In pre-contact Anishnaabek times, child abuse was not a social problem. Children were taught and cared for by all members of the community, most particularly women. Children were educated in the ways of their culture, in a learning process that started at birth and continued until death. At the core of this education was respect; respect for each other, the Earth, and the Creator. Children were seen as a gift from the Creator and highly loved, cared for, and respected. Child abuse was basically non-existent.
Anishnaabee women themselves were also highly respected, and had responsibility and power within their tribe. Women were also primary gatherers in their community, and were responsible for looking after children. They also prepared animal skins and made clothing. Women were treated equally to men, as all people were valued and respected. Issues that women face throughout history, such as gender inequality, were not present in the Anishnaabek people before their contact with Europeans.
However, the arrival of Europeans brought about changes to the Anishnaabe way of life. The Europeans were trying to assimilate the Aboriginal culture. First Nations people were moved onto reservations and there was the arrival of residential schools. Residentials schools sought to destroy the culture of the Anishnaabe people, by "stamping it out" in the children. There have been numerous cases of sexual and physical abuses in the schools, as well as deaths, and sicknesses. The children were torn from their families and then, after they had been completely wiped of their previous cultural, returned to their homes where they did not fit in at all. Mary-Ellen Kelm writes “scores of residential school children were discharged because they were not expected to live. This strategy was intended to achieve humanitarian and practical ends. It allowed the family to spend some time with the child before the child’s death, and it meant one less death to be investigated at the school.”
The social issue of child abuse in pre- contact Anishnaabe families was basically unheard of and non-existent, because of the love and care they showed for their children. However, with the arrival of Europeans, this changed, particularly with the introduction of Residential Schools, which had exuberant amounts of child abuses and horrors.
- Jessica
References:
Canada's First Nations: European Contact. (n.d.). Home | University of Calgary. Retrieved from http://www.ucalgary.ca/applied_history/tutor/firstnations/approaches.html
Canada's History - Walking on the Lands of Our Ancestors. (n.d.). Canada's History - Home. Retrieved from http://www.canadashistory.ca/Education/Lesson-Plans/Lesson-Plans/High/Walking-on-the-Lands-of-Our-Ancestors.aspx
First Nations Health Council. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.fnhc.ca/images/uploads/FNHC_Health_Governance_Book-web2.pdf
The Eastern Woodland Hunters - Family / Social Structure / Leadership. (n.d.). First Peoples of Canada Before Contact Menu. Retrieved from http://firstpeoplesofcanada.com/fp_groups/fp_wh6.html
Anishnaabe people fight for the rights to return to their previous ways, asking the social services to not get involved in raising their children. After reading this blog I wonder to myself if could learn from Anishnaabe traditions to help raise our own children. Should we allow Anishnaabe people to raise their own children without interference? Europeans destroyed thousands of years of culture and values and beliefs, we cannot expect them to be instilled in a matter of days or years. If we were to follow their ways it would takes years upon years to return to the state in which it was before. If child abuse was pretty much none existent, how have we gotten to this place where every where we turn there are children being abused by other children as well as adults. They create a sustainable, well functioning community who are we to say that our methods are better when the end result is where we are today, having millions upon millions of cases of child abuse. I really enjoyed reading your blog, and I am very curious to learn more about children in the Anishnaabic societies.
ReplyDeleteChristine- Timmins
Jess,
ReplyDeleteThis post was really good. I especially enjoyed your explanation of the culture difference pre and post European arrival.
I think that a lot of people are unaware of how good life was before the European's decided to over power such a strong, value-based, and positive community. Perhaps my opinion is biased because I am a woman, but I wish the view of women was that of the times reflected upon in your post that the Anishaabee community had.
The explanation of the unfortunate dismissing of the Anishaabee culture is horrific. For a culture to have such a good value system and work so well together and then one day progressively loose it all is extremely depressing.
The way you tied child abuse into both was great. The experience of the residential schools must have been extremely traumatizing, because of what they were unfortunately put through and because of the rich culture they were apart of before it happened.
Geraldine
The Aboriginals were doing just fine until the Europeans came along. There was never a problem of abuse because there was no crime and everyone just lived in harmony with each other as well as the earth.They had a very well-developed vaule system. Then the Europeans come along and trick the Aborignals and take their land from them. This was a great post, you explained yourself very well. Good post.:)
ReplyDelete-Helen
Good post. I felt that this was a very informative blog post. It saddens me to know that the Europeans brought about this negative issue to the Aboriginal community.
ReplyDeleteAlexandra