk of sexual assault

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VANCOUVER - A new study by The Cedar Project is the first in Canada to show that survivors of sexual abuse and children of residential school survivors are at disproportionately higher risk of sexual assault. The study aimed to identify risk factors for sexual assault among young Aboriginal women who use drugs.

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By Erin Hanson (2009), with updates and revisions by Daniel P. Gamez & Alexa Manuel (September 2020). The original version of this article has been archived, but may be accessed here. To cite this article, we have recommendations at the bottom of the page. Note on terminology: There is constant debate and reflection on the use of specific terms as umbrella categories to designate multiple Aboriginal, Indigenous, or Native peoples. For the most recent version of this article, we have decided to follow the terms Indigenous, First Nations, Métis and Inuit, or alternatively Indigenous Peoples, in the plural, following the guidelines of the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the most widely accepted international instrument today. The term Indigenous Peoples can also be found in UBC's Indigenous Peoples Language Guidelines.
In this section:

What Were Residential Schools?

The term residential schools refers to an extensive school system set up by the Canadian government and administered by churches that had the nominal objective of educating Indigenous children but also the more damaging and equally explicit objectives of indoctrinating them into Euro-Canadian and Christian ways of living and assimilating them into mainstream white Canadian society. The residential school system officially operated from the 1880s into the closing decades of the 20th century. The system forcibly separated children from their families for extended periods of time and forbade them to acknowledge their Indigenous heritage and culture or to speak their own languages. Children were severely punished if these, among other, strict rules were broken. Former students of residential schools have spoken of horrendous abuse at the hands of residential school staff: physical, sexual, emotional, and psychological. Residential schools provided Indigenous students with inappropriate education, often only up to lower grades, that focused mainly on prayer and manual labour in agriculture, light industry such as woodworking, and domestic work such as laundry work and sewing.

Residential schools systematically undermined Indigenous, First Nations, Métis and Inuit cultures across Canada and disrupted families for generations, severing the ties through which Indigenous culture is taught and sustained, and contributing to a general loss of language and culture. Because they were removed from their families, many students grew up without experiencing a nurturing family life and without the knowledge and skills to raise their own families. The devastating effects of the residential schools are far-reaching and continue to have a significant impact on Indigenous communities. The residential school system is widely considered a form of genocide because of the purposeful attempt from the government and church to eradicate all aspects of Indigenous cultures and lifeworlds.

From the 1990s onward, the government and the churches involved-Anglican, Presbyterian, United, and Roman Catholic-began to acknowledge their responsibility for an education scheme that was specifically designed to "kill the Indian in the child." On June 11, 2008, the Canadian government issued a formal apology in Parliament for the damage done by the residential school system. In spite of this and other apologies, however, the effects remain.

What led to the residential schools?

The early origins of residential schools in Canada are found in the implementation of the mission system in the 1600s. The churches and European settlers brought with them the assumption that their own civilization was the pinnacle of human achievement. They interpreted the socio-cultural differences between themselves and Indigenous Peoples as "proof" that Canada's first inhabitants were ignorant, savage, and-like children-in need of guidance. They felt the need to "civilize" Indigenous Peoples. Education-a federal responsibility-became the primary means to this end.

Canadian Prime Minister John A. Macdonald commissioned journalist and politician Nicholas Flood Davin to study industrial schools for Indigenous children in the United States. Davin's recommendation to follow the U.S. example of "aggressive civilization" led to public funding for the residential school system. "If anything is to be done with the Indian, we must catch him very young. The children must be kept constantly within the circle of civilized conditions," Davin wrote in his 1879 Report on Industrial Schools for Indians and Half-Breeds (Davin's report can be read here.)

In the 1880s, in conjunction with other federal assimilation policies, the government began to establish residential schools across Canada. Authorities would frequently take children to schools far from their home communities, part of a strategy to alienate them from their families and familiar surroundings. In 1920, under the Indian Act, it became mandatory for every Indigenous child to attend a residential school and illegal for them to attend any other educational institution.

Living conditions at the residential schools

The purpose of the residential schools was to eliminate all aspects of Indigenous culture. Students had their hair cut short, they were dressed in uniforms, they were often given numbers, and their days were strictly regimented by timetables. Boys and girls were kept separate, and even siblings rarely interacted, further weakening family ties. Chief Bobby Joseph of the Indian Residential School Survivors Society recalls that he had no idea how to interact with girls and never even got to know his own sister "beyond a mere wave in the dining room." ¹ In addition, students were strictly forbidden to speak their languages-even though many children knew no other-or to practise Indigenous customs or traditions. Violations of these rules were severely punished.

Residential school students did not receive the same education as the general population in the public school system, and the schools were sorely underfunded. Teachings focused primarily on practical skills. Girls were primed for domestic service and taught to do laundry, sew, cook, and clean. Boys were taught carpentry, tinsmithing, and farming. Many students attended class part-time and worked for the school the rest of the time: girls did the housekeeping; boys, general maintenance and agriculture. This work, which was involuntary and unpaid, was presented as practical training for the students, but many of the residential schools could not run without it. With so little time spent in class, most students had only reached grade five by the time they were 18. At this point, students were sent away. Many were discouraged from pursuing further education.

Abuse at the schools was widespread: emotional and psychological abuse was constant, physical abuse was metred out as punishment, and sexual abuse was also common. Survivors recall being beaten and strapped; some students were shackled to their beds; some had needles shoved in their tongues for speaking their native languages. These abuses, along with overcrowding, poor sanitation, and severely inadequate food and health care, resulted in a shockingly high death toll. In 1907, government medical inspector P.H. Bryce reported that 24 percent of previously healthy Indigenous children across Canada were dying in residential schools. This figure does not include children who died at home, where they were frequently sent when critically ill. Bryce reported that anywhere from 47 percent (on the Peigan Reserve in Alberta) to 75 percent (from File Hills Boarding School in Saskatchewan) of students discharged from residential schools died shortly after returning home.

The extent to which the Department of Indian Affairs and church officials knew of these abuses has been debated by some. However, the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP) and John Milloy, among others, concluded that church and state officials were fully aware of the abuses and tragedies at the schools. Some inspectors and officials at the time expressed alarm at the horrifying death rates, yet those who spoke out and called for reform were generally met with silence and lack of support. The Department of Indian Affairs would promise to improve the schools, but the deplorable conditions persisted.

Some former students have positive memories of their time at residential schools, and certainly some might have been treated with kindness by the priests and nuns who ran the schools as best they could given the circumstances. But even these "good" experiences occurred within a system aimed at destroying Indigenous cultures and assimilating Indigenous students.

The Shift Away from Residential Schools

"Sister Marie Baptiste had a supply of sticks as long and thick as pool cues. When she heard me speak my language, she'd lift up her hands and bring the stick down on me. I've still got bumps and scars on my hands. I have to wear special gloves because the cold weather really hurts my hands. I tried very hard not to cry when I was being beaten and I can still just turn off my feelings.... And I'm lucky. Many of the men my age, they either didn't make it, committed suicide or died violent deaths, or alcohol got them. And it wasn't just my generation. My grandmother, who's in her late nineties, to this day it's too painful for her to talk about what happened to her at the school."

- Musqueam Nation former chief George Guerin,
Kuper Island school
Stolen from our Embrace, p 62

Church and state officials of the 19th century believed that Indigenous societies were disappearing and that the only hope for Indigenous people was to convert to Christianity, do away with their cultures, and become "civilized" British subjects-in short, assimilate them. By the 1950s, the same officials were doubting the viability of such project. The devastating effects of the residential schools and the needs and life experiences of Indigenous students were becoming more widely recognized. ² The government also acknowledged that removing children from their families was severely detrimental to the health of the individuals and the communities affected. In 1951, with the amendments to the Indian Act, the half-day work/school system was progressively abandoned, conceding power to the provinces to apprehend children, and transitioning from the school system to a 'child welfare system'. This time is referred to as the 'Sixties Scoop' because of the systematic removal of Indigenous children from their families without consent from their parents or authorities.

