A Knock On The Door Analysis
Overview
A Knock On The Door provides readers with a full outlook on Canada’s residential school system through a series of narrations and data analyses. The prime issue to notice is the persistency in Canada’s government to pursue the completion of a conscious policy of cultural genocide in events that hardly live up to the label of history due to its recency. Additionally, the book encompasses the structural oppressive social norms the Indigenous community endured such as being seen as savages instead of rightfully being seen as an equal to the Canadian citizen. Furthermore, the education system believed that Aboriginal children would never amount to much, or that they were incompetent for authentic education hence a lack of qualified teachers, authority-regulating protocols, but rather a greater emphasis on chores and punishments. Moreover, an essential aspect to keep in mind about residential schools is that this was …show more content…
not the sole and isolated work of government policies alone, but mainly the Catholic community wanting to expand; churches, at the very least had an equal amount of power and force as the government had in ruling residential schools. The central purpose of these institutions was to gain religious assimilation as Christianity was directly linked to European colonization, in which the native community endangered. As a whole, the goal of residential schools was to kill the Indian in the child, transform them to white Christian civilians, and bring civilization to indigenous people. Or more clearly, colonize Indigenous societies. Canada along with the rest of the world, related European customs to development; so society morphed this ideal even further, to deem colonization as the key to development. Unfortunately, our government was willing to sacrifice an entire race for the purpose of a constitutionalized perception. Next, the primary stakeholders consisted of the Catholic community - priests and nuns in particular, the entire Native community, and the Canadian government. However the impact this event has spreads to touch any minority because Canada’s alarming emphasis on the supremacy and idolization of the white race is patronizing, oppressing, and plainly just scary to know they are historically and habitually not seen as equal to the superior race. Children in welfare particular in the year 1960 were largely afflicted with the residential schools as 50% of children in welfare were placed in these institutions; victims included, but are not limited to, orphans, foster children and homeless youths. Onward, residential schools were mainly geographically concentrated in the midst of the Canadian prairies such as Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Manitoba, they were also popular along the coasts of British Columbia. Generally speaking, residential schools were typically located among the borders of provinces and territories including Ontario, Quebec, Nunavut, and Yukon, as they were least common in Canada’s East coast. Furthermore, the invention of residential schools dates back to the early 17th century. In context though, Canadian residential schools gained momentum in the 1880s with the peak enrollment rates achieved during 1956-1957, and have lasted until 1998.
Selected Passage:
“Imperialists could argue that the presence of Indigenous people did not void a claim of terra nullius, since the Indigenous people simply occupied, rather than owned the land. True ownership, they claimed, could come only with European-style agriculture” (Truth and Reconciliation, 20).
From this selected passage, the author reminds readers about the fundamental origins of the Indigenous to government relations in Canada, a land dispute. Through this passage, the author spotlights the political and referral documents that have settled the age-old issue, but readers can analyze the complete tendentious, ignorance, and unjust attitudes displayed by the government. Through the political spin tactic of manipulating the terms occupied and owned plus the declaration of European superiority outlawing any previous existences is quite nasty, yet not alarming. Moreover, the author allows readers to reflect on politics today, which has hopefully moralized, however stagnant political behaviours may also empower citizens to advocate for liberties in order to prevent such catastrophes such as the Residential schools. This can be exemplified by the recent American elections were several political strategies such as political spin, friendly fire, and shock and awe were religiously practiced by Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and Bernie Sanders.
