Canada Apologizes To Aboriginal Natives

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper Said Poor Treatment Of Natives In Schools Was Dark Moment In Nation's History

(AP)  Prime Minister Stephen Harper publicly apologized to native Canadians on Wednesday for the longtime government policy of taking aboriginal children away from their families and cultures.

In his historic speech, Harper said the treatment of children at the schools, where they often suffered from physical and sexual abuse, was a sad chapter in the country's history.

"We now recognize that it was wrong to separate children from rich and vibrant cultures and traditions, and that it created a void in many lives and communities and we apologize," he said in an address to Parliament televised live across Canada.

From the 19th century until the 1970s, more than 150,000 aboriginal children were required to attend state-funded Christian schools as part of a program to strip them of their native culture and assimilate them into Canadian society.

"These institutions gave rise to abuse or neglect and were inadequately controlled and we apologize for failing to protect you," Harper said.

Hundreds of former students were invited to Ottawa to witness what native leaders say is a pivotal moment for Canada's more than 1 million aboriginals, who today remain the country's poorest and most disadvantaged group.

There are more than 80,000 surviving students of the schools.

Eleven aboriginal leaders watched the apology from the floor of the House of Commons and hundreds watched from the public gallery and from the front lawn of Parliament.

The apology came just months after Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd made a similar gesture to the so-called Stolen Generations - thousands of the continent's Aborigines who were forcibly taken from their families as children under assimilation policies that lasted from 1910 to 1970.

[trishab4]

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[kretos-2009]

hypocrites

[rational_1]

What do these apologies really hope to accomplish? Their words seem so EMPTY.
Posted by anon00 at 03:39 AM : Jun 12, 2008

While it''s always struck me as stupid and meaningless to apologize to people not directly involved in the acts that led to the apology (egs. slavery and whacking the Neanderthals like you guys said), there are people alive in Canada today who were either forcibly removed from their homes or had their kids removed, and they clearly are owed an apology (and something a bit more tangible I should think). Typical government apology though... way late.

[erasmus81]

rushlimpdrug

"I said that I WORKED with the First Nations."

Actually you could say that I work FOR the First Nations.

[erasmus81]

Posted by rushlimpdrug at 10:15 PM : Jun 11, 2008

Like I said, you are an idiot.

"So you are a native of Canada?"

No, I am not.
Obvioulsy you can''t READ.
I said that I WORKED with the First Nations.

"(don''''t bother answering I already
know the answers)"

Are you kidding me?
You wouldn''t know your a-s-s from a whole in the ground.

[rushlimpdrug]

At least I am not an ignorant a-s-sh-le like you.
Posted by erasmus81 at 09:07 PM


coming from you it is a compliment.
So you are a native of Canada?
You speak a native tongue?
Or do you even bother with native
customs?

(don''t bother answering I already
know the answers)