Conflict between Canada and the First Nations

1149 Words3 Pages

Conflict between Canada and the First Nations has been going on since the Europeans first arrived. After their arrival the First Nations way of life was hindered severely; The Europeans brought many diseases that the Aboriginal people were unfamiliar with and had no resistance to, or cure for. “By the 16th century about 80% of Canada's Native population had died from the various diseases (Renneboog, 5).” The Europeans also came to Canada with the intentions of taking all of the land for themselves, disregarding the people who occupied the land before them. Over time the Europeans had manipulated the First Nations to their will and the Aboriginals were discriminated for their different complexion, culture, customs, and way of life. But between the years 1945 and 2010 there have been many changes involving interactions with the First Nations people. Some changes were good, but most of them were bad. Canada does not deserve to be known as a nation that demonstrates equality because it has not given the First Nations people equal rights to their land, it was discriminatory to their culture and way of life, and it has denied them of a safe and legitimate education. From 1945 to 2010 Canada treated the First Nations people unfairly when it came to their rights to the land and use of its bountiful resources. In order to make things fair, the Canadian government issues treaties, which were meant to initiate the regulations of the land and its resources whatever they may be, and to verify the rights, obligations, and ownership of the land; But sometimes these treaties are broken. A well-known example of aboriginal injustice happened in the year 1990 from July 11th – September 26th. The Oka Crisis, as it was called, was a 78 day confrontati... ... middle of paper ... ...istorica Canada, 2013. Web. 12 Jul 2013. Mcnab, Miriam. "Aboriginal Women's Issues". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Toronto: Historica Canada, 2006. Web. 8 Feb 2006 Miller, J.R.. "Residential Schools". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Toronto: Historica Canada, 2012. Web. 11 Oct 2012. O'Hara, Jane and Patricia Treble. "Residential Church School Scandal". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Toronto: Historica Canada, 2003. Web. 18 Mar 2003. Reed, Kevin, Natasha Beeds, and Barbara Filion. Aboriginal Peoples in Canada. Toronto: Pearson Canada, 2011. Print. Renneboog, Richard. "Point: Discrimination Still Exists Against Aboriginal People." Canadian Points Of View: Discrimination Against Aboriginal People (2014): 2. Canadian Points of View Reference Centre. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. "The Impact of Stereotyping on Young People." MediaSmarts. National Film Board of Canada, n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014.

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