Clarifying
The book thus far, has yet to supply readers with more knowledge on the grassroots regarding the causes of Native to government problems such as colonization. This exposure allows readers to pinpoint the heart of the issue, which can ultimately contribute to the success of one’s potential solution. In addition, I could benefit from more knowledge about the follow up stories of the survivors of Residential schools in aiding my understanding to the relevance of Canada’s assimilation in modern society. I’m particularly curious about how survivors are coping with their trauma such as having access to support groups/services, or if it’s too taboo in which it’s culturally unpopular to openly discuss one’s struggles in residential schools. However, I was mostly confused about the lack of government documentation that was filed about the residential schools. This is uncommon and quite strange as governments value legal and formal paperwork which solely emphasis my concern. How could our government so carelessly fail to document a government-implemented institution, especially when they had a specific goal in mind of pursuing colonization? Next, I needed more information on the White Paper to further my understanding on the extent of authoritative control that the Aboriginal community was to abide by. Overall, I was able to clarify my confusions through extending my education through researching online. I also considered the fact that upon reading the entire book, I would gain an overall improved idea of such matters of the White Paper, Indigenous people today, and Canadian colonization.
Connections
Text to world: Numerous similarities to the Holocaust such as the lack of healthcare, high death rates through the spread of diseases and treatable illnesses, socially viewed an incompetent, endured labour, constant hunger where porridge and bread were the typical meals, lack of heat, family separation, and the demolishment of existing files upon institution’s destruction. (Residential schools destroyed a total of 15 tonnes of files, mainly which were health documents.) The overall care and setting was similar but the main difference remains in how the Germans organized their camps in comparison to Canada’s leisured governmental policies to regulate the schools.
Text to text: Indigenous people seem to be a common target in several case studies such as Robert Pickton and Gilbert Paul Jordan. Again, the perceived ineptitude of the Native community proves to be persistent in Canadian history, or rather the newfound acknowledgment of the government’s deficient protection for the Indigenous community serves as a new reason to exploit Natives.
Today, Aboriginal communities still face hardships such as the current water crisis where Natives don’t have access to safe drinking water in a developed nation.
Upon the first 90 pages of my book, I was able to establish several connections and identify the repercussions of residential schools even without a great deal of appropriate detail and information from the book thus far.
Social: Residential schools reflect on Canada’s current Aboriginal society where prostitution, addiction, suicide, murder, and violence are all too common. The survivors of residential schools are still alive today and are most likely parents today. Due to their lack of childhood development, love, and affection from the adults in their life growing up, these victims do not know how to parent, they don’t know how to express emotions to their children because expression was always punished inside residential schools. On top of this, one’s childhood surroundings directly impacts their life and perspectives. We can see how family harmony quickly evaporated through the several language barriers that allowed culture to die and unhealthy habits to arise.
Economic: The government spent loads of money on the establishment of these institutions as they gained momentum in Canada.
However, the government’s goals weren’t even achieved, thus the perceived investment, wasn’t worth the risk. (Public school was more federally affordable than residential schools, but the church wouldn’t allow the government to dismantle their work and Indigenous parents initially wanted their children to learn with fellow Natives). On top of this, society recognized Aboriginals as naive and essentially mentally insufficient. This lead to unqualified teachers teaching Native youths, an unorganized curriculum that focused on religion rather than skills to help one survive in the “white world”. Consequently, the lack of education equalizes to a lack of empowerment, economic contribution and innovation. Likely, higher education programs weren’t supplied to the Aboriginal community and today, the entire education institution can emotional trigger their mental health as well as lead some to feel betrayed by an entire
establishment.
Environment: The residential schools accentuated jobs in the trades force, specifically agriculture to abide with their perception of unintelligent Indigenous people. However, due to the overall failure of residential schools, an increase in agriculture workforce seized to exist. Moreover, the Indigenous community obtains a spiritual and emotional connection with their environment as it’s part of their native religion. This belief promotes a much more sustainable lifestyle than our current routines, but regrettably, the process of colonization overlooks their wisdom. Today, Aboriginals still struggle to gain land ownership through a required procedure to gain ownership rights that were technically in the original possession of the Native community.
Political: Justin Trudeau’s campaign promised an immediate national inquiry to find missing Aboriginal females, yet this inquiry was only implemented nearly a year into the election. However, Trudeau seems willing to work alongside Indigenous communities to fix relations, he has apologized for the residential schools but sufficient legal action to protect Indigenous marginalization has yet to happen.
