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Our National Disgrace

THE WAY WE MISTREAT
OUR INDIAN PEOPLE

By RON SKORA

Ps isolation, illiter-
: acy—this is the legacy of
the Canadian Indian. ‘The

white man’s treatment of
‘Canada’s natives remains as
‘ghocking as any form of dis-
“crimination against Negroes in

the United States.

A recent survey among
‘€anada’s Indian population
has revealed startling facts.

When the white man first
_ invaded this continent 400
years. ago there were. some
; 200,000 Indians in what now
is Canada. Then disease, indif-
ference and outright. neglect
wiped out half the population.

Fifty years ago the Indian
seemed a doomed race. There
;, were only about 100,000 left,

housing conditions were shock-
- ing and medicine was some-
‘thing reserved for the white
man only.

Today, Indian mortality has
| declined but a close look at
_ living conditions reveals little

change. Neglect and discrim-

ination still are the white
man’s attitude.
According to the Dominion

Bureau of Statistics’ latest

publication (Canada 1960),

A Se Sa; Se

o

a

: there are nearly 180,000 regis-

- B.C. INDIAN CHILDREN

INNOCENT VICTIMS OF TV SHOWS

tered Canadian Indians. More
than 130,500 of them live on
isolated, disease-ridden reserv-
ations across Canada.

This is a breakdown of pop-
ulation by provinces (with
total number of reservations
in brackets):

British Columbia 31,140
(1,634); Alberta 16,373 (87);
Saskatchewan 19,941. (120);
Manitoba 19,382 (107); On-
tario 26,505 (164); Quebec
11,513. (26);. New Brunswick
2,735. (23); Nova Scotia 2,754
(43); Prince Edward Island
225 (4).

Today’s suffering will be
multiplied if the federal gov-
ernment blindly continues its
policy of permitting Indians
only a marginal standard of
living and allowing illiteracy
and ignorance to flourtsh.

Year after year the govern-
ment tries to whitewash this
Canadian disgrace by making
meagre handouts, relief most-
ly, to those living on over-
crowded reservations.

But there is a growing body
of opinion now which recog-
nizes that isolating Indians on
reservations was a serious mis-
take. The white man dreamed

up. the idea of the handy res-| as

ervation and now these small
areas have hardened into
shells of discrimination, block-
ing the Indian from integra-
ting into the white prosperous
community.

Anthropologist Diamond
Jenness told a parliamentary
committee in 1947 that reserv-
ations are like displaced per-
sons’ camps which sprang up
in Europe after the war.

What took place in Europe,
he said, is exactly what has
happened to the Canadian In-
dian. ;

“We segregated them from
the white population for their
own benefit. We thought that
since they did not appear cap-
able of taking care of them-
selves under modern condi-
tions, we could protect them.

“We have kept them from
starving, it is true, but we
have made them pariahs and
outcasts. In consequence they
have developed the warped
mentality of world outcasts
just like the occupants of dis-
placed- persons’ camps in Cen-
tral Europe.”

The white man continues to
hide behind a ‘promise’ made
during the Victorian age that
“Jong as the sun shines and

To the Editor:
Re: Recent incident in the

« vicinity of Southland: School,

where attention has been
. brought to light that so-called

‘white children” are attacking
Indian children on sight, with-
_ out provocation on the part of

, the victims of these vicious

4 atrocities
; tacks.

and cowardly | at-

Believe me, in all sincerity,

7 hold no animosity towards

these uninformed so-called
“white children”, for they also
‘are innocent victims of a lack
of proper discipline and infor-
mation~-as to the truth of the
first people on this continent.

The responsibility of the
savage actions of these chil-

. dren rests with the parents.

True, the hate campaigns of
the television shows are at
fault to a great extent in twist-
ing and shaping the minds of

. the youngsters. However, par-

ents can do a great deal to al-

x leviate this shameful situation.

. ting factor—it is the continual] .
» propagation of the mythical}

=

7

There is another contribu-

false assumption of white su-
‘premacy!
What can one expect of

small children? Proper teach-

ing for children ‘is equality |
and justice for all as humanity

hipotent,’
| this-shall not’ be so; thus the

is faced with a choice.. That
choice is: we must learn to
live together, in proper hu-
man relationship, or we shall
perish through our ignorance
and narrow, prejudiced think-
ing, for we should know it is
indisputably true, there is no
human skin pigmentation that
is the color of snow, which is
the one color that is white.

