Residential School System: State-Sponsored Bullying? The Residential School System: Was it a Form of State-Sponsored Bullying?

From as early as the mid 1800s through to the late 1900s, scores of Aboriginal children were compelled to attend residential schools that sought to, amongst other things, assimilate the said children into the dominant culture. In Canada, we had the Indian residential schools, whereas in the U.S. there were the American Indian boarding schools. Over time, there has been a lot of controversy regarding not only the conditions those youngsters who attended the residential schools experienced, but also the rationality of forcibly immersing children into cultures they were not familiar with. Some have equated the residential school system to some form of state-sanctioned bullying.

Discussion

Compelling children to discard their cultures, in favor of the dominant culture, was a form of bullying. To begin with, it is important to note that as Sinclair and Hamilton (1991) point out, the residential school system essentially immersed Aboriginal children into institutions, mostly church-run, and ingrained into their young minds the merits of the British culture, while at the same time indignifying the cultures from which they (the children) came from. On the basis of this assertion, the residential school system bore all the hallmarks of a social engineering undertaking. This particular schooling system was designed...

Bullying could variously be defined as the utilization of a superior position or role to either intimidate, influence, or force others into doing that which they would not do in the absence of external pressure. There is no question that those enrolled in the residential school system were forced or compelled to abandon their cultures, and instead embrace the culture of the majority. These institutions were perfect tools of undermining Aboriginal beliefs, culture, and way of life - and by extension, Aboriginal societies. Sinclair admits that the residential school system was instrumental in stopping him from subscribing to his ancestor's traditions. Forcible enfranchisement amounts to bullying.
Next, the forcible transfer of children from their loving families, at a relatively tender age, to these institutions affected all those who were involved in many ways. One of the hallmarks of bullying, be it at school, prison, or any other social setting, is the hurt that results. The said forcible transfer of Aboriginal children led to the breakage of family bonds and eventually ended up fracturing the social structure. There have also been claims that residential schools left lasting effects amongst those who attended the same. This is what has, in some quarters, been branded the 'collective soul wound' -- in which case some of those who attended residential…