“It is time for Canada to have a renewed, nation-to-nation relationship with Indigenous Peoples, based on recognition, rights, respect, co-operation and partnership.”
Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, at the Assembly of First Nations Special Chiefs Assembly on December 8, 2015
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was moved to tears when officially recognizing Canada’s abuses towards aboriginals during the Assembly of First Nations Special Chiefs on December 8, 2015.
Aboriginal people of Canada comprises First Nations, Inuit and Métis. They are considered as the “natives” of Canada, occupying the territories before the Europeans’ arrival in the 17th century. As of the 2011 census, they comprise 4.3% of the population. Moreover, they are currently 634 First Nations governments recognized by the Canadian government.
The colonization of Canada by France and Britain led to large-scale assimilation policies, mainly illustrated by the Canadian Indian Residential School System. Implemented during the 19th century, residential schools were meant to “kill the Indian in the child”, i.e. to “civilize” Aboriginal children. A report released by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in December 2015 revealed that children enrolled in residential schools faced malnutrition, physical abuse and rape, that led to the death…show more content… The term Inuit refers to people living in the Artic regions of Canada and the United States. The term Métis concerns people who are descendants of both of Aborigine and Europeans. Finally, the term First Nations refer to hundreds of indigenous tribes living all across Canada, mainly in the provinces of British Columbia and Ontario. Moreover, these people identify more to the name of their tribe rather than by the term First Nations. Indeed, each group has its own language along with its own cultural and social habits. Likewise, some live in cities, while other still live in