In the 1960s the drastic overrepresentation of Indigenous children in the welfare system consolidated, and authorities would constantly place Indigenous children with white middle-class families in an attempt to acculturate them. This practice, as well as the overrepresentation of Indigenous children in 'child welfare systems' continues today. In 1969, the Department of Indian Affairs took exclusive control of the system, marking an end to church involvement in residential schooling. Yet the schools remained underfunded and abuse continued, and many teachers and workers continued to lack proper credentials to carry out their responsibilities. ³

In the meantime, the government decided to phase out segregation and began incorporating Indigenous students into public schools. Although these changes saw students reaching higher levels of education, problems persisted. Many Indigenous students struggled in their adjustment to public school and to a Eurocentric system where Indigenous knowledges were excluded, fostering discrimination by their non-Indigenous peers. Post-secondary education was strongly discouraged for Indigenous students because those who wanted to attend university would have been enfranchised.

The process to phase out the residential school system and other assimilation tactics was slow and not without reversals. The residential school system in Canada lasted officially for almost 150 years, and its impacts continue on to this day. As mentioned above, the system's closure gave way to the 'Sixties Scoop,' during which thousands of Indigenous children were abducted by social services and removed from their families. The 'Scoop' spanned roughly the two decades it took to phase out the residential schools, but child apprehensions from Indigenous families continue to occur in disproportionate numbers today. In part, this is the legacy of compromised families and communities left by the residential schools.

Starting in 1969, residential schools in Canada began to decline in numbers. In 1970, the Department of Indian Affairs calculated fifty-six remaining schools, excluding the Northwest Territories. By 1980, the same institution reported sixteen, and one decade later, eleven. In 1996, Gordon Reserve Indian Residential School in Saskatchewan, the last of its kind, was closed and demolished. By 1999, the Department of Indian Affairs registered no remaining residential schools in operation. ⁴

Ongoing Impacts

"So why is it important to understand the history of genocide in Canada? Because it's not history. Today's racist government laws, policies and actions have proven to be just as deadly for Indigenous peoples as the genocidal acts of the past."

-Pamela Palmater, Mi'kmaq lawyer, professor, activist, and politician
(National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (Canada) et al. 2019, 53).

The residential school system is viewed by much of the Canadian public as part of a distant past, disassociated from today's events. In many ways, this is a misconception. The last residential school did not close its doors until 1996, and many of the leaders, teachers, parents, and grandparents of today's Indigenous communities are residential school Survivors. Although residential schools have closed, their effects remain ongoing for both Survivors and their descendants who now share in the intergenerational effects of transmitted personal trauma and loss of language, culture, traditional teachings, and mental/spiritual wellbeing.

According to the Report of the Aboriginal Justice Inquiry of Manitoba, several generations of Indigenous Peoples were denied the development of parenting skills not only through their removal from communities and families but also from the severe lack of attention paid to the issue by school officials. ⁵ In addition, children were taught that their traditional ways were inferior, including their languages and cultures. The residential schools were operational through several generations of Indigenous Peoples so the process of healing from these damages will also take several generations -a process that has already begun, but has not been easy nor has it been simple.

The historic, intergenerational, and collective oppression of Indigenous Peoples continues to this day in the form of land disputes, over-incarceration, lack of housing, child apprehension, systemic poverty, marginalization and violence against Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA peoples, and other critical issues which neither began nor ended with residential schools. Generations of oppressive government policies attempted to strip Indigenous Peoples of their identities not only through residential schools but also through other policies including but not limited to: the implementation and subsequent changes to the Indian Act; the mass removal of Indigenous children from their families into the child welfare system known as the Sixties Scoop; and legislations allowing forced sterilizations of Indigenous Peoples in certain provinces, a practice that has continued to be reported by Indigenous women in Canada as recently as 2018; and currently, through the modern child welfare systems which continue to disproportionately apprehend Indigenous children into foster care in what Raven Sinclair has called the Millennium Scoop. ⁶

In 2019, BC ended its practice of "birth alerts" in child welfare cases, which allowed child welfare agencies and hospitals to flag mothers deemed "high risk" without their consent -a practice which disproportionately targeted Indigenous mothers and was found to be "racist and discriminatory" and a "gross violation of the rights of the child, the mother, and the community". ⁷ One of the findings of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Report (MMIWG) asserts that the Canadian State "has used child welfare laws and agencies as a tool to oppress, displace, disrupt, and destroy Indigenous families, communities, and Nations. It is a tool in the genocide of Indigenous Peoples." ⁸ Child welfare laws and agencies, like the residential schools, effectively aided in the removal of Indigenous children from their families and continue to aid in the genocide of Indigenous Peoples.

Survivors Demand Justice
"...the Government of Canada now recognizes that it was wrong to forcibly remove children from their homes and we apologize for having done this. We now recognize that it was wrong to separate children from rich and vibrant cultures and traditions that it created a void in many lives and communities, and we apologize for having done this".

I have just one last thing to say. To all of the leaders of the Liberals, the Bloc and NDP, thank you, as well, for your words because now it is about our responsibilities today, the decisions that we make today and how they will affect seven generations from now.

My ancestors did the same seven generations ago and they tried hard to fight against you because they knew what was happening. They knew what was coming, but we have had so much impact from colonization and that is what we are dealing with today.

Women have taken the brunt of it all.

Thank you for the opportunity to be here at this moment in time to talk about those realities that we are dealing with today.

What is it that this government is going to do in the future to help our people? Because we are dealing with major human rights violations that have occurred to many generations: my language, my culture and my spirituality. I know that I want to transfer those to my children and my grandchildren, and their children, and so on.

What is going to be provided? That is my question. I know that is the question from all of us. That is what we would like to continue to work on, in partnership.

Nia:wen. Thank you.

-Beverley Jacobs, President, Native Women's Association of Canada, June 11, 2008

Read the full transcript and watch the video here.

The residential schools heavily contributed to educational, social, financial and health disparities between Indigenous Peoples and the rest of Canada, and these impacts have been intergenerational. ⁹ Despite the efforts of the residential school system and those who created and maintained it, Indigenous Peoples largely escaped complete assimilation and continue to work to regain what was lost, while also seeking justice for years of wrongdoing; including from the Canadian government, the churches, and the individuals responsible for specific cases of abuse.

It was not until the late 1980s that the Canadian legal system began to respond to allegations of abuse brought forward by Survivors, with fewer than fifty convictions coming out of more than 38,000 claims of sexual and physical abuse submitted to the independent adjudication process. ¹⁰ Notable cases include 1988's Mowatt v. Clarke, in which eight former students of St. George's Indian Residential School in Lytton, B.C., sued a priest, the government, and the Anglican Church of Canada; both the Anglican Church and the government admitted fault and agreed to a settlement. In 1995, twenty-seven Survivors from the Alberni Indian Residential School filed charges of sexual abuse against Arthur Plintwhile also holding Canada and the United Church vicariously liable. In addition to convicting Plint, the court held the federal government and the United Church responsible for the wrongs committed.
The Indian Residential School Survivors Society was formed in 1994 by the First Nations Summit in British Columbia and was officially incorporated in 2002 to provide support for survivors and communities in the province throughout the healing process and to educate the broader public. The Survivors Society provides crisis counselling, referrals, and healing initiatives, as well as acting as a resource for information, research, training, and workshops. It was clear that a similar organization was needed at the national level, and in 2005, the National Residential School Survivors Society was incorporated.
Meanwhile, the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples had been interviewing individuals from Indigenous communities and nations across Canada about their experiences. The commission's report, published in 1996, brought unprecedented attention to the residential school system-many non-Indigenous Canadians did not know about this chapter in Canadian history. In 1998, based on the commission's recommendations and considering the court cases, the Canadian government publicly apologized to former students for the physical and sexual abuse they suffered in the residential schools. The Aboriginal Healing Foundation was established as a $350 million government plan to aid communities affected by the residential schools. However, some Indigenous people felt the government apology did not go far enough, since it addressed only the effects of physical and sexual abuse and not other damages caused by the residential school system.
Books & Articles Canada. Royal Commission on Indigenous Peoples. Report of the Royal Commission on Indigenous Peoples, Volume 1: Looking Forward, Looking Back. Chapter 10, "Residential Schools." Ottawa: Supply and Services Canada, 1996.
The St. George and Alberni lawsuits set a precedent for future cases, proving that the churches and the government of Canada could be sued as an entity. As the number of cases grew, a National Class Action was filed in 2002 for compensation for all former Indian Residential school Survivors and family members in Canada. In 2005, Canada and nearly 80,000 Survivors reached the Indian Residential School Settlement Agreement in which Canada committed to individual compensation for Survivors, additional funding for the Aboriginal Healing Foundation, and the creation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

