7th Thursday Thirteen " 13 Reasons for the Apology"

Yesterday the Prime Minister of Canada presented the First Nations people with an Apology for the eighty thousand (possibly 150,000) aboriginal children taken from their villages and forced into Residential schools, where they were stripped of their rich native culture then physically and sexually abused. To hear the Prime Minister poignant short Speech and read more about this issue check here.

My Seventh Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen reasons why the Canadian Government owed the First Nations people an apology for the former resident schools.

1) It changed the fiber of who our first nation’s people were! Many lost the foundations of their language and culture!

2) The damage done to the aboriginal community has cause immeasurable suffering which has become generational!

3) Aboriginal children in Residential schools and their parents were stripped of their rights, and dignities. One child watched as a six year old girl died; her parents were never notified of her pending death.

4) Because the suicide amongst children of parents who attended residential schools is six to seven times higher than the rest of the Canadian populace. Children tormented in the residential schools have passed on some of the indignities they suffered to their offspring.

5) Death of Children in the residential schools was higher than children raised within their villages.

6) Because until now this injustice was not recognized in history books and has not been a part of the Canadian education system. Therefore many Canadian people have penalized and treated aboriginals with prejudice and judgment.

7) Because aboriginals were robbed of their childhoods and forced to live like prisoners

8) Because they were beaten and sexually abused

9) Because many aboriginals have become substance abusers in order to mask childhood cruelties.

10) To affirm the indignities forced upon them so they may implement a healing process.

11) Because a large populace of natives are still housed in Canadian jails, ramification of the abuse suffered by parents in residential schools.

12) Because many Canadians refused to recognize first Nations people as an oppressed sector expecting them to work through their adversity and move on.

13) To affirm abuse suffered in residential schools presenting them with a forum to speak about the humiliations suffered in those schools in an effort to diminish horrific shame carried on to the next generation!