Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Institutional racism
Marie Clements's, Copper Thunderbird exposes the negative attitudes towards Aboriginal people in Canadian society and institutions. "Drunken Indian; lazy Indian; dumb Indian; useless Indian; humourless Indian; bullheaded Indian (Dokis 58-62; Clements 15-17, 34-37, 80)." She expresses these racial attitudes, historical injustices and their implications through Norval Morrieseau's life who suffered because of systemic racism; he was an Indian and he did not integrate into the "white" version of Canadian identity. This racism served as a crucial tool to uproot and convert indigenous communities, by creating a system that excludes them from being equals. How this racism is interpreted inside Copper Thunderbird as Norval's Bitch Auntie and her attitude towards him is deliberate. Her presence is comparable to that of the media's involvement in showing the nation negative and stereotypical images of Aboriginal youth and women. By investigating the post-colonial archetype in Copper Thunderbird, Clements reveals the morphing faces of systemic racism and contemporary colonialism in Canadian institutions, practices; and how mainstream media misappropriates Aboriginal identity. Nothing has changed since the creation of the Dominion of Canada in 1867 and "British" North America as Aboriginals continue to face the same colonial attitudes today (Alfred and Corntassle 597-614). The way that the Bitch Auntie interferes in every aspect of Norval's life, both the moments of happiness and sadness, is what the Canadian government has been doing with Aboriginal community; constantly gnawing at their humanity. In the last 50 years, the federal government has been fighting Aboriginal people on every level such as land claims, access to medical care... ... middle of paper ... ...n Defence Academy Press, 2007. Milloy, John Sheridan. ""A National Crime": Building and Managing the System, 1879 to 1946." A national crime the Canadian government and the residential school system, 1879 to 1986. Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press, 1999. 51-75. Print. Shilling, Vincent. "What is Native American Misappropriation?." YouTube. YouTube, 17 Sept. 2013. Web. 2 Mar. 2014. . Vowel, Chelsea. "Apihtawikosisân." Web log post. We Can’t Get Anywhere until We Flip the Narrative. N.p., 22 Aug. 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. . Zinn, Howard. "Columbus, the Indians, and Human Progress." A people's history of the United States: from 1492 to the present. 2nd ed. London: Longman, 1996. 1-22. Print.
Eden Robinson and Constance Lindsay Skinner depict the harrowing treatment of Indigenous people through intimate unveiling of memories and dialogue, allowing readers to connect and sympathize with the characters. It also shows the intergenerational damage of residential schools and injustices experienced, and continue to be experienced, by the Aboriginal population. Birthright and Monkey Beach show that past abuse and injustices can lead to a continually viscous cycle of violence and trauma.
First I will define the definition of terms used in this paper. When I use the word Aboriginal, I understand this as a label given from the colonizers/ Europeans to identify Indigenous peoples. Canadian legislation defines Indigenous peoples as Aboriginal, I understand this as indifferent from the dominant ideology, therefore, the colonizers named Indigenous peoples as Aboriginal. According to teachings I have been exposed to it’s a legal term and it’s associated with discrimination and oppression. However, audiences I have written for prefer the use of Aboriginal. More premise to this reference is Aboriginal, Indigenous, First Nations, Indian and Native are used interchangeable, but it should be noted these names do represent distinct differences. Furthermore, I will use Indigenous to represent an empowering way to reference a unique general culture in Canada. Under the title of Indigenous peoples in Canada, for me represents: First Nations people, Metis people and Inuit peoples. These are the two titles I will use when I reference Indigenous people from an empowering perspective and Aboriginal from a colonizer perspective.
Generations of native people in Canada have faced suffering and cultural loss as a result of European colonization of their land. Government legislation has impacted the lives of five generations of First Nations people and as a result the fifth generation (from 1980 to present) is working to recover from their crippled cultural identity (Deiter-McArthur 379-380). This current generation is living with the fallout of previous government policies and societal prejudices that linger from four generations previous. Unrepentant, Canada’s ‘Genocide’, and Saskatchewan’s Indian People – Five Generations highlight issues that negatively influence First Nations people. The fifth generation of native people struggle against tremendous adversity in regard to assimilation, integration, separation, and recovering their cultural identity with inadequate assistance from our great nation.
According to conservative conflict theory, society is a struggle for dominance among competing social groups defined by class, race, and gender. Conflict occurs when groups compete over power and resources. (Tepperman, Albanese & Curtis 2012. pg. 167) The dominant group will exploit the minority by creating rules for success in their society, while denying the minority opportunities for such success, thereby ensuring that they continue to monopolize power and privilege. (Crossman.n.d) This paradigm was well presented throughout the film. The European settlers in Canada viewed the natives as obstacles in their quest of expansion by conquering resources and land. They feared that the aboriginal practices and beliefs will disrupt the cohesion of their own society. The Canadian government adopted the method of residential schools for aboriginal children for in an attempt to assimilate the future generations. The children were stripped of their native culture,...
Fleras, Augie. “Aboriginal Peoples in Canada: Repairing the Relationship.” Chapter 7 of Unequal Relations: An Introduction to Race, Ethnic and Aboriginal Dynamics in Canada. 6th ed. Toronto: Pearson, 2010. 162-210. Print.