In September 2007, while the Settlement Agreement was being put into action, the Canadian government made a motion to issue a formal apology. The motion passed unanimously. On June 11, 2008, the House of Commons gathered in a solemn ceremony to publicly apologize for the government's involvement in the residential school system and to acknowledge the widespread impact this system has had among Indigenous Peoples. You can read the official statement and responses to it by Indigenous organizations here (scroll down to " Choose a topic" and select " Apology to former students of Indian Residential Schools"). The apology was broadcast live across Canada (watch it here). Former Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper issued a 'statement of apology to former students of Indian Residential Schools ', noting that

Echoing Stephen Harper, former Chief Justice of Ontario Warren Winkler also observed that the residential school system removed children

"from their families and communities to serve the purpose of carrying out a "concerted campaign to obliterate" the "habits and associations" of "Indigenous languages, traditions and beliefs," in order to accomplish "a radical re-socialization" aimed at instilling the children instead with the values of Euro-centric civilization"( Library and Archives Canada, RG10, volume 6113, le 351-10, part 1). ¹¹

The federal government's apology was met with a range of responses. Some felt that it marked a new era of positive federal government-Indigenous relations based on mutual respect, while many others felt that the apology was merely symbolic and doubted that it would change the government's relationship with Indigenous Peoples. Although apologies and acknowledgements made by governments and churches are important steps forward in reconciliation, Indigenous leaders have argued that such gestures are not enough without supportive action . Communities and residential school survivor societies are undertaking healing initiatives and providing opportunities for survivors to talk about their experiences and move forward to create a positive future for themselves, their families, and their communities.

Recommended resources

Erasmus, George. Notes on A History of the Indian Residential School System in Canada

Fournier, Suzanne and Ernie Crey. Stolen from our Embrace: The Abduction of First Nations Children and the Restoration of Indigenous Communities. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 1997.

Haig-Brown, Celia. Resistance and Renewal: Surviving the Indian Residential School. Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 1998. First published by Tillicum Library, 1988.

Manitoba. Public Inquiry into the Administration and Indigenous People. "Indigenous Women." Vol. 1, chap. 13, in Report of the Aboriginal Justice Inquiry of Manitoba. Winnipeg: Public Inquiry into the Administration and Indigenous People, 1999.
Websites Apologies and Reconciliation
This chapter of the Indigenous Justice Inquiry of Manitoba's report on Indigenous people in the justice system examines how the residential school system has contributed to the abuse and discrimination that many Indigenous women face regularly.

Miller, J. R. Shingwauk's Vision. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1996.

Widely regarded as one of the most comprehensive, key texts on the residential school system, in Shingwauk's Vision Miller has included the perspectives of government and church officials, school staff, and students to create a rich history of the residential school system from its original inception to its phasing out. Cree scholar Winona Wheeler calls Shingwauk's Vision "the most thorough and comprehensive study of Indian residential schools in Canada to date and most noted for its good use of a wide range of Indigenous life histories and personal reminisces" (Wheeler, "Social Relations of Indigenous Oral Histories," in Walking a Tightrope: Indigenous Peoples and their Representations, 2005. 193)

Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council, Indian Residential Schools: The Nuu-Chah-Nulth Experience. Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council, 1996.

Roberts, John. First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples: Exploring their Past, Present, and Future. Toronto: Emond Montgomery, 2006.

Secwepemc Cultural Education Society, Behind Closed Doors: Stories from the Kamloops Indian Residential School. Penticton: Secwepemc Cultural Education Society & Theytus, 2000.

Endnotes

[1] Milloy, John S. A National Crime: The Canadian Government and the Residential School System, 1879 to 1986.University of Manitoba Press, 1999. 91-2; Fournier and Crey, Stolen from Our Embrace. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 1997. 49.

[2] Royal Commission on Indigenous Peoples, Volume 1: Looking Forward, Looking Back. Chapter 10, "1.2 Changing Policies." Ottawa: Supply and Services Canada, 1996. 344-353.

[3] Milloy, John S. A National Crime: The Canadian Government and the Residential School System, 1879 to 1986. University of Manitoba Press, 1999. Xvii, 91-2.

[4] Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. 2015. Canada's Residential Schools: The History, Part 2 1939 to 2000. The Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. Vol. 1. 2 vols. Montreal; Kingston: McGill-Queen's University Press. 103.

[5] Report of the Aboriginal Justice Inquiry of Manitoba. 1999. The Justice System and Aboriginal People. Ch. 14 ( http://www.ajic.mb.ca/volumel/chapter14.html)

[6] National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (Canada), Marion Buller, Michèle Audette, Brian Eyolfson, and Qajaq Robinson. 2019. Reclaiming Power and Place: The Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. 104; Longman, Nickita. 2018. "Examining the Sixties Scoop and Beyond." Discourse Magazine, 2018.

[7] National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (Canada), 355.

[8] National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (Canada), 355.

[9] Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. 2015. Canada's Residential Schools: The Legacy: The Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, Volume 5. Montréal: McGill-Queen's University Press. 3.

[10] Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. 2015. Canada's Residential Schools: The Legacy: The Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, Volume 5. Montréal: McGill-Queen's University Press. 7.

[11] Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. 2015. Canada's Residential Schools: The History, Part 2 1939 to 2000. The Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. Vol. 1. 2 vols. Montreal; Kingston: McGill-Queen's University Press. 574.

To Cite This Article

MLA:
Hanson, Eric, et al."The Residential School System." Indigenous Foundations. First Nations and Indigenous Studies UBC, 2020. Website. [Date accessed].

Chicago:
Hanson, Eric, Daniel P. Games, and Alexa Manuel. "The Residential School System". Indigenous Foundations. https://indigenousfoundations.web.arts.ubc.ca/residential-school-system-2020/. (accessed Month, day, year).

APA:
Hanson, E., Gamez, D., & Manuel, A. (2020, September). The Residential School System. Indigenous Foundations. https://indigenousfoundations.web.arts.ubc.ca/residential-school-system-2020/

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By Erin Hanson (2009), with updates and revisions by Daniel P. Gamez & Alexa Manuel (September 2020). The original version of this article has been archived, but may be accessed here. To cite this article, we have recommendations at the bottom of the page.

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Residential schools and the effects on Indigenous health and well-being in Canada—a scoping review - Public Health Reviews

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Background The history of residential schools has been identified as having long lasting and intergenerational effects on the physical and mental well-being of Indigenous populations in Canada. Our objective was to identify the extent and range of research on residential school attendance on specifi…

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Mental wellness resources and crisis help for First Nations people, Métis and Inuit
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Acknowledgments

We would like to acknowledge the review of preliminary findings and/or draft versions of the report by Indigenous organizations, including Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, the Métis National Council, and the National Association of Friendship Centres, and federal departments including Indigenous Services Canada and Crown Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada. The analysis and the report were greatly strengthened by the suggestions and recommendations provided in the process. We also thank Jodie Golden, Public Health Agency of Canada ( PHAC) for reviewing the draft report for safe messaging.

Abstract

Suicide rates have consistently been shown to be higher among First Nations people, Métis and Inuit in Canada than the rate among non-Indigenous people; however, suicide rates vary by community, Indigenous group, age group and sex. The historical and ongoing impacts of colonization, forced placement of Indigenous children in residential schools in the 19th and 20th centuries, removal of Indigenous children from their families and communities during the "Sixties scoop" and the forced relocation of communities has been well documented. These resulted in the breakdown of families, communities, political and economic structures; loss of language, culture and traditions; exposure to abuse; intergenerational transmission of trauma; and marginalization, which are suggested to be associated with the high rates of suicide. While suicide among Indigenous people has been examined previously, studies were based on a decades-old cohort or used an area-based geozones approach. Past studies also examined suicides among only one or two Indigenous groups using the same methodology. Finally, they did not examine suicide among Indigenous people for some geographies such as on and off reserve, rural areas and small, medium and large population centres.

