Wealth is the many fortunes that billions of people have never gotten a glimpse of. In contrast, poverty has drenched the lives of over three billion people; 270 million of these people are Indigenous. The 15 percent of the world’s indigenous poverty resides in Canada. Issues such as land usage, lack of employment, internal conflicts, poor education, and racism are well known factors of poverty. The Indigenous peoples of Canada are predominantly controlled by the issues derived from poverty.
Since the 1800s, the ways that First Nations used their land was forever changed by the Europeans. Specifically, the British people arrived with the intention of colonization which led to treaty negotiations. The moment that the First Nations signed treaties was the moment that they were experiencing the true nature of poverty. It is because the Europeans had taken out most of their people and so as their resources. As a result, most of them were forced to adapt in European ways of modern medicine and agriculture. In addition, the British parliament introduced the Indian Act of 1876 which specified small tracts of land called reserves. Many First Nations were forced to relocate on reserve lands. These reserves were poorly set up and had a limited amount of land. Therefore, the First Nations had limited resources which made poverty to flourish even more. The ways that land was used were not the only things affected by poverty, but so as the modern day of employment.
Unemployment is some of the fruits of destitution. Today, Aboriginal peoples of Canada have a low educational attainment. This is due to the fact of difficult family and personal circumstances that are rooted by poverty. Furthermore, the white tended to view Aboriginals as infer...
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...ues will be the vehicle to destruction of the surviving Aboriginal communities.
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Walker, Y. (n.d.). Aboriginal Family Issues. Retrieved November 19, 2013, from Australian Insitute of Family Studies.
In Canada, access to health care is ‘universal’ to its citizens under the Canadian Health Care Act and this system is considered to the one of the best in the world (Laurel & Richard, 2002). Access to health care is assumed on the strong social value of equality and is defined as the distribution of services to all those in need and for the common good and health of all residents (Fierlbeck, 2011). Equitable access to health care does not mean that all citizens are subjected to receive the same number of services but rather that wherever the service is provided it is based on need. Therefore, not all Canadians have equal access to health services. The Aboriginal peoples in Canada in particular are a population that is overlooked and underserved
Despite the decreasing inequalities between men and women in both private and public spheres, aboriginal women continue to be oppressed and discriminated against in both. Aboriginal people in Canada are the indigenous group of people that were residing in Canada prior to the European colonization. The term First Nations, Indian and indigenous are used interchangeably when referring to aboriginal people. Prior to the colonization, aboriginal communities used to be matrilineal and the power between men and women were equally balanced. When the European came in contact with the aboriginal, there came a shift in gender role and power control leading towards discrimination against the women. As a consequence of the colonization, the aboriginal women are a dominant group that are constantly subordinated and ignored by the government system of Canada. Thus today, aboriginal women experiences double jeopardy as they belong to more than one disadvantaged group i.e. being women and belonging to aboriginal group. In contemporary world, there are not much of a difference between Aboriginal people and the other minority groups as they face the similar challenges such as gender discrimination, victimization, and experiences injustice towards them. Although aboriginal people are not considered as visible minorities, this population continues to struggle for their existence like any other visible minorities group. Although both aboriginal men and women are being discriminated in our society, the women tends to experience more discrimination in public and private sphere and are constantly the targeted for violence, abuse and are victimized. In addition, many of the problems and violence faced by aborigin...
“In about half of the Dominion, the aboriginal rights of Indians have arguably been extinguished by treaty” (Sanders, 13). The traditions and culture of Aboriginals are vanishing at a quick pace, and along it is their wealth. If the Canadian Government restore Native rights over resource development once again, Aboriginals would be able to gain back wealth and help with the poverty in their societies. “An influential lobby group with close ties to the federal Conservatives is recommending that Ottawa ditch the Indian Act and give First Nations more control over their land in order to end aboriginal poverty once and for all” (End First). This recommendation would increase the income within Native communities, helping them jump out of
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.