A Knock On The Door provides readers with a full outlook on Canada’s residential school system through a series of narrations and data analyses. The prime issue to notice is the persistency in Canada’s government to pursue the completion of a conscious policy of cultural genocide in events that hardly live up to the label of history due to its recency. Additionally, the book encompasses the structural oppressive social norms the Indigenous community endured such as being seen as savages instead of rightfully being seen as an equal to the Canadian citizen. Furthermore, the education system believed that Aboriginal children would never amount to much, or that they were incompetent for authentic education hence a lack of qualified teachers, authority-regulating protocols, but rather a greater emphasis on chores and punishments. Moreover, an essential aspect to keep in mind about residential schools is that this was …show more content…
not the sole and isolated work of government policies alone, but mainly the Catholic community wanting to expand; churches, at the very least had an equal amount of power and force as the government had in ruling residential schools. The central purpose of these institutions was to gain religious assimilation as Christianity was directly linked to European colonization, in which the native community endangered. As a whole, the goal of residential schools was to kill the Indian in the child, transform them to white Christian civilians, and bring civilization to indigenous people. Or more clearly, colonize Indigenous societies. Canada along with the rest of the world, related European customs to development; so society morphed this ideal even further, to deem colonization as the key to development. Unfortunately, our government was willing to sacrifice an entire race for the purpose of a constitutionalized perception. Next, the primary stakeholders consisted of the Catholic community - priests and nuns in particular, the entire Native community, and the Canadian government. However the impact this event has spreads to touch any minority because Canada’s alarming emphasis on the supremacy and idolization of the white race is patronizing, oppressing, and plainly just scary to know they are historically and habitually not seen as equal to the superior race. Children in welfare particular in the year 1960 were largely afflicted with the residential schools as 50% of children in welfare were placed in these institutions; victims included, but are not limited to, orphans, foster children and homeless youths. Onward, residential schools were mainly geographically concentrated in the midst of the Canadian prairies such as Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Manitoba, they were also popular along the coasts of British Columbia. Generally speaking, residential schools were typically located among the borders of provinces and territories including Ontario, Quebec, Nunavut, and Yukon, as they were least common in Canada’s East coast. Furthermore, the invention of residential schools dates back to the early 17th century. In context though, Canadian residential schools gained momentum in the 1880s with the peak enrollment rates achieved during 1956-1957, and have lasted until 1998.
Selected Passage:
“Imperialists could argue that the presence of Indigenous people did not void a claim of terra nullius, since the Indigenous people simply occupied, rather than owned the land. True ownership, they claimed, could come only with European-style agriculture” (Truth and Reconciliation, 20).
From this selected passage, the author reminds readers about the fundamental origins of the Indigenous to government relations in Canada, a land dispute. Through this passage, the author spotlights the political and referral documents that have settled the age-old issue, but readers can analyze the complete tendentious, ignorance, and unjust attitudes displayed by the government. Through the political spin tactic of manipulating the terms occupied and owned plus the declaration of European superiority outlawing any previous existences is quite nasty, yet not alarming. Moreover, the author allows readers to reflect on politics today, which has hopefully moralized, however stagnant political behaviours may also empower citizens to advocate for liberties in order to prevent such catastrophes such as the Residential schools. This can be exemplified by the recent American elections were several political strategies such as political spin, friendly fire, and shock and awe were religiously practiced by Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and Bernie Sanders.