This article attempts to fill some of these knowledge gaps using the 2011 Canadian Census Health and Environment Cohort (CanCHEC), resulting from a record integration between the 2011 National Household Survey (NHS) and the Canadian Vital Statistics Database (CVSD). It presents suicide rates for the 2011 to 2016 time period among self-identifying First Nations, Métis, Inuit, and non-Indigenous people in private dwellings in Canada. It also explores the influence of socioeconomic factors in the disparity in risk of suicide between First Nations people, Métis, Inuit and non-Indigenous people in Canada.

Suicide rates among First Nations people, Métis and Inuit were significantly higher than the rate among non-Indigenous people. The rate among First Nations people (24.3 deaths per 100,000 person-years at risk) was three times higher than the rate among non-Indigenous people (8.0 deaths per 100,000 person-years at risk). Among First Nations people living on reserve, the rate was about twice as high as that among those living off reserve. However, suicide rates varied by First Nations band, with just over 60% of bands having a zero suicide rate. The rate among Métis (14.7 Note E: Use with caution deaths per 100,000 person-years at risk) was approximately twice as high as the rate among non-Indigenous people. Among Inuit, the rate was approximately nine times higher than the non-Indigenous rate (72.3 versus 8.0 deaths per 100,000 person-years at risk). Suicide rates and disparities were highest in youth and young adults (15 to 24 years) among First Nations males and Inuit male and females.

Socioeconomic factors, including household income, labour force status, level of education, marital status and geographic factors such as living on or off reserve (First Nations people) and community size (Inuit) accounted for a notable proportion of the disparity in risk of death by suicide among First Nations people (78%), Métis (37%) and Inuit (40%) adults, 25 years or older. However, due to limitations of the data, the role of other previously-identified factors such as historical and intergenerational trauma, community distress, cultural continuity, family strength and mental wellness were not explored here.

The findings from this study could contribute further to the understanding of suicide among First Nations people, Métis and Inuit in Canada, particularly with respect to the variability in suicide rates and socioeconomic factors associated with the disparity in suicide risk.

Introduction

First Nations people living on and off reserve, Métis and Inuit, die by suicide at a higher rate than non-Indigenous people. These suicides not only result in loss to family, friends and peers leading to immense grief and bereavement, but also to the community and society at large, in particular when the deceased is a young person. The impact of suicide is more widespread and severe in small Indigenous communities where many people are related and many experience similar personal and collective adversity.

The suicide rate for children and youth was previously reported to be 10 times higher among males and 22 times higher among females between 2005 and 2007 in areas with a high percentage of First Nations people compared with low-percentage areas. In Inuit Nunangat, the Inuit homeland made up of the Inuvialuit Region (northwest part of Northwest Territories), Nunavut, Nunavik (Northern Québec), and Nunatsiavut (Northern Labrador), the suicide rate among children and youth was 33 times higher than for the rest of Canada between 2004 and 2008. In fact, suicide is one of the leading causes of death among children and youth in areas with a high proportion of First Nations people and in Inuit Nunangat.

In adults, the suicide rates (1991 to 2006) among First Nations people and Métis have been reported to be twice as high as that among non-Indigenous adults. The suicide rate among adults in Inuit Nunangat (1999 to 2003) was four times higher than the rate among all adults in Canada; the disparity was greater among men than women.

It is important to note, however, that national level suicide rates may underestimate regional or community level differences. For example, previous reports have shown that suicide rates among First Nations youth in British Columbia range from 0 to 633 deaths per 100,000 people by tribal council. In fact, the majority of these tribal councils had a zero or very low suicide rate. A similar regional variance has been seen among Inuit communities in Nunavut. The suicide rate varied from under 50 deaths per 100,000 in Whale Cove to just over 250 deaths per 100,000 people in Qikiqtarjuaq.

Several representatives of Indigenous peoples and governments, communities and government agencies have developed programs, policies or strategies to address the high suicide rate among First Nations people, Inuit and Métis. Development and evaluation of these require timely data on suicide rates. Many existing estimates of suicide rates are based on an older cohort (1991 Census cohort), which excluded non-tax filers and those under 25, or are from studies that used an area-based geozones approach. The latter classified areas with higher proportions of First Nations residents as First Nations "identity areas" or examined mortality rate in Inuit Nunangat as a proxy for the rate among Inuit. These approaches may have led to under or over estimation of suicide rates. In addition, past reports have only estimated suicide rates among one or two Indigenous groups using the same methodology. Finally, there are gaps in knowledge of suicide rates among Indigenous people for certain geographical areas, including urban areas and on or off reserve.

This article presents suicide rates among self-identifying First Nations, Métis, Inuit and non-Indigenous peoples, who lived in private dwellings (i.e., excluding those who were in collective dwellings and institutions), for the 2011 to 2016 time period. These findings are based on the 2011 Canadian Census Health and Environment Cohort (CanCHEC), which was developed by integrating records in the the 2011 National Household Survey (NHS) and the Canadian Vital Statistics - Deaths Database (CSVD from 2011 to 2016). Suicides that occurred over the follow up period of 5.63 years (from Census day on May 10, 2011 to end of follow-up on December 31, 2016) were used to generate age-standardized and age-specific mortality rates. These are presented as estimated number of deaths by suicide per 100,000 person-years at risk. The person-year concept is often used in cohort studies and represents unit of time when individuals are at risk of dying, and can be roughly understood as persons per year. Specifically, the article (1) presents suicide rates among First Nations people, Métis and Inuit alongside comparisons with the suicide rates of non-Indigenous people to explore disparities, a better understading of which could inform prevention strategies, (2) presents the estimated proportion of First Nations bands that experienced no suicides as an estimate of the variability in suicide rates, and (3) explores the role of socioeconomic and geographic factors in explaining the excess mortality from suicide among the three groups.

Results

Suicide among First Nations people in Canada

In the current analyses, among the 851,280 First Nations people (based on population estimates using the 2011 CanCHEC and its weights), including status and non-status individuals, living on and off reserve and in private dwellings in 2011, an estimated 1,180 people died by suicide between 2011 and 2016. This resulted in an age-standardized suicide rate of 24.3 deaths per 100,000 person-years at risk (Table 1), which was three times higher than the suicide rate among non-Indigenous people (8.0). The suicide rate was higher among males than females (29.6 versus 19.5, respectively). This pattern is similar to that seen among non-Indigenous people among whom males (12.3) also had a higher suicide rate than females (3.9). However, these numbers indicate that the disparity in suicide rates - measured by dividing the suicide rate among First Nations people by that among non-Indigenous people (or rate ratios [ RR]) - between First Nations and non-Indigenous peoples is higher among females than males (RR = 5.0 among First Nations females and RR = 2.4 among First Nations males; Table 1).

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Suicide rates were highest among youth aged 15 to 24 (48.7; non age-standardized) (data not shown) when compared with other age groups. Suicide rates were lower among the older age groups. They were significantly higher among First Nations people than non-Indigenous people in most age groups under 45 years of age, but the disparities were widest among those under 15 years ( RR = 8.9) and 15 to 24 years ( RR = 6.3) (data not shown). This was particularly apparent among females between 15 and 24 years of age ( RR = 12.0; Table A.1 in appendix).

The suicide rate was nearly twice as high among First Nations people living on reserve than among First Nations people living off reserve (non age-standardized rate of 34.1 versus 19.5, respectively). Among on-reserve First Nations people, suicide rates were highest for males aged 15 to 24 years (78.8) (Chart 1). Rates were lower in the older age groups among both males and females on reserve (Table A.2 in appendix). Disparities were particularly elevated among 15 to 24-year-old First Nations females living on reserve ( RR = 15.8) in comparison to non-Indigenous females across Canada. Disparities were smaller in the older age groups, but continued to be seen until age 55 for females and age 45 for males. For those aged 55 and older, suicide rates were not statistically different between on-reserve First Nations and non-Indigenous people. A similar comparison to rates among First Nations people living off reserve was not done since most age-specific estimates were not published due to low cell counts or precision (table A.2 in appendix).

