E3. Identities, Cultures, and Self-Determination
Specific Expectations
E3.1
analyse various short- and long-term consequences of Indian residential school policy and the practices associated with it (e.g., short-term: disregard for parental rights, disruption of families, loss of knowledge of language and traditional culture, human experimentation, missing children, unrecorded burials in unmarked graves, sexual and physical abuse; long-term: trauma across generations, cultural assimilation and loss of identity, isolation from mainstream society and home communities, mental and physical health issues, the impact on the development of parenting skills and family bonding)
- What motives were behind the policies and operations of residential schools in Canada? What did these motives reveal about attitudes towards Indigenous peoples?
- In your opinion, what are the most significant lasting consequences of the residential school system? Why?
- What lessons, if any, do you think we as a society have learned from the history of residential schools?
E3.2
analyse strategies used by some individuals and groups during this period to secure the recognition of Aboriginal title and treaty rights, and/or respect for Indigenous identities, and assess the impact of these strategies (e.g., with reference to individuals such as Louis Riel, Gabriel Dumont, F. O. Loft [Onondeyoh], Deskaheh; court challenges such as Regina v. Simon, 1958, or Francis v. the Queen, 1969; the Six Nations petition to the League of Nations, 1923, for recognition of their sovereignty; the creation of Haudenosaunee passports; Kahnawake lawsuits against the federal government over land disputes; the creation of the League of Indians of Canada and/or the Association des Métis d’Alberta et des Territoires du Nord Ouest)
E3.3
describe some environmental issues that had an impact on Indigenous communities during this period, and explain their significance for Indigenous individuals and communities and some non-Indigenous groups in Canada (e.g., with respect to the near extermination of the buffalo; Indigenous hunting, trapping, and fishing rights versus government control of natural resources; mercury pollution from pulp mills in northern Ontario; contamination of Arctic lands along the DEW line)
- What were some environmental issues of particular concern to Indigenous communities during this period? Why were these issues important? Did non-Indigenous Canadians tend to share their concerns? If not, how would you account for the difference in perspectives?
E3.4
analyse the impact that technological advancements had on First Nations, Métis, and Inuit cultures during this period (e.g., acculturation through exposure to radio, movies, television; changes in lifestyles as a result of developments in transportation such as railway expansion, cars, airplanes, snowmobiles; disruption to traditional lifestyles associated with resource development)
- What impact did new transportation technologies have on previously isolated Indigenous communities? How did such developments affect the cultures of these communities?
- What are some ways in which technology contributed to both the loss and the preservation of aspects of traditional lifestyles in First Nations, Métis, and/or Inuit communities?
E3.5
analyse some issues, trends, and developments in the arts and popular culture that are relevant to Indigenous peoples during this period, including the cultural contributions of some Indigenous individuals in Canada (e.g., the popularity of Wild West shows in the late nineteenth century; the depiction of Indigenous cultures and/or individuals in Hollywood movies and on television; the increasing influence of American culture; the appropriation of Indigenous symbols in advertising and/or art by non-Indigenous artists; the contributions of Indigenous artists, craftspeople, and/or writers such as Charles Edenshaw [Tahayghen], Pauline Johnson, or Mungo Martin [Nakapankam]; the Indigenous pavilion at Expo 67)
- What are some examples of Indigenous images being used by sports clubs during this period? What type of responses do the mascots and logos evoke from the audience? Do you think sports team logos containing Indigenous imagery perpetuate stereotypes? Why, or why not?
- How did the creation of the Western Baffin Eskimo Co-operative contribute to interest in Inuit culture?
