The above unique illustrated publication, found at the Mundingburra monthly market in Townsville ,Queensland, deals with Canadian Indians and includes coverage of the Indian residential schools to which many of the young were removed in what was described as a bid to "kill the indian in the child."
Produced in l977 by the Muswachees Cultural College ,Hobbema, Alberta,in assocation with the University of Calgary Outreach, the publication marked a milestone in the history of the Plains Cree People.
It was produced in the Native language as well as English and includes mention of the schools , some related photographs and mention of the Klondike goldrush.
In 2008 , Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper , in parliament, apologised for the treatment of children in the residential schools ,describing it as a sad chapter in the country's history .
He said that for more than a century , these schools had separated 150,000 Aboriginal children from their families and communities Two primary objectives of the residential schools system were to remove and isolate children from the influence of their homes, families, traditions and cultures, and to assimilate them into the dominant culture.
These objectives were based on the assumption Aboriginal cultures and spiritual beliefs were inferior and unequal. Indeed, some sought, as it was infamously said, "to kill the Indian in the child". Today, he continued, it was recognized that this policy of assimilation was wrong, had caused great harm, and had no place in the country.
One hundred and thirty-two federally-supported schools were located in every province and territory, except Newfoundland, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.
Most schools were operated as "joint ventures" with Anglican, Catholic, Presbyterian or United Churches. The Government of Canada built an educational system in which very young children were often forcibly removed from their homes, often taken far from their communities. Many were inadequately fed, clothed and housed.
All were deprived of the care and nurturing of their parents, grandparents and communities. First Nations, Inuit and Métis languages and cultural practices were prohibited in these schools. Tragically, some of these children died while attending residential schools and others never returned home.
To speed the transition at Maskwacis, Cree children were taken from their parents and sent to Ermineskin Indian Residential School, run by the Catholic Church. Traditional forms of governance were replaced by an elected band council system on each reserve, with the federal government having the power to depose “unco-operative” elected leaders. Cultural practices such as the sun dance were outlawed and a pass system was established so that First Nations people needed permission from an Indian agent to leave the reserve.
In 1915 a delegation from Hobbema travelled to Ottawa to ask for changes to the Indian Act. They wanted “equal freedom with the white man” and protection for their tradition of collective land ownership. The government, they said, “should cease to treat them like children.”
They also brought a cheque for $1200 to donate to Canada’s First World War effort. But little changed. The Indian Act would not be extensively revised until 1951, to allow for the practice of traditional ceremonies, abolish the pass system and allow First Nations to organize and hire legal counsel.
First Nations in Canada did not get the right to vote until l960.
In moving towards healing, reconciliation and resolution of the sad legacy of schools , implementation of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement began on September 19, 2007.
A cornerstone of the Settlement Agreement was the Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
Hobbema was named after a Dutch painter .
At the bottom of the front cover of the publication is a hard to read name , Jessie Florence ?, October 1977.
(Canada. Apology. Schools.)