No significant differences were seen in the suicide rates among First Nations people (on and off reserve combined) by province and territory. However, in every province, the suicide rate among First Nations people was higher than the non-Indigenous rate (Atlantic provinces were grouped together to increase sample size; suicide rates were not reportable for the non-Indigenous population in Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut). And, the rate ratios were notably higher in the Prairie provinces. It was 4.6, 4.5 and 3.5 in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, respectively. In other provinces, it ranged from 1.9 to 2.6. Suicide rates did not differ significantly by type of population centre. It was 28.8 among First Nations people in rural areas, 22.9 Note E: Use with caution among those in small population centres and 18.8 Note E: Use with caution among those in large population centres. The suicide rate among First Nations people in each of these areas was significantly higher compared with non-Indigenous rates (9.3 for rural areas, 9.0 for small population centres and 7.2 for large population centres).

These national and provincial level estimates, while useful, underestimate the variability in the suicide rates among individual First Nations communities. Suicide rates were estimated at the band level using a geographic approach (for more details, please refer to the methods section). Of the just over 600 First Nations bands in Canada, 555 were associated with reserves that were enumerated in the 2011 NHS and with individuals in the CanCHEC cohort. Just over 60% of First Nations bands had experienced no suicides between 2011 and 2016. The proportion of bands without suicides, when examined in the context of the overall on-reserve suicide rate among First Nations people (34.1) highlights the obscuring of variability in the national level estimate. This proportion of bands with zero suicide rate varied by province and territory. A larger proportion of bands in the Atlantic provinces (55%), Ontario (71%), Saskatchewan (53%), British Columbia (78%), Yukon (80%) and Northwest Territories (74%) had zero suicide rates. In the other provinces, the proportion ranged from 39% to 44%. It should be noted that 31 reserves were incompletely enumerated in the 2011 Census many of which were in Ontario and Québec (a brief description of these reserves can be found in the methods section), and were not included in this analysis. Also, band members who did not live on their band's reserve at the time of the Census were not included in the analysis.

Socioeconomic factors have previously been shown to be associated with suicide among Indigenous people in North America. To examine if similar patterns were evident in the 2011 CanCHEC cohort, the role of individual socioeconomic factors such as household income, labour force status, level of education, marital status and geographic factors such as living on or off reserve on risk of death by suicide were examined for First Nations people aged 25 years or older. After adjusting for age and sex, the risk of suicide among First Nations adults was twice as high as that among non-Indigenous adults (hazard ratio [HR] = 2.0; Table A.4 in appendix). Adjusting for household income resulted in a decrease in risk by 35%. After further adjusting for labour force status, level of education and marital status, First Nations adults were still at a higher risk of suicide than non-Indigenous adults ( HR = 1.4). Together, these factors accounted for 66% of the excess suicide risk. Further adjusting for living on and off reserve resulted in a HR of 1.2, which was not significantly different from 1.0. Together, all these factors accounted for 78% of the excess suicide risk among First Nations adults.

Suicide among Métis in Canada

Based on the current analysis, of the 452,985 self-identifying Métis (based on population estimates using the 2011 CanCHEC and its weights) who lived in private households in 2011, approximately 415 individuals died by suicide in the 2011 to 2016 period. As a result, the suicide rate was 14.7 Note E: Use with caution deaths per 100,000 person-years at risk (Table 2), which was nearly twice as high as the rate among non-Indigenous people (8.0). The rate among Métis males (22.6 Note E: Use with caution ) was more than three times higher than the rate among Métis females (7.2 Note E: Use with caution ). The suicide rate was nearly twice as high among Métis (22.6 Note E: Use with caution ) as non-Indigenous males (12.3). However, the suicide rates for Métis (7.2 Note E: Use with caution ) and non-Indigenous females (3.9) were not significantly different from each other.

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Among the provinces and territories, because of low counts when broken down, suicide rates for Métis could only be generated for Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia combined (Ontario and west). In these provinces, the rate among Métis (13.4 Note E: Use with caution ) were higher than that among non-Indigenous people (7.6). Suicide rates among Métis in rural (16.5 Note E: Use with caution ), small (12.8 Note E: Use with caution ) and large population centres (15.5 Note E: Use with caution ) were not significantly different. The rate among Métis in large population centres was higher than the rate among non-Indigenous people (7.2; marginally significant). Suicide rates could not be published for medium population centres due to low cell counts.

Among Métis adults over 25, after adjusting for age and sex, the risk of suicide was twice as high as that among non-Indigenous adults (hazard ratio = 1.9; Table A.4 in appendix). Adjusting for household income, labour force status, population centre type of place of residence, level of education and marital status accounted for 37% of excess suicide risk. The risk of suicide was 1.6 times higher among Métis than non-Indigenous people after adjusting for these factors.

Suicide among Inuit in Canada

There were approximately 59,220 Inuit in Canada in 2011 who lived in private households (based on population estimates using the 2011 CanCHEC and its weights). Among them, there were an estimated 250 deaths by suicide between 2011 and 2016. This lead to a suicide rate of 72.3 deaths per 100,000 person-years at risk (Table 3). This was nine times higher ( RR = 9.0) than the suicide rate among non-Indigenous people (8.0). The suicide rate was three times higher among Inuit males than Inuit females (109.3 versus 35.4 Note E: Use with caution , respectively).

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Suicide rates among Inuit were highest in youth; the highest suicide rate was seen among Inuit males between 15 and 24 years of age (363.2; non age-standardized) living in Inuit Nunangat (Chart 2). Publishable estimates could only be produced for Inuit females between the ages of 15 and 24 and 25 to 34. Suicide rate among females 15 to 24 years of age was 108.9 Note E: Use with caution , which was 33 times higher than non-Indigenous females of that age (Table A.3 in appendix).

Rates among Inuit were also compared by Inuit Nunangat region. Rates were significantly higher among Inuit in Nunatsiavut (188.2 Note E: Use with caution ; non age-standardized) than those in Nunavik (98.1) and Nunavut (94.0). Rates among Inuit in Inuvialuit region could not be published due to low reliability of estimates.

The national, Inuit Nunangat and Inuit regional level estimates underestimate the variation in rates among individual Inuit communities. Among the 50 Inuit communities, 11 communities had a suicide rate of zero. However, for most communities (66%), estimates were too unreliable to be published. It should be noted that some deaths may not have linked to the NHS and others may not have been in Vital Statistics at the time of data integration. The latter shortcoming has previously been reported by Jack Hicks. These exclusions may have biased the estimate of number of communities without suicides.

In multivariate analyses, among Inuit adults 25 years and older, the risk of death by suicide was 4.8 times higher than the risk among non-Indigenous adults, after accounting for age and sex (Table A.4 in appendix). After further adjusting for household income, labour force status, level of education and marital status, the hazard ratio decreased to 3.4 suggesting that these factors accounted for 37% of the excess risk of death by suicide among Inuit. After adjusting for size of community (population centre type), Inuit adults were still at 3.3 times higher risk of suicide than non-Indigenous adults ( HR = 3.3). All combined, these factors accounted for 40% of the excess risk of suicide among Inuit adults.

Discussion

The report is the first to examine suicide rates among all three Indigenous peoples, including First Nations people, Métis and Inuit, of different age groups and living in different geographies using one methodology. However, gaps in knowledge remain. Further research is needed to assess long-term trends and estimate the role of other risk and protective factors of suicide among Indigenous peoples, which should be done in consultation with First Nations people, Métis and Inuit, as recommended by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

In the current analysis, the suicide rates among First Nations people, Métis and Inuit were many times higher than the non-Indigenous rate during the 2011 to 2016 time period. The rates were highest among Inuit and, specifically, adolescents and young adults. The suicide rate among First Nations people living on reserve was higher than that among those living off reserve, and among males than females. The higher suicide rate among males has been attributed to their tendency to use more lethal methods and to the differential effect of specific stressors in the two sexes. However, greater disparities were observed among First Nations females, where higher suicide rates were seen when compared with non-Indigenous females. These patterns are similar to what has been previously reported.

