First Nation communities across Canada are experiencing a surge in suicide and suicide attempts, particularly among those aged 15-24. Consequently, First Nation youths within this age group are more than five to seven times more likely to commit suicide than their non- First Nation peers (Mark,2013). Although these statistics are grim, suicide ideation (thoughts of seriously considering suicide) among adults is equally worrisome (Mark, 2013). A 2008-10 survey conducted by the First Nations Information Governance Centre revealed that nearly 25% of First Nation adults had contemplated suicide at some point in their lives (CTV). To put things in perspective, suicidal thoughts among non- First Nation adults rests at approximately 9%.
Tim Fontaine’s…show more content… The expropriation of Aboriginal land and resources and the attempts made to assimilate and Christianise Aboriginal peoples are only some examples of the internal colonialism that litters Canadian history. The reserve system is one element of Canada’s colonial past that is still very much alive today. Reserves were primarily created as way to control and regulate the movement of Aboriginal peoples and their ways of living. Under the watchful eye of the federal government’s Department of Indian Affairs, Aboriginal peoples were uprooted from their traditional territories and moved onto small parcels of land without access to resources or any hope of economic prosperity. The state of many of Canada’s reserves are very reflective of this colonial practise as many are still without access to adequate resources, are prone to overcrowding and are chronically underfunded by the Canadian…show more content… In the past, policies instituted by the federal government sought to disenfranchise Aboriginal communities through the destruction of customs, culture and belief systems in order to assimilate Aboriginal peoples into Canadian society ( Book). The residential school system, where children were unjustly taken from their families and placed in schools rife with physical, mental and sexual abuse, played a significant role in the obliteration of Aboriginal identity. The effects of this most atrocious assimilation policy has been devastating not only to those who suffered the abuse first hand, their families and communities but has also spilled over into the current generation and will without a doubt continue to affect future generations. It is therefore unsurprising that assimilation practises that sought to “take the Indian out of the child” through the methodological dismantling of language, culture and belief systems through “education” would factor into the current suicide crisis. Coupled with poverty, crumbling infrastructure on reserves and the residual effects of the residential school system have done nothing but create a hotbed of despair that has resulted in the tragic loss of life within Aboriginal communities across
