Residential Schools Reflection

Between 1831 and 1996, over 130 residential schools existed across Canada. It’s only been 22 years since the last school closed in Saskatchewan. Residential schools are important to us now because people went through horrible things like being punished and abused. The First Nations people who were forced to go were here before us and didn’t deserve this. The Prime Minister and everyone in Canada feels bad about what the people went through, so the government donated money to support them. People who weren’t treated fairly in residential schools need the money to buy food, get an education, and find somewhere to live because all those things were taken away when they were young. Other citizens wear orange shirts to show their support of the First Nations people every year on September 30. We wear orange shirts because a girl who went to residential school was forced to take it off when she went. She and all the other students had to lose their language and speak only English, so it was hard for them to talk to their parents. They were hit all the time and got dirty food which made them very sick. They weren’t treated well at all. They weren’t allowed to go home all year or talk to their parents or siblings. The history of residential schools is connected to us today. We are part of the reconciliation calls to action the government agreed to. Everyone needs to get treated well and equally. In our class, we do a land acknowledgment every Monday morning in community circle called The Turtle Island Welcome. It sounds like this: “Welcome to Turtle Island! We share and take care of the land and the water with Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabe people. Together, we are better!”