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
As a conclusion summary to the ideas that were represented in this essay, the aboriginals in Canada were and are still are to certain degree victims of a predigest government.
The needs of Aboriginal youth are not being met in mainstream systems. Undoubtedly, with the high dropout rate of “7 out of 10 first nation youth drop out of school” (Donovan, 128), the school system is failing them. Across Canada only “23 percent of the Aboriginal population has their high school diploma” (Donovan, 129). Aboriginal people make up the youngest and fastest growing segment of our population, and yet many still have significantly less education than the general population.
Economically, they have operated with a system of barter and sharing. Many still expect the wealth of the community to be shared; what we might interpret as begging, they feel to be a natural consequence of wealth sharing. Unlike the incredible selfishness of many in the United States, with the "I earned it without the help of anyone else" attitude, many indigenous people seem to share more freely, believing that they are gifted when they have more then another. A person is admired not for what they own, but for their skill in hunting and providing for themselves and for their community. This ability to share might be a lesson to learn for survival that Americans have somehow lost.
Prior to the arrival of the Europeans in Canada in the mid- to late 1600s, Aboriginal people were the original inhabitants of the Canadian land. In Canadian history, we forced our Aboriginal people to adapt to the European-Canadian culture and values. Prior to overthrowing their land and culture, the Aboriginal peoples were thriving off the natural land materialistically and financially. In years to come in response to the mistreatment of them, the Canadian government would implement what is known as the Indigenous and Northern Affairs act [1966] this act would aim to establish financial rights and benefits for the aboriginal demographic. Today in the 21st century Canada is comprised of over 1.4 million indigenous peoples (Aylsworth
In today 's society, there is 1 in 7 people living in poverty which is costing Canadian citizens’ money as they are paying for taxes. There are many standpoints in which people examine the ways poverty affect society such as Marx’s conflict theory. Marx’s conflict theory goes over how social stratification being inevitable and how there is a class consciousness within people in the working class. Another way that poverty is scrutinized is by feminization. Feminization is the theory that will be explored throughout this essay. Poverty will be analyzed in this essay to determine the significance of poverty on the society and the implications that are produced.
Poverty is a leading contributor of unhealthy infant births and directly leads to unnecessary death caused by lack of quality healthcare and malnutrition. Poverty also contributes to lower life expectancy because some families are not able to provide their families with the necessary health care they need and provide them with enough nourishment to live a healthy life. Studies also show that “in 2013, 45.3 million people (14.5 percent) were living in a poverty stricken area” (Feedingamerica.org). The percentage has gone up increasingly. Poverty also has a huge impact on why some teenagers choose to drop out and go straight to work. In most cases poverty is the dominant reason why some individuals experience high stress levels , use illegal
Some of the poorest nations on the globe were former colonies that have been affected by slave-exporting which people used as resources for the benefit of colonizing other countries. These slaves had conditions created by the importers of slaves, which prevented these people from possessing property and money and pursuing education. Due to these conditions, the absolute poverty was passed down from generation to generation, forming chronic
We exist in a world where the United States is one of the most prosperous nations; however, we are struggling with poverty amongst our people. Poverty is a state after people lack the acceptable means of money or material possessions. There are some who may argue that there is no reason why people should be below the poverty line if the government is providing welfare assistance. What some may not be aware of or understand is that these government programs are not always effective and they can also be inconsistent, leaving people who need the support helpless and frustrated. Poverty can be viewed as an ongoing consequence of how the welfare systems are structured. There essential elements that are leading many individual as well as families into poverty include the employment opportunities, inability to meet welfare of high standards of living and costs of living, and the inadequate education.
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Throughout the last few years, poverty has struck every inch of the United States. The social, moral and economic issues that result from poverty divides us as a nation. One of the most controversial issues is how the many media outlets portray poverty and destitution. News conglomerates such was Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN use propaganda to sway public opinions on important issues and stories. While many networks rightfully portray poverty with a negative connotation, others will shy away from the issues and concentrate on more “glamorous” stories.