so it’s canadian thanksgiving this weekend and i just wanna take a second to speak up against the historical and current plight of the aboriginal peoples of canada
- in the last 30 years, almost 1200 aboriginal women in canada have gone missing or been murdered (more about it here)
- the last residential school in canada (x) didn’t close until 1996
- at least 3000 children died in canadian residential schools from the 1870s to the 1990s
- things like alcoholism, drug use, child neglect/abuse on reserves, which are often used as reasons why aboriginal peoples “don’t deserve” the help of the canadian government, can be linked to the destruction caused by the residential schools
- half of first nations children live in poverty
- prime minister stephen harper has repeatedly proven that he doesn’t care about aboriginal people (x) (x)
- rates of suicide amongst aboriginal youth are five to six times higher than the national average
there is so much more to be said about this issue, but this list would go on for pages. i just really wanted to bring to attention that canada isn’t a cutesy, super-nice country like everyone makes it out to be.
thanksgiving is wonderful in terms of spending time with family and friends and having gratitude for the good things in your life. but i think it’s very important for me as a white canadian to realize the trauma inflicted on native canadians by our government, past and present, and this is especially important on thanksgiving