Of particular concern is the high rate of suicide among Indigenous children under 15. The suicide rate among First Nations boys, nationally, was four times higher than among non-Indigenous boys. It was ten times higher among First Nations boys living on reserve. As with other national trends, this rate may obscure regional differences. Previously reports have suggested that in some remote First Nations communities in Ontario, under-15 suicide rates were nearly 50 times higher than non-Indigenous rates. And, among Inuit communities of Nunatsiavut, the age-specific disparity was largest among 10 to 19-year-olds relative to their non-Indigenous counterparts outside Inuit Nunangat ( RR = 15.8). Also, rate of death by suicide among Inuit children 10 to 14 years of age appears to be increasing since 1989 although significant fluctuations are seen across time. In line with these rates among children, suicidal ideation among grade 5 to 8 school children in Saskatoon was nearly twice as high among Indigenous children as non-Indigenous children after accounting for mental health, cognitive abilities and bullying experiences. While risk factors for suicide among children are numerous and complex, a recent report suggests that Inuit children and youth in Nunavut experience a lack of mental health services that are specific to them, culturally relevant and of adequate quality.

And, while time trends were not examined here, suicide attempts among First Nations people in British Columbia have been reported elsewhere to be declining. Risk of self-inflicted injury hospitalization among Registered Indians, and disparity between them and their non-Indigenous counterparts decreased between 1991 to 2010. However, this is in contrast to trends in remote First Nations communities in Ontario. There, Indigenous youth suicide was previously reported to be on the rise because of the emergence of suicide among communities that previously did not experience it, exposure to suicide or suicide attempts among family members and peers, and increase in clusters of suicides.

Methods

Data

The 2011 Canadian Census Health and Environment Cohort (CanCHEC) used here is a population-based integrated dataset that follows the non-institutional (household) population enumerated in the 2011 National Household Survey (NHS) for different health outcomes such as mortality, cancer, and hospitalizations. Briefly, record integration for the 2011 CanCHEC was carried out using Statistics Canada's Social Data Linkage Environment (SDLE). The SDLE helps create linked population data files for social analysis through integration to the Derived Record Depository (DRD), a dynamic relational database containing only basic personal identifiers. Survey and administrative data are linked to the DRD using a generalized record integration software that supports deterministic and probabilistic integration.

The NHS is a voluntary survey, conducted in May 2011, of approximately 4.5 million (30%) private dwellings randomly selected from the 2011 Census of Population. The NHS covers all persons who usually live in Canada, including permanent and non-permanent residents, and individuals living on First Nations reserves, Métis settlements or Inuit communities. There were 36 incompletely enumerated First Nations reserves in the 2011 NHS. In 13 of these communities, enumeration was delayed because of forest fires in Northern Ontario and occurred at a later date. The NHS excludes residents of institutions (for example, hospitals, nursing homes, penitentiaries) and collective dwellings (for example, work camps, hotels, shelters).

Records for approximately 6.7 million NHS respondents were eligible for integration; 97% linked to the DRD using a probabilistic approach based on telephone number, surnames, given names, birthdate, and place of residence. No differences in integration rates were found by collection mode, province, sex, or birth decade. To ensure representativeness of the linked cohort, weights were calculated to adjust for non-integration.

To protect the confidentiality of Census respondents, data made available for analysis did not contain personal identifiers such as name, and address. In addition, estimates based on small cell counts (fewer than five deaths or fewer than 10 total individuals) were suppressed.

Variables

Self-reported Indigenous identity, age, sex, household income, labour force status, highest level of education, marital status and province of residence variables were available in the 2011 NHS dissemination dataset. Variables for the Inuit Nunangat regions were generated using Standard Geographical Classification (SGC) codes. Similarly, a variable for on and off-reserve areas of residence was generated using SGC. A binary suicide variable was created using ICD-10 codes in the "Underlying cause of death" variable in the CVSD. Generation of suicide and person-years at risk variables are described in the following section.

Estimation of weighted suicide rates

For suicide rate estimates, each person's time at risk of death by suicide was split into single years of follow-up, and within each year of follow-up, into durations before and after birth date. In the process, each person was aged on his or her birthday. This allows for the appropriate categorization into age groups for computing suicide rates. Weighted age-standardized suicide rates (ASMRs) (see figure 1 for a brief description of this measure) and their 95% confidence intervals were estimated. Those under the age of one were excluded from the analysis due to under-representation of this group in the integrated dataset. Briefly, ASMRs were computed by dividing the count of cohort members who died by suicide in the follow-up period by the total person-years at risk. Age standardization was done with age-specific mortality rates in 5-year age groups using the 2011 total Indigenous population as the reference population. Weighted age-specific suicide rates generated without age standardization were used for comparisons between age groups within an Indigenous group or between an Indigenous group and the non-Indigenous population. These rates were also used to compare suicide rates in the on and off-reserve First Nations populations since their age structures were somewhat similar in 2011 (median age: 23.9 and 27.1 years, respectively). Suicides were identified using the following International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revisions ( ICD-10) codes: X60-X84, Y87.0. For each member of the cohort, person-years of follow-up were calculated as the number of days from the beginning of the study period to the date of death or end of study divided by 365.25. Variance was calculated using 500 bootstrap weights.

Description for Figure 1
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Figure 1 is a schematic showing the method used to estimate the suicide rate using number of deaths as the numerator and person-years as the denominator. The schematic illustrates a hypothetical example with seven individuals who were "followed" from May 10, 2011 (Census day) to December 31, 2016 (end of follow-up period) to see if they had died. In this example, three of the seven individuals died during follow-up. Person 1, 4 and 7, who died during the follow-up period, each contributed 3.0, 1.5 and 4.2 person-years at risk, respectively, to the denominator. The others, who were alive as of December 31, 2016, each contributed 5.6 person-years to the denominator. In all, the seven individuals contributed 31.1 person-years to the denominator. The crude mortality rate is calculated by dividing the number of deaths by the total person-years contributed by the seven individuals, and multiplied by 100,000. In this hypothetical example, the crude suicide-related mortality rate is 9,646.3 deaths per 100,000 person-years of follow-up.

Age-standardized and age-specific suicide rates, expressed as the number of deaths by suicide per 100,000 person-years at risk, were generated by sex, Indigenous identity and select geographic areas. Indigenous identity, as self-reported in the 2011 NHS Survey, included: First Nations, Métis, Inuit, Multiple Indigenous identity, Indigenous identity responses not indicated elsewhere and non-Indigenous. However, in this paper, only estimates for single identity groups are presented. Geographic areas studied include: province/territory; on or off-reserve; rural areas or small, medium and large population centres, and for Inuit, inside/outside Inuit Nunangat and by the four regions of Inuit Nunangat (Nunatsiavut, Nunavik, Nunavut, and the Inuvialuit region), as well as outside Inuit Nunangat. Rate ratios, or the ratio of suicide rate among First Nations people, Métis or Inuit over suicide rate among non-Indigenous people were computed to examine the magnitude of disparity in the Indigenous group compared to the non-Indigenous population. To estimate variance of the rate ratios, variance and covariance of the mortality rates in the Indigenous group of interest and non-Indigenous population were estimated using PROC RATIO in SAS-callable SUDAAN. Variance of the rate ratios was then computed using Taylor linearization and the variance and covariance estimates from PROC RATIO, and used in generating 95% confidence intervals.

Hypothesis testing was done to identify suicide rates that were significantly different from one another using p<0.05. The weighted number of suicides and suicide rates were not published if (1) the unweighted number of suicides in a cell was less than five, (2) the weighted population count in the cell were less than 10, or (3) coefficient of variance (CV) was greater than 33.3% (40% for those under 15 years). Weighted numbers of suicides were also randomly rounded to base five. ASMRs with CV greater than 16.6% and less than or equal to 33.3% are presented with an "E" to indicate that these should be used with caution.

Estimation of suicide rate by First Nations band

For estimating suicide rates by First Nations band, reserve CSDs associated with each band were grouped. Reserves that were shared by multiple bands were grouped separately. This was done for seven reserves. Three of these had a population of 10 or less. And, one was incompletely enumerated in the 2011 NHS. This grouping resulted in about 600 First Nations bands. Of these, 561 included individuals that were in the 2011 CanCHEC. Others were associated with reserves that were incompletely enumerated in the 2011 NHS or had participated in the 2011 Census and not the NHS. In the end, 555 bands were included in the analysis. Suicide rates were computed by First Nations band, from which the number and percentage of bands with a reportable zero suicide rate were identified. The percentage of bands with a zero suicide rate were calculated with and without the reserves that were associated with multiple bands and were found to be similar.