Clarifying
The book thus far, has yet to supply readers with more knowledge on the grassroots regarding the causes of Native to government problems such as colonization. This exposure allows readers to pinpoint the heart of the issue, which can ultimately contribute to the success of one’s potential solution. In addition, I could benefit from more knowledge about the follow up stories of the survivors of Residential schools in aiding my understanding to the relevance of Canada’s assimilation in modern society. I’m particularly curious about how survivors are coping with their trauma such as having access to support groups/services, or if it’s too taboo in which it’s culturally unpopular to openly discuss one’s struggles in residential schools. However, I was mostly confused about the lack of government documentation that was filed about the residential schools. This is uncommon and quite strange as governments value legal and formal paperwork which solely emphasis my concern. How could our government so carelessly fail to document a government-implemented institution, especially when they had a specific goal in mind of pursuing colonization? Next, I needed more information on the White Paper to further my understanding on the extent of authoritative control that the Aboriginal community was to abide by. Overall, I was able to clarify my confusions through extending my education through researching online. I also considered the fact that upon reading the entire book, I would gain an overall improved idea of such matters of the White Paper, Indigenous people today, and Canadian colonization.
Connections
Text to world: Numerous similarities to the Holocaust such as the lack of healthcare, high death rates through the spread of diseases and treatable illnesses, socially viewed an incompetent, endured labour, constant hunger where porridge and bread were the typical meals, lack of heat, family separation, and the demolishment of existing files upon institution’s destruction. (Residential schools destroyed a total of 15 tonnes of files, mainly which were health documents.) The overall care and setting was similar but the main difference remains in how the Germans organized their camps in comparison to Canada’s leisured governmental policies to regulate the schools.
Text to text: Indigenous people seem to be a common target in several case studies such as Robert Pickton and Gilbert Paul Jordan. Again, the perceived ineptitude of the Native community proves to be persistent in Canadian history, or rather the newfound acknowledgment of the government’s deficient protection for the Indigenous community serves as a new reason to exploit Natives.
Today, Aboriginal communities still face hardships such as the current water crisis where Natives don’t have access to safe drinking water in a developed nation.
Upon the first 90 pages of my book, I was able to establish several connections and identify the repercussions of residential schools even without a great deal of appropriate detail and information from the book thus far.
Social: Residential schools reflect on Canada’s current Aboriginal society where prostitution, addiction, suicide, murder, and violence are all too common. The survivors of residential schools are still alive today and are most likely parents today. Due to their lack of childhood development, love, and affection from the adults in their life growing up, these victims do not know how to parent, they don’t know how to express emotions to their children because expression was always punished inside residential schools. On top of this, one’s childhood surroundings directly impacts their life and perspectives. We can see how family harmony quickly evaporated through the several language barriers that allowed culture to die and unhealthy habits to arise.
Economic: The government spent loads of money on the establishment of these institutions as they gained momentum in Canada.
However, the government’s goals weren’t even achieved, thus the perceived investment, wasn’t worth the risk. (Public school was more federally affordable than residential schools, but the church wouldn’t allow the government to dismantle their work and Indigenous parents initially wanted their children to learn with fellow Natives). On top of this, society recognized Aboriginals as naive and essentially mentally insufficient. This lead to unqualified teachers teaching Native youths, an unorganized curriculum that focused on religion rather than skills to help one survive in the “white world”. Consequently, the lack of education equalizes to a lack of empowerment, economic contribution and innovation. Likely, higher education programs weren’t supplied to the Aboriginal community and today, the entire education institution can emotional trigger their mental health as well as lead some to feel betrayed by an entire
establishment.
Environment: The residential schools accentuated jobs in the trades force, specifically agriculture to abide with their perception of unintelligent Indigenous people. However, due to the overall failure of residential schools, an increase in agriculture workforce seized to exist. Moreover, the Indigenous community obtains a spiritual and emotional connection with their environment as it’s part of their native religion. This belief promotes a much more sustainable lifestyle than our current routines, but regrettably, the process of colonization overlooks their wisdom. Today, Aboriginals still struggle to gain land ownership through a required procedure to gain ownership rights that were technically in the original possession of the Native community.
Political: Justin Trudeau’s campaign promised an immediate national inquiry to find missing Aboriginal females, yet this inquiry was only implemented nearly a year into the election. However, Trudeau seems willing to work alongside Indigenous communities to fix relations, he has apologized for the residential schools but sufficient legal action to protect Indigenous marginalization has yet to happen.