Then there came about years of genocide (life and culture), massacres, forced assimiliation, religious conversion, the stolen generation etc.
The history of our treatment of Aboriginal peoples is just as bad. Perhaps one of the reasons that white Canadians tend to know more about it is that there were two serious campaigns of armed resistance among Aboriginal peoples - they are called the Riel Rebellions after Louis Riel, the Métis leader of the resistance. (The Métis are a recognised aboriginal people in Canada, being the descendants of marriages between Aboriginal people and Europeans).
The Rebellions are a significant part of our history, and so as kids we learn, at the very least, that there were Aboriginal peoples who wanted us to stay away from their land strongly enough to fight and die for it in ways that Europeans could recognise as traditional warfare.
Canada's problem is that we have become so attached to our image as a peacekeeping nation with a good record on human rights that we are reluctant to examine anything in our history that goes against this image.
What we need to do is realise that we will better live up to this ideal of what Canada could be if we acknowledge where we have not done well in the past, and actually do something concrete to acknowledge, atone for and change it.
That said, I do think that there are some things we are learning to do better, and the concept of valuing our multiculturalism and diversity is a part of that.
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2009-02-04 10:51 pm (UTC)The history of our treatment of Aboriginal peoples is just as bad. Perhaps one of the reasons that white Canadians tend to know more about it is that there were two serious campaigns of armed resistance among Aboriginal peoples - they are called the Riel Rebellions after Louis Riel, the Métis leader of the resistance. (The Métis are a recognised aboriginal people in Canada, being the descendants of marriages between Aboriginal people and Europeans).
The Rebellions are a significant part of our history, and so as kids we learn, at the very least, that there were Aboriginal peoples who wanted us to stay away from their land strongly enough to fight and die for it in ways that Europeans could recognise as traditional warfare.
Canada's problem is that we have become so attached to our image as a peacekeeping nation with a good record on human rights that we are reluctant to examine anything in our history that goes against this image.
What we need to do is realise that we will better live up to this ideal of what Canada could be if we acknowledge where we have not done well in the past, and actually do something concrete to acknowledge, atone for and change it.
That said, I do think that there are some things we are learning to do better, and the concept of valuing our multiculturalism and diversity is a part of that.