History and Legacy of Residential Schools in Canada

English 115
History and Legacy of Residential Schools in Canada
Name
Professor
Course
Date

English 115
Thesis
Residential schools have been characterized by quite a number of unacceptable and
ethically wrong behaviors.
Introduction
Residential schools were initially government-sponsored schools that were purposefully
established to help in the assimilation of some indigenous young children into the larger
Canadian society.
Although these schools were meant to assimilate indigenous students from all over the globe, the
government purposefully used these residential schools as a tool and means to strip off these
indigenous people some very fundamental and basic human rights (Regan, 2010). Their dignity
was taken away from them and were treated just like objects rather than normal human beings.
Despite all these inhumane actions that were taking place inside the walls of the
residential schools, it is important to note that these schools were initially created by Christian
churches and the Canadian government. Young people were forcebally converted into
Christianity as a means of civilizing them (MacDonald & Hudson, 2012).
This write-up aims towards unveiling some of the things that were actually taking place in the
residential schools and the effects they caused to their subjects.
Body
For quite some time now, certain misconceptions have existed about residential schools.
It is very important that this issue is cleared out before we look at it in a much deeper context.
Residential schools were not just about educating the Indians as people have always thought, as a