By DIARRAH BALLO, age 15
PHOTO: BiblioArchives/LibraryArchives
A Canadian Truth and Reconciliation Commission has found the government’s policy of removing indigenous children from their families and placing them in state-sponsored Christian schools amounted to “cultural genocide.” Cultural genocide is the intentional destruction of a particular group’s cultural identity. Between 1883 and 1998, 150,000 native students were sent to Christian schools under this policy. The report alleges this policy was put in place to avoid legal and financial obligations and to gain control over indigenous lands and resources.