Multivariate analysis

To examine the role of socioeconomic and geographic factors in the excess risk of suicide among Indigenous people relative to non-Indigenous people, Cox proportional hazards modelling was performed. Analyses were restricted to those 25 years and older to allow for the use of labour force status, level of education and marital status as covariates. For this analysis, age at baseline on Census day, was used since other covariates also had the same reference period. Hazard ratios for suicide were estimated among First Nations people, Métis and Inuit (with non-Indigenous people as the reference group). Covariates were entered sequentially into the model in this order: age group together with sex, household income quintile (based on after-tax income adjusted for economic family size), labour force status (employed, unemployed and not in the labour force), highest level of education (less than high school, high school, post-secondary education below Bachelor's level and university degree), marital status (never legally married or single, legally married and not separated, separated but still legally married, divorced or widowed) and living on or off reserve (for First Nations people) or in population centres or rural areas (for Métis and Inuit). Household income quintiles were generated for each province and territory separately to account for regional differences. In secondary analysis, household income was used as a continuous variable or household income quintiles were generated at the national level and used in place of the original income quintile variable to examine the robustness of the influence of this predictor on the relative risk of death by suicide among First Nations people, Métis and Inuit. Covariates were chosen based on previous literature on the relationship between socioeconomic factors and suicide. and the availability of related variables in the 2011 NHS data.

From the hazard ratios (age and sex-adjusted and additionally adjusted for socioeconomic factors), the percent of excess risk of suicide among First Nations, Métis and Inuit people accounted for by household income, labour force status, highest level of education, marital status and geography was computed. The proportion of excess mortality explained was calculated as the difference between the age and sex-adjusted and the final hazard ratios, divided by the former minus 1. Analyses were not carried out separately by sex due to sample size limitations.

Assessing validity of suicide rates

Suicide rates based on the linked 2011 CanCHEC cohort were compared with previously generated estimates using different methodologies to assess validity.

The non age-standardized suicide rate for the total population of Canada between 2009 and 2013 was previously estimated to be 11.4 deaths per 100,000 people; in comparison, in the CanCHEC cohort, the overall suicide rate was 10.5 deaths per 100,000 person years between 2011 and 2016. While there are no published rates of suicide for First Nations people, Métis and Inuit for the 2011 to 2016 period, suicide rates for all individuals in Inuit Nunangat, which is home to 73% of Inuit in Canada, was previously estimated to be 83.5 deaths per 100,000 people. In the 2011 CanCHEC cohort, the rate was 83.5 deaths per 100,000 person years at risk. However, the estimates by Inuit Nunangat region between 2011 and 2016 (167.3 Note E: Use with caution in Nunatsiavut, 87.5 in Nunavik and 83.1 in Nunavut) were somewhat different in comparison to previous estimates from the 2009 to 2013 period (185.4, 98.3, 79.0, respectively). While, the estimates are similar, there are several potential reasons for this discrepancy between the two sets of estimates. While there is some overlap in time periods for the two estimates (2009 to 2013 for previous estimates and 2011 to 2016 for the estimates in this report), they are not identical. There is some year-to-year fluctuation in suicides rates. For example, in Nunavut, previous estimates suggest that the rate ranged from 58.2 to 108.5 deaths per 100,000 people. Some deaths that occurred between 2011 and 2016 were not linked to the 2011 NHS. Also, the CanCHEC cohort excludes institutional population (e.g., nursing homes, jails), and those living in collective dwellings (e.g., motels, hotels, rooming houses) at the time of census collection and those that were not enumerated by the 2011 NHS. The denominators used in the two studies are also different; in the previously published tables, the suicide rates are per 100,000 people; in the current study, the rates are per 100,000 person years.

Limitations

Several limitations of the analysis should be noted. Suicide rates presented in this article may underestimate the true rates because of (1) exclusion of the institutional population and population living in collective dwelling, (2) exclusion of persons not enumerated by the 2011 NHS including the homeless among whom Indigenous people are overrepresented, (3) non-integration of some deaths between 2011 and 2016 to the 2011 NHS, (4) potential integration error, (5) potential misclassification of suicides in the CVSD to avoid stigmatization or as a result of misclassification as an accident, or inability in ascribing a cause, etc., and (6) potentially missing deaths, due to processing delays, in Vital Statistics at the time of data integration. Furthermore, Indigenous identity in the Census is self-reported, which may have led to underestimation or overestimation of suicide rates in some Indigenous groups. Also, 36 Indian reserves and Indian settlements were incompletely enumerated in the 2011 NHS, which could have resulted in under or over-estimation of suicide rates. Most (29) of these reserves were in Québec and Ontario, with the rest in Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia. Among the ones in Québec and Ontario, some are proximal to Census Metropolitan Areas (CMA) while others were rural or remote. The former includes Kahnawake, Kanesatake and Wendake. Mortality rates for small areas and small subgroups of the population may experience substantial year-to-year random fluctuations since death is a relatively rare event, particularly death by suicide. Finally, baseline socioeconomic and demographic factors used in the multivariate analysis may not reflect conditions at the time of death. This may have led to some biases in the findings.

Appendix

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Suicide among First Nations people, Métis and Inuit (2011-2016): Findings from the 2011 Canadian Census Health and Environment Cohort (CanCHEC)

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The article presents suicide rates for the 2011-2016 time period among self-identifying First Nations, Métis, Inuit, and non-Indigenous people in private dwellings in Canada. It also explores the influence of socioeconomic factors in the disparity in risk of suicide between First Nations people, Métis, Inuit and non-Indigenous people in Canada.

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Diseases that may affect First Nations and Inuit communities - Tuberculosis in Indigenous communities

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• Residential schools tried to make Indigenous children become like other Canadians by taking away their language, culture, and beliefs.

• Many children were hurt physically, sexually, emotionally, and spiritually at these schools.

• The schools did not have enough money, so children did not get enough food or good living conditions, making them sick or die.

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When interacting with indigenous peoples

We should be trust worthy  because their previous experiences can be triggered by mistrust.

When participating in events or meetings, acknowledge the traditional territory of the indigenous people on whose land you are in or situated.

Acknowledge their past, hardship and the trauma they have endured and validate their experiences

We should be mindful of how our actions and words might impact indigenous people

Respect their culture and tradition and support their reconciliation

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The Lejac or Fraser Lake School opened in 1922.

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The effects of colonization are apparent in all aspects of Indigenous peoples’ health and well-being, affecting not only their physical health, but the mental, emotional, and spiritual wellness.

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Inuit Nunangat is made up of four Inuit regions in Canada, including land, water, and ice.

The land, water, and ice are vital to Inuit culture and lifestyle.

Inuit are Indigenous people mainly living in Inuit Nunangat.

They live in 53 communities across Inuit Nunangat, which covers 35% of Canada's land and 50% of its coastline.

Inuit have lived there for a very long time.

Inuit communities are very strong in keeping their culture alive.

About 60% of Inuit can speak Inuktut, their language.

They also hunt and gather traditional foods like seal, narwhal, and caribou.

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Residential schools were established by the Canadian government to help Indigenous children adopt Christian and Euro-Canadian cultures.

Operation Period: 1880s through late 20th century.

Conditions and Treatment Strategies

·       Children have been taken from their homes and villages against their will.

·       Students were punished severely if they spoke their Indigenous languages or engaged in their customs.

·       Many young children suffered psychological, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse.

·       Bad Education: Instead of giving good academic education, manual labour and housework took the front stage.

Government Intervention:

·       1880s: the Canadian government started supporting these establishments.

·       1920. Indigenous children's attendance at residential schools became required.

·       Living Standards
Students wore uniforms, received numbers, and had strictly regulated daily routines.

·       High fatality rates resulted from inadequate food and healthcare as well as from overcrowding and poor sanitation.

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Inuit Nunangat, comprising four regions in Canada, includes land, water, and ice vital to Inuit culture. Most Inuit live in 53 communities across Inuit Nunangat, which covers 35% of Canada's land and 50% of its coastline. About 60% of Inuit speak Inuktut and rely on traditional foods like seal, narwhal, and caribou.