Reed, Kevin, Natasha Beeds, and Barbara Filion. Aboriginal Peoples in Canada. Toronto: Pearson Canada, 2011. Print.
Canada likes to paint an image of peace, justice and equality for all, when, in reality, the treatment of Aboriginal peoples in our country has been anything but. Laden with incomprehensible assimilation and destruction, the history of Canada is a shameful story of dismantlement of Indian rights, of blatant lies and mistrust, and of complete lack of interest in the well-being of First Nations peoples. Though some breakthroughs were made over the years, the overall arching story fits into Cardinal’s description exactly. “Clearly something must be done,” states Murray Sinclair (p. 184, 1994). And that ‘something’ he refers to is drastic change. It is evident, therefore, that Harold Cardinal’s statement is an accurate summarization of the Indigenous/non-Indigenous relationship in
The Stolen Generation has left devastating impacts upon the Aboriginal culture and heritage, Australian history and the presence of equality experienced today. The ‘Stolen Generation’ refers to the children of Aboriginal descent being forcefully abducted by government officials of Australia and placed within institutions and catholic orphanages, being forced to assimilate into ‘white society’. These dehumanising acts placed these stolen children to experience desecration of culture, loss of identity and the extinction of their race. The destructive consequences that followed were effects of corruption including attempted suicide, depression and drug and alcohol abuse. The indigenous peoples affected by this have endured solitude for many years, this has only been expressed to the public recently and a proper apology has been issued, for the years of ignorance to the implementation of destruction of culture. The Stolen Generation has dramatically shaped Australian history and culture.
Thomas King uses an oral story-telling style of writing mingled with western narrative in his article “You’re Not the Indian I Had in Mind” to explain that Indians are not on the brink of extinction. Through this article in the Racism, Colonialism, and Indigeneity in Canada textbook, King also brings some focus to the topic of what it means to be “Indian” through the eyes of an actual Aboriginal versus how Aboriginals are viewed by other races of people. With his unique style of writing, King is able to bring the reader into the situations he describes because he writes about it like a story he is telling.
Her book focuses on the myriads of issues and struggles that Indigenous men and women have faced and will continue to face because of colonialism. During her speech, Palmater addressed the grave effects of the cultural assimilation that permeated in Indigenous communities, particularly the Indian Residential School System and the Indian Act, which has been extensively discussed in both lectures and readings. Such policies were created by European settlers to institutionalize colonialism and maintain the social and cultural hierarchy that established Aboriginals as the inferior group. Palmater also discussed that according to news reports, an Aboriginal baby from Manitoba is taken away every single day by the government and is put in social care (CTVNews.ca Staff, 2015). This echoes Andrea Smith’s argument in “Heteropatriarchy and the Three Pillars of White Supremacy: Rethinking Women of Color Organizing” that colonialism continues to affect Aboriginals through genocide (2006, p. 68). Although such actions by the government are not physical acts of genocide, where 90% of Aboriginal population was annihilated, it is this modern day cultural assimilation that succeeded the Indigenous Residential School System and the Indian Act embodies colonialism and genocide (Larkin, November 4,
The proud Canadian denies the fact Canada oppressed the Aboriginal peoples. The fact is that time has not been assisting in the progress of the Indigenous peoples from discrimination. “Tidings of
For example, in the local school, stereotypes such as the image of the ‘wild man’ are consolidated by claiming that there was cannibalism among the indigenous people of the northwest coast (Soper-Jones 2009, 20; Robinson 2010, 68f.). Moreover, native people are still considered to be second-class citizens, which is pointed out by Lisamarie’s aunt Trudy, when she has been harassed by some white guys in a car: “[Y]ou’re a mouthy Indian, and everyone thinks we’re born sluts. Those guys would have said you were asking for it and got off scot-free”
Oppression (of their identity) eg. on their cultural practices due to their land (what was originally their ancestor’s land) being adjusted by other cultures, laws and expectations eg. to find employment/seek (westernised) medical advice that are westernised (as opposed to being like what the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders’ culture was based on)
The indigenous people of Australia, called the Aborigines, are the oldest culture found on Earth. Studies show that the Aboriginal genome can be traced back seventy-five thousand years to when this community first migrated from Africa to Australia. As the oldest known continuous culture, their traditions and rituals have thrived even though the world around them has changed so drastically. In this paper I’d like to talk about the history of Aboriginal cultures in Australia, their cultural rituals and how their culture has been so heavily influenced and changed over the last few decades.
The creation of indigenous media content has proven highly beneficial and important for indigenous audiences. Indigenous media is important because it allows a platform for indigenous audiences to present themselves in a way which is often either neglected or negatively portrayed in mainstream media. This is important to the identity work of indigenous cultures and extends to the culture and connection of the indigenous community and wider culture. In particular this essay will focus on the representation of indigenous people in their own media and how they use indigenous media to show accurate and positive representations of themselves. Specifically focusing on television content, this essay will draw upon work by media scholars to illustrate