Conclusive evidence is that
white human beings are non-
existent. Therefore, there must
be pale grey human beings,
and no matter how fair com-
plexioned a person may be,
most certainly this does not
elevate him or- her, to a°posi-
tion of superiority over other
races.

Iam certain Divine: Laws
cannot- possibly be as inequit-
able- as to deliberately plan

that one group of human be-

ings ‘conquer their fellow “hu-
man beings, and in. their “own
land dive .them into small

‘reservations, hoping "the: vic-

tims would become extinct.

However, the one that is om-
niscient, omnipresent -and’ om-
apparently” willed

victims survived the terrible
repression and <* suffering. in
these’ ‘reservations. The plan
having thus failed, new and

more shameful tactics
adopted by the pale grey an
that of hatred; degradation
and discrimination, against the
victims of oppression.

What irony! When the peo-
ple that commit these crimes
are the same people that shout
so loudly about God and Chris-
tianity, and proclaim them-
selves the followers of Christ
the One who taught equality
for all. I am afraid you people
have gone far astray in His
teachings, and the Ten Com-
mandments.

In conclusion, I say, please
inform your children of. the
true history of this great land;
so that in future they: will not
eall our children “thieving In-
dians.” .Tell them the truth,
that. we, the Indians, first oc-

cupied and owned the whole}.

North American continent, be-
fore the pale grey man. And
since the loss of our country,
we have ‘suffered terribly, and
it is time this situation be: rec-
tified. so. that we may gain our
true. emancipation.

» Hoping this will have pene-
trated the spark of human. de-

cency of all those who. have!

compassion for their fellow
human beings. F
An Indian,
Vancouver, B.C.

Indian boy.

There is frustration and anger

in. the eyes of a

the river flows’ the Indian
shall have his own Jand.

- What’ a mockery! Even Rod-
erick Haig-Brown, Vancouver
Island magistrate and author,
once said: “The first- great
wrong was that we took the
land away from them.”

Destruction of the colorful
culture of the Indian has sap-
ped his pride. Little has been
done by the- white man for
centuries to help the Indian
integrate.

Action to educate the Indian
has been slow and weak. The
Indian. needs education, a
working trade, a sense of con-
fidence that will help him
prosper off the reservation.

More important, there must
be jobs. With unemployment
in Canada running higher than
at any time since the depres-
sion of the 1930s, off-reserva-
tion opportunities for casual
work are practically /non-
existent for the Indian. .

Federal. voting privileges
were granted to Indians only
this year — and only to those
who are war veterans or who
give up their Indian status,
that is, the right to live on
government-supported reserva-
tions.

In other words, if . today’s
Indian wants the freedom and
rights of any normal Canadian
he is shoved’ unprepared. into
the vicious competitive world
of big industry and high-
powered capitalism.

In Prince Edward Island,
Quebec, New Brunswick and
Alberta the Indian is still pre-
vented from voting in federal
elections. These provinces also
bar liquor consumption for
Indians, : ;

Local responsibility on res-
ervations is: kept to a= min-:
imum. by the. federal. Indian
Act.
tendents are employed to
make major decisions. Only 27

can make their own bylaws.

White reserve: superin-,

of 565 Indian bands in Canada.

Hundreds of Indian wat
erans almost went on thé
path in the late 1940s ¥
they returned. to face @@
able conditions on ree’)
tions. : 3

As an example of Can |
continuing neglect, the ™® |
survey revealed that 4 |
gustingly small total of -
800,000 was spent last yom)
food relief for all of the)
dians living on reservatiO™”

The government has Ie
edly refused to reveal |
type of concentrated educt
program for Indians. BY ~
figures, there were only
more Indian children. in” alt
entary school last year this ;
1949. In all grades in
school there were 2.281 %
pared. with 611: only 10
ago; vocational trai®,
schools had 434 Indial |
dents .compared. with ~)
1949. ‘2

And the number who fe
is small compared 10 —
who start in: school: P

To show that anti, 7
discrimination is. still ram
the survey quotes 2
government official as *

“The southern Pratl .
dian, has been spoiled: g-
have done too much. £%
and he won’t do enov of
himself. The northern wf
hasn’t reached that stage j
and I hope he never W
cause he works hard for
less, but he works.”

A young sociologists
ever, noted that federal
ical care for Indians stoF
months after they yeave™
ervations,

And he. added he wl
surprised to find. India? ¢
en in British ‘Columbié
Manitoba: _enjoying jail fh.
for being disorderly 9 ef
“They just like to feel
and superior . conditi®

jails—a far. cry from i j
tions on their reservatl®

March 17, 1961—PACIFI CTRIBUNEP™