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Effects on Native American Communities

·       Disturbance of Families and Culture

·        damage the residential schools suffered still impacts Indigenous people now.

·       Acknowledgements: Churches and the government started to see their part in the damage done in the 1990s.

·       Apology Formal: The Canadian government formally apologized for the effect of the residential school system on June 11, 2008.

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A study by The Cedar Project looked at young Indigenous women who use drugs.

It is found that these women are more likely to be sexually assaulted if their parents went to residential schools.

They are also at higher risk if they were sexually abused as children.

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Use traditional healing circles where individuals share their experiences in a supportive group setting, guided by Elders. This creates a safe space for discussing trauma and promotes community healing.

Offer counseling that includes traditional practices like smudging, sweat lodges, and the use of medicinal plants to create a culturally safe and comforting environment for healing.

Establish community-led wellness programs that combine modern therapy with traditional ceremonies, such as the Sun Dance or Potlatch, which emphasize community bonds and spiritual well-being.

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Summary (Impacts on health/mental health)

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Summary (Impacts on health/mental health)

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They were neglecting a proper education, the schools also abused many of the students.

Many students were sexually assaulted by the priest and nuns who abused their positions of power.

Nearly 28% of the young women were assaulted and 5% of the assaults recurring every six months.

The schools were referred to as a place of institutionalized pedophilia.

They were not allowed to meet their families and practice their culture and traditional methods and due to this children were feeling depressed.

Most of the children were beaten and distressed.

Some beaten and tied and chained to their beds.

Needles piercing their tongues or electric shocks were also a recurring punishment for speaking their own language.

Often they were rejected meals and had poor nutrition along with poor sanitation.

Nuns and priests used the teachings of Christianity to scare the children, creating and using the fear of God to make them embrace Christianity.

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The Region of Waterloo is licensed to run a home child care program for children from birth to age 12. We contract with caregivers to provide quality care in their homes to over 1,000 children.

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emotional damage

children who were sent to residential schools experienced trauma because teachers here think their culture is low-class. And those children also feel unsafe when they leave their families.

unfair policy

they face unfair poverty, such as not getting fair accommodation and education; they even face violence and bias if they are LGBT+ people.

force to abortion

even there are some policies to force mothers not to have children, so there are fewer indigenous families.

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- Inuit people in Canada face TB rates 300 times higher than non-Indigenous Canadians due to:

- Overcrowded housing

- Poor nutrition

- Limited healthcare access

- Impacts of colonialism and systemic discrimination

- Key solutions to reduce TB rates include:

- Improving living conditions

- Addressing food insecurity

- Enhancing healthcare access

- Additional crucial actions:

- Healing efforts

- Targeted public health interventions

- Collaboration with Inuit communities for effective and culturally relevant solutions

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In the Canadian residential school system, Indigenous children were taken from their families and forced to live in schools run by the government and churches. At these schools:

1. children were forbidden from speaking their native languages or practising their cultural traditions.

2. many children faced physical, emotional, and sexual abuse from staff.

3. the living conditions were often poor with inadequate food and medical care.

4. children were separated from their families for long periods leading to lasting emotional trauma and weakened family bonds.

5. the education provided was often substandard focusing more on manual labour than academic learning.

6. these experiences caused severe and lasting harm to the children and their communities.

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First Nations people living on reserve were nearly twice as likely to commit suicide than First Nations people off reserve.

Forced Placement / Removal of Indigenous Children during the 19th and 20th centuries was a large contributing factor.

Being forced into a different culture away from families, etc. likely caused a major loneliness, isolation, depression, suicidal ideation

Between Metis, First Nations and Inuit, the suicide rate was almost always tripled in males when compared to females

A higher suicide rate in children and youth in all 3 areas as well

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In 1996, the Canadian residential school system hurt Survivors and their descendants by altering parenting, language, and culture. The Indian Act and Sixties Scoop continue Indigenous discrimination through land disputes, over-incarceration, poverty, and child custody. Child welfare laws and organizations continue to suppress and wipe out Indigenous communities, as shown by the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Report.

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In these institutions, many First Nations men suffered from physical, psychological, and sexual abuse.

A collapse in family structures and community cohesion resulted from the collapse of traditional knowledge and parenting techniques caused by the experience of residential schools.

Residential school survivors often experience emotions of guilt, rage, and grief, which affects their capacity to care for others and lead communities.

# data[].attributes.body
In these institutions, many First Nations men suffered from physical, psychological, and sexual abuse.

A collapse in family structures and community cohesion resulted from the collapse of traditional knowledge and parenting techniques caused by the experience of residential schools.

Residential school survivors often experience emotions of guilt, rage, and grief, which affects their capacity to care for others and lead communities.

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in the 1950s, the government admitted the bad impact of residential; they said that bringing children from their original families was wrong.

In 1951, the half-day work/school system was abandoned and was transitioned to a child welfare system, also named Sixties Scoop.

1970: 56 residential schools remained.

1980: Reduced to 16 schools.

1996: The last residential school closed.

Now, still have bad impact on those children.

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Survivors demand  justice and recommended resources

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Survivors demand  justice and recommended resources

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The residential schools heavily contributed to educational, social, financial, and health disparities between Indigenous Peoples and the rest of Canada, and these impacts have been intergenerational, Over time it changed to abuse and they need justice due to increasing abuse

Government should take urgent action in the area of policy.

Those need holistic approaches in addition to government resources and policy change is crucial.

resources

Books & Articles

Websites

Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre

Indian Residential Schools

Stolen Children | Residential School Survivors Speak Out

Where Are The Children

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In these institutions, many First Nations men suffered from physical, psychological, and sexual abuse.

A collapse in family structures and community cohesion resulted from the collapse of traditional knowledge and parenting techniques caused by the experience of residential schools.

Residential school survivors often experience emotions of guilt, rage, and grief, which affects their capacity to care for others and lead communities.

# data[].attributes.body
In these institutions, many First Nations men suffered from physical, psychological, and sexual abuse.

A collapse in family structures and community cohesion resulted from the collapse of traditional knowledge and parenting techniques caused by the experience of residential schools.

Residential school survivors often experience emotions of guilt, rage, and grief, which affects their capacity to care for others and lead communities.

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These institutions forcibly removed children from their families and culture, causing profound trauma and identity loss. Many suffered physical and sexual abuse, worsen their hardships. Today, these experiences contribute to ongoing mental health issues, substance abuse, and challenges in preserving cultural traditions. Healing efforts focus on revitalizing culture, community support, and addressing historical injustices to promote reconciliation and resilience among Indigenous peoples.

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1. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): A significant number of survivors suffer from PTSD, stemming from the severe trauma experienced in the schools, including physical, emotional, and sexual abuse.

2. Substance Abuse Disorders: Many survivors turn to alcohol and drugs as coping mechanisms for the trauma they endured. There is a marked increase in alcohol consumption among survivors post-residential school.

3. Depression: Major depression is prevalent among survivors, contributing to a range of emotional and psychological difficulties.

4. Anxiety and Fear: Persistent feelings of fear and anxiety are common, often linked to the abusive and oppressive environment of the residential schools.

5. Social and Emotional Isolation: Many survivors struggle with forming and maintaining healthy relationships due to the breakdown of family structures and trust issues instilled during their time at the schools.

6. Criminal Behavior: A notable portion of survivors have criminal histories, often related to assault and sexual assault, with many incidents involving intimate partners or family members.

7. Employment and Education Challenges: Survivors frequently face difficulties in achieving educational and employment milestones. Many did not continue their education beyond the residential schools, and their employment history is often characterized by low-skill jobs.

8. Residential School Syndrome: Although unofficial, this term describes a subtype of PTSD specific to the experiences of residential school survivors, characterized by intense feelings of fear and anger, and a tendency to abuse substances.

9. Family and Community Impact: The trauma experienced by survivors often affects their families and communities, contributing to a cycle of abuse, addiction, and mental health issues.

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(Metis) I recognize that your culture has a significant emphasis on the arts. Have you tried taking your feelings and pain & expressing it artistically?

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The study shows an urgent need to help and protect children of residential school survivors and those who were abused.

Indigenous leaders are asking for better care and support systems to stop this cycle of trauma and assault.